#BEfútbol Minute – Weekend Preview, Week Two Underway
BIG EAST Notes - 9.22.17 (PDF)
NEW YORK – BIG EAST play continues Saturday with three games on BEDN. In the 7 o’clock hour Butler plays at Providence in a match that features the 2016 title winners as the Friars won the regular season and Butler won the championship. Xavier, the BIG EAST’s hottest team in regards to winning, plays at St. John’s. The Musketeers have not lost a match since Aug. 25, the season opener. At 8 p.m., Villanova plays at Creighton. Villanova is on a three-match winning streak and Creighton has had their last two matches go to OT. Both Creighton and Villanova made the BIG EAST Championship field last year.
League play itself starts at 2 p.m. with Georgetown at DePaul, both teams looking for their first wins in league play this year. Marquette hosts Seton Hall at 8 p.m.
During the non-conference portion of the season, the 10 BIG EAST teams went 31-26-6 against teams from other leagues, played in 21 overtime contests and went 3-6-1 against teams in the top 25.
During the week, in the seven non-conference games played, four went overtime including a 3-2 victory by Georgetown over Stony Brook, a 2-1 come-from-behind victory by Creighton over Tulsa and a 1-1 draw by Xavier with No. 15 Kentucky. The Musketeers tie on the road, freshman goalkeeper and current BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week Zachary Nelson made six saves in the 110 minutes.
Saturday on BEDN:
Rv/22 Butler at Providence – 7 p.m.
Butler visits Providence on a two-match win streak after defeating Creighton, 3-2 in overtime last weekend in Indianapolis. Providence earned a point last weekend against DePaul, a match which ended in a scoreless tie. Providence lost a midweek game 2-1 at Boston College on Tuesday. Butler leads the all-time series, 3-1-0 with a 2-0 victory last season over the Friars. Butler’s 2017 point-leader has been reigning BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week Brandon Guhl. Guhl has 14 points on the season with six goals, two assists. For the Friars, BIG EAST Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Mac Steeves leads the charge with 11 points (4G, 3A).
Rv/19 Xavierat St. John’s – 7 p.m.
Since these two teams started playing each other in 2013, Xavier has had the advantage over St. John’s, 3-0-1 with a 2-0 victory last season. The last time these teams played in Queens, they tied 0-0. Xavier comes into Saturday’s match on a seven-game unbeaten streak coming off a 1-0 OT victory over then-No. 9 Georgetown in the league-opener and a 1-1 draw at Kentucky on Wednesday. Xavier boasts this week’s National Player of the Week in Cameron Taylor. Xavier has outscored its opponents 15-7, outscoring most opponents in the first half, 13-6. Simen Hestnes leads Xavier’s offensive with 11 points (3G, 5A). Samson Sergi is the Musketeers goal-leader with five, he scored the game-tying goal at Kentucky in the 28th minute on Wednesday. St. John’s head coach Dr. Dave Masur just earned his 150th victory in BIG EAST play with a 1-0 victory at Seton Hall. The Red Storm has not played a match since their win in South Orange. St. John’s point leader is Alistair Johnston with eight points on four goals. Keeper Andrew Withers leads all current goalkeepers in career save percentage with 0.837. For 2017, he has four shutouts and a 0.893 save percentage and a 0.42 goals against average.
Villanova at Creighton – 8 p.m.
Villanova goes into Fortress Morrison on a three-game winning streak, earning a 3-1 victory over Marquette in the BIG EAST opener. The Wildcats have outscored their most recent opponents 8-1 with non-conference wins over Rider (2-0) and Saint Joseph’s (3-0). Creighton lost heart breaker at Butler in the Bluejays’ BIG EAST opener after leading 2-0 in deep into the second half. The Bluejays responded with a 2-1 overtime come-back victory over Tulsa at home on Tuesday. Creighton head coach Elmar Bolovich will be looking for win No. 100 as head coach of the Bluejays, boasting a six-year record of 99-32-12. Ricky Lopez-Espin leads Creighton with 10 points (4G, 2A). Lucas Hodges leads Villanova with 11 points (4G, 3A). The series between these two teams is tied at 2-2-0 with Villanova earning a 1-0 win in 2016.
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No. 16/20 Georgetown at DePaul – 2 p.m.
Georgetown bounced back from a 1-0 overtime loss at Xavier last weekend with a 3-2 victory over Stony Brook in non-league midweek play. The Hoyas’ last three games have gone into overtime. GU is 1-1-1 over the last three. Georgetown leads the all-time series, 6-1-1, but DePaul won last year’s meeting 1-0. DePaul’s first BIG EAST game ended in a scoreless draw at Providence. The Blue Demons lost to Bradley 1-0 in midweek action. Philipp Konigstein leads DePaul in scoring with 12 points (5G, 2A). For Georgetown, Achara leads the offensive with five goals (10 points).
Seton Hall at Marquette – 8:05 p.m.
Marquette will be looking to get their first 2017 W in the books against Seton Hall. The Golden Eagles lead the all-time series 5-4-3. Seton Hall won last year’s meeting 2-0. Marquette keeper Luis Barraza ranks 10th in the NCAA’s active career leaders in saves per game with 4.61. For 2017, Barraza 2.06 with a .705 save percentage. Seton Hall had put together a three-game winning streak before losing its last three. The Pirates have scored just one goal in the recent streak. Andres Arcila leads SHU in points with 11 (4G, 3A).
#BEfutbol Weekend Schedule
Saturday, Sept. 23
No. 16/20 Georgetown at DePaul at 2 p.m.
XAVIER at ST. JOHN’S at 7 p.m. (
BEDN Watch Link)
BUTLER at PROVIDENCE at 7 p.m. (
BEDN Watch Link)
VILLANOVA at CREIGHTON at 8 p.m. (
BEDN Watch Link)
SETON HALL at MARQUETTE at 8 p.m.
All times listed are Eastern.