Akron Continues Homestand Hosting No. 17 North Carolina State

Monday, August 27

Akron, Ohio

7:00 PM

University of Akron

North Carolina State

Photo by: Jeff Harwell

Akron Continues Homestand Hosting No. 17 North Carolina State

August 26 | Men's Soccer

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MATCH NO. 2 - AKRON VS. NORTH CAROLINA STATE GAME NOTES (PDF) (8/27)

Akron (0-0-1) vs. North Carolina State (1-0-0)
Monday, Aug. 27
FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field (5,000)
Akron, Ohio • 7 p.m.

Series History: North Carolina State leads 1-0
Live Stats: www.gozips.com
Live Stream: www.gozips.com
Television: ESPN+

WHAT'S AHEAD
The second-rated University of Akron men's soccer team continues it season-opening three-match homestand squaring off against No. 17 North Carolina State at FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field on Monday, Aug. 27. The 7 p.m. contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.

AKRON VERSUS THE ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE
• The Zips are meeting a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference for the first time this season and 67th time overall.
• Akron owns a 37-23-6 (.606) all-time record versus the current 12 members of the ACC.
• In their last encounter with a school from the ACC, the Zips battled No. 6 Louisville to a 0-0 double-overtime draw in the Elite Eight of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, before advancing to the program's fifth College Cup with a 4-3 triumph in penalty kicks. A year ago, Akron also registered a 1-0 win at Syracuse, 1-0, on Oct. 3, while besting No. 8 Notre Dame, 2-0, on Oct. 17, before earning a 3-0 triumph over No. 20 Pittsburgh on Oct. 24.

SCOUTING NORTH CAROLINA STATE
North Carolina State returns nine players who started at least eight of the team's 18 matches with five players starting every match in 2017. The Wolfpack went 8-6-4 in 2017, including a 3-3-2 ledger in the ACC a year ago. North Carolina State registered triumphs over No. 3 Clemson (1-0) and No. 5 Louisville (3-2), while battling No. 6 Virginia to a 0-0 double-overtime draw. The Wolfpack are led by rising sophomore Manny Perez the 2017 Atlantic Coast Conference Freshman of the Year, who has earned call ups to the U.S. U-20 Men's National Team.

North Carolina State opened its 2018 campaign with a 3-1 home victory past South Carolina Upstate on Friday, Aug. 24. The Wolfpack garnered goals from Ivy Brisma, Tyler Gabarra and Brad Sweeney, while Leon Krapf pulled in a pair of saves in net for North Carolina State.

SERIES HISTORY
Akron and North Carolina State are meeting for the second time in program history. The Wolfpack posted a 2-1 triumph over the Zips on Sept. 15, 1996 as part of the MetLife - adidas Classic in Durham, N.C.

THE COACHES
North Carolina State: George Kiefer is in his second season as head coach of the North Carolina State program, owning a 9-6-4 (.579) record, while sporting a 171-92-55 (.624) ledger in 17 years overall as a head coach.

Akron: In his sixth year on the Akron sidelines as head coach, and 12th season overall, is Jared Embick, who owns a 79-23-12 mark (.746), including 126-43-20 (.720) overall, in his 10th year as a head coach.

AKRON BATTLES NO. 9 BUTLER TO 2-2 DOUBLE-OT DRAW
The second-ranked University of Akron men's soccer battled ninth-rated Butler to a 2-2 double-overtime draw in the season opener for both schools on Aug. 24, at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field.

The Zips were directed by the first career multi-goal effort from sophomore David Egbo (Enugu, Nigeria), who registered goals in the 24th (23:16) and 44th (43:58) minutes, respectively.

The draw snapped Akron's 17-match home winning streak dating back to the 2016 campaign, while extending the Zips' home unbeaten streak to 18.

The Bulldogs connected on the game's first goal when Louis Bulger delivered a perfect strike on a free kick after Akron was whistled for a foul just outside of the 18-yard box at the 11:47 mark.

The Zips nearly netted the equalizer in the 13th minute (12:52) as only a diving lunge from Butler defender Kieran Geldenhuys for a team save prevented the header from Egbo from finding the back of the net.

The momentum continued in Akron's favor as senior Abdi Mohamed (Westerville, Ohio) passed a ball to fellow senior Joe Korb (Willowick, Ohio), who slotted a ball in from the corner outside the 18-yard box to Egbo, who tapped the laser into the goal for his first tally of the season at the 23:16 mark.

The Bulldogs were whistled for a foul in the box in the 41st minute (40:49) setting the stage for a penalty kick by senior Ezana Kahsay (Asmeras, Eritrea). The scoring opportunity was thwarted by a diving save from Butler goalkeeper Gabriel Gjergji.

The Bulldogs were again booked for a foul in the box at the 43:58 mark. Egbo stepped to the line and gave the Zips a 2-1 lead with a successful penalty kick. The goal resulted in the first career multi-goal effort for Egbo, who recorded one goal as a freshman in 2017.

Akron outshot the Bulldogs in the opening stanza, 5-4, including 4-1 on net, to maintain a 2-1 lead at halftime.

