Akron Hosts Temple as Part of Super Saturday

Saturday, September 14

Akron, Ohio

1:00 PM

University of Akron

Temple

Buy Tickets

September 13 | Men's Soccer

AKRON, Ohio – The University of Akron men's soccer team welcomes Temple to FirstEnergy Stadium for a non-conference showdown on Saturday (Sept. 14). The 1 p.m. match with the Owls will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Chad Welker on the call.

Tickets for the contest against the Owls are available for purchase at http://www.gozips.com/Tickets. With Akron hosting its football home opener om Saturday, fans are asked to park in Lot 1 (parking deck) at the corner of Carroll and Spicer Streets. For complete parking information click here.

GAME INFO
Akron vs. Temple | Sept. 14 | 1 PM | FirstEnergy Stadium | Live Stats | ESPN+

HEAD COACHES
Temple: Bryan Green (Elizabethtown, 1997), Overall Record: 51-90-16 (10th Season), Record at Temple: 4-11-6 (Second Season)
Akron: Jared Embick (Indiana Wesleyan, 2000), Overall Record: 181-79-43 (15th Season), Record at Akron: 134-58-35 (12th Season)

SCOUTING AKRON
The Zips under the leadership of 12th-year head coach Jared Embick enters its tilt versus Temple on Saturday (Sept. 14) at 1-2-3 following a 2-1 setback to IU Indianapolis on Monday (Sept. 9).

Redshirt seniors Emil Jaaskelainen (Bolton, England) leads the Zips in goals (3), points (8), shots (22) and shots on goal (9), while redshirt senior Dyson Clapier (Layton, Utah) and senior Wan Kuzri Wan Kamal (Carbondale, Ill.) have added a pair of goals to go along with senior Malik Henry (Hamilton, Ontario) owning a team-best three assists on the campaign. Redshirt junior GK Mitch Budler (Lincoln, Neb.) has collected 14 saves and owns a 1.50 goals against average.

Akron returns six starters in 2024, including 2023 All-BIG EAST Conference performers, seniors Jonas Buechte (Rantigen, Germany) and Malik Henry.

The Zips will also be bolstered by the return of key 2023 contributors in Budler, Clapier, junior Stefan Dobrijevic (Uniontown Ohio), juniors Ashton Kamdem (West Chester, Ohio) and Daragh Reilly (Meath, Ireland) and Wan Kamal.

SCOUTING TEMPLE
Temple enters action against the Zips on Saturday (Sept. 14) at 1-3-2 on the campaign following a 2-0 setback at Drexel on Tuesday (Sept. 10).

Senior Xavier Rimpel leads the Owls in goals (1), assists (2), points (4), shots on goal (1) and game-winners (1) this season. Redshirt senior goalkeepers Andrew Kempe and Flannen Riley have combined to post 31 saves en route to posting a 1.83 goals against average.

The Jaguars are ranked 18th in the NCAA in saves per game (5.33).

Individually, Kempe is rated 11th in the NCAA in saves per contest (5.67) and 44th in save percentage (.810), while Riley is ranked 32nd in saves per game (4.67).

SERIES HISTORY
Akron is meeting Temple for the second time in program history with Akron leading the series, 1-0-0. In the previous encounter between the two schools, the Zips recorded a 1-0 road triumph over the Owls on Nov. 21, 1967, in the NCAA Tournament.

AKRON VERSUS AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
• The Zips are meeting a team from American Athletic Conference for the first time this season and 33rd time overall.
• Akron owns a 25-6-1 (.797) all-time record versus the nine current members of the American Athletic Conference.
• In their last encounter with a school from the American Athletic Conference, the Zips earned a 2-0 victory over Florida International on Sept. 11, 2023.

AKRON NOTES
• The Zips are meeting Temple at home for the first time in program history.
• Akron has outscored the Owls by a 1-0 margin in series history.
• Dyson Clapier recorded his first career multi-goal game with a pair of second-half tallies versus No. 13 VCU.
• Emil Jaaskelainen recorded Akron's first multi-goal performance of the season against Cleveland State (Sept. 2).
• Mitch Budler is rated 16th among active career leaders in D1 in solo shutouts (15), 18th in goals against average (1.06) and 38th in goalie minutes played (3,647.62). Emil Jaaskelainen is first in D1 active leaders in points (108), goals (46), goals per tilt (0.67) and points per game (1.57), 13th in assists (16) and 38th in games played (69).
• Through 41 career games, GK Mitch Budler has been dominant in net for Akron having recorded 98 saves en route to owning a 1.07 goals against average on the strength of 16 shutouts.
• Six different Zips have scored a goal this season, including two newcomers.
• Eighteen Zips have registered a shot this season, including nine newcomers.
• Ten Akron newcomers have appeared in a match for the Zips this season.
• Akron has posted double-digit shots in four tilts this season.
• The Zips are 1-0-2 versus ranked teams this season following a 1-1 draw at No. 2 Notre Dame (Aug. 22), a 1-1 tie at No. 5 Western Michigan (Aug. 30) and a 4-0 triumph past No. 13 VCU (Sept. 6). A year ago, Akron was 2-0-1 against ranked squads after a 0-0 draw with No. 15 Notre Dame (Sept. 19), a 2-0 victory over No. 11 Florida International (Sept. 11) and a 1-0 triumph past No. 7 Vermont (Aug. 28).
• Akron has posted double-digit shots in four consecutive contests on the campaign, including a season-best 26 shots against IU Indianapolis (Sept.9).
• Since the start of the 2015 campaign, the Zips own a 34-22-10 mark against ranked opponents.
• Dyson Clapier is Akron's active career leaders in goals (16), points (44), shots (109), shots on goal (52) and game-winners (6), while ranking third in assists (12). Wan Kuzri Wan Kamal and Dobrijevic have scored six and five goals, respectively.
• The Zips own a 134-58-35 mark over the last 12 seasons under head coach Jared Embick. Akron's 134 wins are ranked seventh in all of Division I.
• Under head coach Jared Embick, Akron's record following a loss is 27-13-7.
• The Zips have scored two or more goals in 103 of the squad's last 190 matches.
• Akron has held opponents scoreless in 42 of its last 86 home contests at FirstEnergy Stadium.
• Akron owns a 85-17-15 record in its last 117 home matches.
• Since Oct. 1, 2015, Akron owns a 87-45-31 record.

UP NEXT
Akron opens BIG EAST Conference play hosting Butler in a 7 p.m. tilt at FirstEnergy Stadium on Friday (Sept. 20).

AKRON ATHLETICS NOW CASHLESS
The University of Akron Athletics Department announced its transition to cashless payments for all ticketing, concessions, and merchandise purchases at all Akron athletic venues, concession stands, and gear shops, beginning with the start of the 2024-25 sports seasons. For more information click here.