Photo by: Corbin Mills
Mountaineers Prepare for In-State Battle with No. 8 Marshall
March 23, 2021 04:12 PM | Men's Soccer
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University men's soccer team (3-2-0, 2-2-0 MAC) welcomes in-state rival No. 8 Marshall to Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium for a nonconference matchup on Wednesday, March 24, at 7 p.m. ET in Morgantown.
In accordance with COVID-19 protocols, Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium will operate at 25% capacity for the spring 2021 home season. For the overall safety of all those in attendance, facemasks will be required of all spectators and should be worn at all times.
Wednesday's competition is a Gold Rush, and an extremely limited amount of tickets remain on sale. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance by visiting WVUGAME.com or calling 1-800-WVU GAME to avoid lines at the gate on game day. When purchasing online, tickets are $5 each. Any remaining tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth and seniors at the stadium ticket window on match day.
A limited amount of WVU student tickets also will be made available at the Mountaineer Ticket Office, located at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. The office, as well as the stadium gates, opens at 6 p.m., on game day. WVU students are admitted free with a valid WVU Student I.D.
Fans can listen to a live broadcast of the match on 99.7 FM (WWVU), while live stats for the contest can be found at WVUsports.com.
"We're hopeful that coming off a quality win at SIUE this weekend will give the guys a lift and a bit more confidence going into what will be an exciting game with Marshall," Mountaineer coach Dan Stratford said. "Not only is it a big local rival, but also a top-10 team coming to Dick Dlesk. That's not easy to come by no matter how well you schedule. You never know whether or not you're going to get that quality of an opponent coming to play at your home stadium. Hopefully the guys will get a lift from that and be energized and excited about the challenge."
WVU and the Thundering Herd meet for the 23rd time in program history on Wednesday, with the series dating back to 1983, beginning with a 2-0 Mountaineer win in Morgantown. The Mountaineers hold a 15-6-1 all-time edge over Marshall, along with a 9-2-1 advantage at home. The two teams last met in the Second Round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament, where MU earned a 2-1 win in Huntington to advance to the Sweet 16.
Before last season's meeting, the Mountaineers and Thundering Herd had not competed since 2004. Prior to falling to Marshall in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, West Virginia had won three straight over the Thundering Herd.
Additionally, West Virginia is 22-11-4 all-time against current members of Conference USA, as well as 1-0 this season after notching a season-opening victory at Charlotte on February 26.
Last time out, the Mountaineers used a pair of first-half goals and their third clean sheet of the season to beat SIU Edwardsville, 2-0, on March 21. Redshirt freshman defender Sergio Ors Navarro's 15th-minute, game-winning goal marked WVU's first score since March 6, after going scoreless in its previous two matches. Senior defender Kevin Morris also scored in the win, volleying a 45th minute header into the back of the net to put WVU up 2-0 heading into the intermission.
West Virginia's defensive unit denied any chance SIUE gad at a goal, as senior goalkeeper Steven Tekesky tallied his 17th career shutout in the win. The clean sheet at SIUE marked the squad's third of the season, as the Mountaineers are 3-0 when denying their opponent a goal.
Tekesky leads the Mid-American Conference in shutouts per game (0.60), save percentage (0.867) and goals against average (0.40), while he is tied for the conference lead in shutouts (3).
Marshall is led by fourth-year head coach Chris Grassie, who owns a 38-23-8 overall record, including 6-1-1 in 2021, with the Thundering Herd. He coached the squad to a historic season in 2019, as the team earned its first top-25 ranking since 2001 and first-ever Conference USA Tournament title. Grassie also was dubbed the 2019 Conference USA Coach of the Year. Prior to his hiring at Marshall, Grassie served as the head coach at the University of Charleston, with Stratford working as an assistant coach before moving into the top spot upon Grassie's departure.
