(RV) New Mexico vs. Old Dominion
Friday, Nov. 4 – 7 p.m. (MT)
Albuquerque, N.M. | UNM Soccer Complex (6,200)
GAME NOTES
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — After claiming its first victory over a ranked opponent on Sunday, the University of New Mexico men’s soccer team is set to host its final regular-season game of the season against Old Dominion on Friday at 7 p.m. Prior to kick off, the Lobos will honor five seniors in their final match at the UNM Soccer Complex: Nick Rochowski, Josh Goss, Chris Gurule, Niko Hansen and Chris Wehan.
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With their victory over No. 25 South Carolina on Sunday, the Lobos moved up to fifth in the Conference USA standings and clinched their spot in the 2016 C-USA Tournament, hosted by Marshall University starting Nov. 9. UNM enters its match with Old Dominion 9-6-1 overall, 3-3-1 in the conference while the Monarchs, who earned a victory over Florida Atlantic in double overtime on Tuesday, are now 5-7-2, 2-4-1 C-USA.
Series Record vs. Old Dominion
2-2-0
In Overtime: N/A
Last Meeting: The last time the Lobos faced the Monarchs was in the middle of the season in 2015 on Oct. 10. UNM fell to then-ranked No. 11 Old Dominion by a score of 2-0. In the previous season, the Lobos topped Old Dominion by a score of 4-0 on Oct. 25, 2015.
Scouting Old Dominion
After getting out to a promising 3-1-1 start this season, Old Dominion enters its matchup with UNM having lost six of its last nine games. The Monarchs are coming off of a 2-1 double-overtime win over FAU. Prior to that win, Old Dominion fell to FIU, 4-1 on Saturday to drop in the C-USA standings. The Monarchs are led by Sebastian Hauret who posts 10 points on two goals and six assists while C-USA Preseason All-Conference selection Alex Tiesenhausen has tallied three shutouts for the Old Dominion defense.
Three Monarch players have been named C-USA players of the week this season including Niko Klosterhalfen (Offensive), Hauret (Offensive) and Jimmy Filerman (Defensive).
Last Time Out
The Lobos claimed their first victory over a ranked team this season with Sunday night’s 2-1 victory over No. 25 South Carolina. The win clinched the Lobos’ spot in the 2016 Conference USA Tournament. Senior Chris Wehan scored first for UNM in the 37th minute, notching his fifth goal of the season, before South Carolina scored the equalizer in the 57th. It was in the 65th minute that senior Niko Hansen scored his C-USA leading 10th goal of the season for his fifth game-winning goal of 2016.
Scoring Streak
The Lobos are currently riding an eight-game scoring streak. The last time UNM was shut out was on Sept. 25 in a 1-0 loss to Kentucky. The Wildcats were not ranked at the time, but are currently 12th in the nation in the NSCAA Coaches Poll (last updated Nov. 1).
Homeward Bound
UNM remains undefeated at home with a 7-0-1 record and looks to continue that streak as the Lobos close out their final regular-season home game in Albuquerque. Coach Fishbein is 54-8-5 in conference games at home in his time at UNM.
The last time UNM went undefeated at home was in 2011 when the Lobos went undefeated on the season, 18-0-4 and 10-0-0 in the MPSF.
Conference Tournament Clinched
The Lobos have earned their place in the 2016 Conference USA Tournament with their victory over South Carolina. They currently sit in fifth place with 10 points, just behind South Carolina and FIU, who each boast 13. A win against Old Dominion would put the Lobos at 13 points and potentially move them up in the tournament seeding.
Lobos vs. Ranked
With the Lobos slated to enter the 2016 C-USA Tournament on Nov. 9, they will look to face several high-quality, nationally-ranked teams. So far this season, the Lobos have struggled against ranked teams, but UNM has broken the streak with its win over No. 25 South Carolina Sunday. New Mexico has competed closely with ranked teams this season, losing four of its last five games against top-25 teams by just one goal this season. UNM also fell by a one-goal deficit to Kentucky, which was receiving votes then, but is now ranked 12th.
UNM in the Conference
The Lobos are currently ranked first in the league in shots on goal per game with 6.88, and in shots per game (14.88). UNM is also ranked second in fouls per game (9.56) and is in the top three in five other categories.
Hansen Still in the Lead
Senior Niko Hansen continues to lead Conference USA in six categories: total goals (10), total points (21), game-winning goals (5), goals per game (0.67), points per game (1.40) and shots on goal per game (1.73). Senior Chris Wehan follows close behind Hansen in shots on goal per game with 1.25 for fifth in the C-USA.
Beaulieu Between the Posts
With his five shutouts this season, junior Jason Beaulieu has tied his season-best shutout total, which he first acheived as a freshman in 2014. He now boasts 14 shutouts in his career and is seventh in Lobo history. One more shutout would put him tied for fourth and would get him halfway to the program record 30 set by current Lobo assistant coach Mike Graczyk in his 2004-07 career.
Preseason Honors
The Lobos were picked to finish tied for fourth in Conference USA with South Carolina as voted on by the league’s coaches. In addition, seniors Chris Wehan and Niko Hansen were selected to the 2016 Preseason All-Conference USA Team. Wehan was also named to the MAC Hermann Trophy preseason watch list for the second straight season.
Lobo Soccer: A Mile High and Louder Than …
The UNM Soccer Complex is building a reputation as one of the nation’s toughest venues to play in. In addition to being “a mile high and louder than…”, New Mexico has turned Albuquerque into one of the hottest tickets in college soccer. The Lobos have ranked in the top 15 in attendance nationally every season since the NCAA began keeping those statistics in 2001. It was first in attendance nationally in 2005 and ranked in the top 10 from 2009-2014. In 2015, the Lobos continued the streak among the nation’s attendance leaders hosting 16,918 fans (1,691 per game average) for 15th overall in the country.
International Pride
While the diversity of the team roster is obvious, many Lobos have some serious international credentials. Five have represented their country in top-level international competition: Patrick Khouri (Jamaica U20 World Cup qualifier, US U15), Aaron Herrera (US U20 – currently preparing for U20 World Cup qualification); Matthew Constant (US U17 National team and Canada U20 National team); Billy Jones (captained New Zealand U17 in select World Cup qualifying matches); Rafa Jimenez (Australian U20 World Cup qualifying team).
Excelling Off the Pitch
Lobo Soccer has a rich tradition of academic success. During the Fishbein era (2002 to present), UNM has had 19 Academic All-Americans – more than any other men’s soccer program in the country among all divisions. In addition, the Lobos have garnered 92 Academic All-Conference honorees and 12 NSCAA Scholar All-Americans under Fishbein’s tutelage. As a team, the Lobos have earned the NSCAA Academic Team Award in 12 of the last 13 seasons.