Brandon Guhl squared the contest at two in the 60th minute (59:40) tapping in a ball played in from the corner of the six-yard box by Alex Lehtinen.

Freshman Ivan Nikolic (Toronto, Ontario) made his collegiate debut for the Zips in the 65th minute and came within inches of collecting his first career goal at the 65:57 mark as the initial shot in his Akron career pinged off the crossbar.

Both squads had opportunities to go ahead in the final minutes of the second half, despite the Zips bettering Butler in shots, 10-5.

In overtime, Akron posted a 4-1 margin in shots, but were not able to find the golden goal. On the evening, the Zips outshot the Bulldogs, 19-10, including 5-4 on frame.

Egbo finished the evening with a game-high five shots, including three on goal, while senior Marco Micaletto (Reading, England) and Kahsay added three and two shots, respectively. The Bulldogs were paced by two shots apiece from Bulger, Guhl, Jack Haywood and Marco Charalambous.

Akron senior goalkeeper Ben Lundt (Berlin, Germany) made two saves for the Zips.

ZIPS TIDBITS
• Four Akron freshmen in Colin Biros (Canton, Ohio), Marco Milanese (Isernia, Italy), Carlo Ritaccio and Sam Tojaga (Erie, Pa.) earned the starting assignment in their collegiate debuts versus Butler on Aug. 24. Overall, seven Zips' newcomers started against the Bulldogs, with seniors Marco Micaletto and Abdi Mohamed along with junior Leonard Sohn (Richmond Hill, Ontario) also getting the starting nod.
• The Zips own a 79-23-12 mark over the last five seasons under head coach Jared Embick. Akron's 79 wins leads all of Division I, while the Zips' .746 winning percentage ranks third nationally.
• Akron owns the nation's longest home field unbeaten streak at 18 dating back to the 2016 campaign. Entering games of Aug. 26, the Zips' streak is followed by Indiana (14/12-0-2), New Hampshire (13/10-0-3), Florida International (12/9-0-3), St. Mary's (Calif.) (12/8-0-4) and Pacific (11/10-0-1) with double-digit home unbeaten streaks. Following closely behind is UCF (9/8-0-1) and Air Force (9/8-0-0).
• The Zips are 0-0-1 versus ranked teams in 2018 after a 2-2 double-overtime draw with Butler on Aug. 24. Akron is averaging 19.0 shots per contest and have limited its opponents to 10.0 shots a game. David Egbo paces the squad with a pair of goals on the strength of a team-high five shots.
• Since 2008, Akron leads the country with eight players selected among the top-five selections in the MLS SuperDraft. The Zips also boast the highest total of players chosen among the top-10 draftees over the same span with 12.
• The Zips were one of three teams in Division I that maintain an undefeated home mark last season. Akron owned a 12-0 record at FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field. The Zips were joined on this list by SMU (13-0) and Pacific (7-0).
• Skye Harter (Copley, Ohio) is Akron's active career leader in goals (7), assists (10) and points (24), while Ezana Kahsay paces the squad in shots (65), games played (58) and game-winning goals (3). Sophomore Marcel Zajac (Mississauga, Ontario) leads the Zips in shots on goal (21), while Ben Lundt has started a team-high 43 games.
• Akron advanced to the College Cup for the fifth time (1986, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2017) in program history in 2017.
• Since Oct. 1, 2015, Akron owns a 32-11-8 record.

AKRON PICKED TO WIN MAC TITLES
Akron men's soccer team has been tabbed to capture the Mid-American Conference regular and postseason titles in a preseason poll of six conference coaches.

The Zips under sixth-year head coach Jared Embick were picked to capture the conference regular season championship in the MAC Coaches Preseason poll with five first-place votes. Following Akron (35 points) in the rankings was Western Michigan (26 points). The Broncos garnered the lone remaining first-place tally.

Rounding out the rest of the poll was 2017 MAC Tournament participants West Virginia (24) and SIU Edwardsville (18 points) along with Bowling Green (15 points) and Northern Illinois (eight points).

Also voted on by the coaches was the predicted 2018 MAC Tournament Champion where Akron was a unanimous selection to repeat as league tournament winner.

FORMER ZIP NAJEM EARNS FIRST INTERNATIONAL CAP
Former Zips' All-American Adam Najem garnered his first international cap playing for Afghanistan, the country of his father's birth, in a friendly versus Palestine in Kabul aon Aug. 19.

A LEGACY OF SUCCESS
Since 2007, Akron men's soccer program has posted the highest winning percentage in the nation (as of games on Aug. 24) (.802), with an overall record of 189-36-28. The Zips are followed by Maryland, 171-45-34 (.752), North Carolina, 162-48-35 (.733), Creighton, 166-56-23 (.724) and Wake Forest, 149-49-33 (.716). Akron has made 11 straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament (2007-17), earning a first-round bye in eight seasons. The Zips have advanced to the NCAA's Round of 16 in eight of the last 11 years. Since 1961, the Zips have advanced to the NCAA postseason 32 times, including each of the past 11 seasons and 16 of the past 17.

UP NEXT
Akron closes out its season-opening three-match homestand welcoming Pittsburgh to FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ and begin at 7 p.m.