Wednesday's match marks Marshall's first trip to Morgantown since 2004, as the squad is coming off a 1-0 win over No. 11 Kentucky on March 18, to remain unbeaten in C-USA play this season. Vitor Dias paces the Thundering Herd offense with six goals so far this season, to go along with a trio of assists to accumulate 15 total points on the year. Milo Yosef leads the way with 30 shots and 14 shots on goal. Oliver Semmle is Marshall's starting netminder this season, and he has recorded nine saves on the year, including a 0.750 save percentage.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
In accordance with COVID-19 protocols, Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium will operate at 25% capacity for the spring 2021 home season. For the overall safety of all those in attendance, facemasks will be required of all spectators and should be worn at all times.
Wednesday's competition is a Gold Rush, and an extremely limited amount of tickets remain on sale. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance by visiting WVUGAME.com or calling 1-800-WVU GAME to avoid lines at the gate on game day. When purchasing online, tickets are $5 each. Any remaining tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth and seniors at the stadium ticket window on match day.
A limited amount of WVU student tickets also will be made available at the Mountaineer Ticket Office, located at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. The office, as well as the stadium gates, opens at 6 p.m., on game day. WVU students are admitted free with a valid WVU Student I.D.
Fans can listen to a live broadcast of the match on 99.7 FM (WWVU), while live stats for the contest can be found at WVUsports.com.
"We're hopeful that coming off a quality win at SIUE this weekend will give the guys a lift and a bit more confidence going into what will be an exciting game with Marshall," Mountaineer coach Dan Stratford said. "Not only is it a big local rival, but also a top-10 team coming to Dick Dlesk. That's not easy to come by no matter how well you schedule. You never know whether or not you're going to get that quality of an opponent coming to play at your home stadium. Hopefully the guys will get a lift from that and be energized and excited about the challenge."
WVU and the Thundering Herd meet for the 23rd time in program history on Wednesday, with the series dating back to 1983, beginning with a 2-0 Mountaineer win in Morgantown. The Mountaineers hold a 15-6-1 all-time edge over Marshall, along with a 9-2-1 advantage at home. The two teams last met in the Second Round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament, where MU earned a 2-1 win in Huntington to advance to the Sweet 16.
Before last season's meeting, the Mountaineers and Thundering Herd had not competed since 2004. Prior to falling to Marshall in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, West Virginia had won three straight over the Thundering Herd.
Additionally, West Virginia is 22-11-4 all-time against current members of Conference USA, as well as 1-0 this season after notching a season-opening victory at Charlotte on February 26.
Last time out, the Mountaineers used a pair of first-half goals and their third clean sheet of the season to beat SIU Edwardsville, 2-0, on March 21. Redshirt freshman defender Sergio Ors Navarro's 15th-minute, game-winning goal marked WVU's first score since March 6, after going scoreless in its previous two matches. Senior defender Kevin Morris also scored in the win, volleying a 45th minute header into the back of the net to put WVU up 2-0 heading into the intermission.
West Virginia's defensive unit denied any chance SIUE gad at a goal, as senior goalkeeper Steven Tekesky tallied his 17th career shutout in the win. The clean sheet at SIUE marked the squad's third of the season, as the Mountaineers are 3-0 when denying their opponent a goal.
Tekesky leads the Mid-American Conference in shutouts per game (0.60), save percentage (0.867) and goals against average (0.40), while he is tied for the conference lead in shutouts (3).
Marshall is led by fourth-year head coach Chris Grassie, who owns a 38-23-8 overall record, including 6-1-1 in 2021, with the Thundering Herd. He coached the squad to a historic season in 2019, as the team earned its first top-25 ranking since 2001 and first-ever Conference USA Tournament title. Grassie also was dubbed the 2019 Conference USA Coach of the Year. Prior to his hiring at Marshall, Grassie served as the head coach at the University of Charleston, with Stratford working as an assistant coach before moving into the top spot upon Grassie's departure.
Wednesday's match marks Marshall's first trip to Morgantown since 2004, as the squad is coming off a 1-0 win over No. 11 Kentucky on March 18, to remain unbeaten in C-USA play this season. Vitor Dias paces the Thundering Herd offense with six goals so far this season, to go along with a trio of assists to accumulate 15 total points on the year. Milo Yosef leads the way with 30 shots and 14 shots on goal. Oliver Semmle is Marshall's starting netminder this season, and he has recorded nine saves on the year, including a 0.750 save percentage.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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