Boston College Athletics
No. 18 Men's Soccer Hosts Duke Saturday Night
October 21, 2011 | Men's Soccer
Oct. 21, 2011
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - The No. 18 Boston College men's soccer team returns home to the Newton Campus Field when it hosts Duke Saturday night at 7 p.m. in an ACC tilt.
The Eagles (10-4-0, 2-3-0 ACC) have won five of their last seven matches and each victory has come with a shutout. Duke (7-5-1, 3-2-1) has only lost once since September 16 and that was a 4-2 setback at Maryland last Friday. The Blue Devils are 6-1-1 in their last eight outings.
EAGLES HOST DUKE SATURDAY NIGHT
• The No. 18 Boston College men's soccer team returns home to host ACC foe Duke Saturday night at 7 p.m. at the Newton Campus Field.
• BC and Duke have faced each other eight times since 2005 and both sides have won four times.
• The Eagles have won three of the last four matches, but the Blue Devils won in Durham last season, 1-0. BC earned a 1-0 victory later in the ACC Tournament for a berth in the semifinals.
• Boston College is 1-2 in three matches at home against Duke.
LAST TIME OUT
• Junior Kyle Bekker scored the match's only goal in the 67th minute to lead BC to a 1-0 victory at Boston University Tuesday night at Nickerson Field.
• The goal was Bekker's team-leading seventh of the season and it was the third time he scored in the last three games. He has accounted for each of the Eagles last three goals and has a team-high four game-winners.
• Junior Charlie Rugg was credited with the assist which was his fifth of the season - tied for the team lead.
• Junior GK Justin Luthy made three saves in net to record his fifth shutout of the season. BU keeper Nick Thomson was credited with five saves.
• After a scoreless first half, BC finally broke through in the 67th minute to take a 1-0 lead. Junior Kevin Mejia controlled the ball at the top of the box and fed Rugg to his left. A couple of BU defenders forced Rugg to pass to open space to Bekker who hit a rocket from 19 yards out, past a defender and into the lower right corner for the BC lead.
LAST SEASON vs. DUKE
• The Eagles split a pair of games with Duke last year, losing in the regular season but winning in the ACC Tournament to advance to the semfinals.
• Both matches were 1-0 results.
• In the regular season matchup, Duke's Christopher Tweed-Kent scored the game's lone goal in the 83rd minute as 10th-ranked Boston College fell to the host and 11th-ranked Blue Devils before 1,061 fans at Koskinen Stadium in Durham, N.C.
• Tweed-Kent scored the game-winner off a cross from classmate Temi Molinar at 82:51.
• Later in the season, senior Amit Aburmad netted the game's only goal in the 17th minute to lead No. 5 seed Boston College to a 1-0 victory over No. 4 seed Duke in the quarterfinals of the 2010 ACC Men's Soccer Championship at WakeMed Soccer Park.
• A streaking Aburmad one-timed a feed from Edvin Worley from eight yards out for his fourth goal of the season at 16:21. Junior Kyle Bekker also assisted on the goal.
POLL VAULTERS
• Boston College rocketed into the top 10 of three different national polls following its 4-0 start to the season.
• The NSCAA gave the Eagles the biggest bump, moving them to No. 8 after having been ranked 16th the week before.
• College Soccer News also ranked BC at No. 8 - up five spots from the No. 13 slot it held - while Soccer America moved BC from No. 18 to No. 14.
• Top Drawer Soccer ranked the Eagles highest at No. 7, improving four spots from the week prior.
• The Eagles are currently ranked in the top 20 in all four national polls.
HOT START
• Boston College started out the season 4-0-0 for just the second time in program history. It also did it in 2004 - its last year playing in the Big East.
• BC beat Brown, Cal State Northridge, Syracuse and Boston University that season. The win against the Orange was the only one on the road.
• The Eagles have never gone undefeated in the first five games of a season.
FIVE WINS, FIVE SHUTOUTS
• The Eagles have won five of their last seven matches dating back to September 23 and each win has come by way of shutout.
• Junior Justin Luthy has racked up 22 saves in those five wins, totaling 438:10 in net.
• Boston College holds a 65-52 edge in shots against its opposition in the triumphs, but trail in other statistical categories.
• Opponents are getting off more corner kicks with a 22-15 advantage and also hold a 22-21 lead in shots on goal.
• The last time that BC won five games consecutively by shutout came during the 2004 season when they had seven wins via shutout.
TEAM STATS
• The Boston College attack had been firing on all cylinders before the shutout it suffered at No. 2 Maryland, scoring 12 goals in the first four matches.
• The Eagles rank fourth in the Atlantic Coast Conference in assists (25) and fifth in goals (25) and points (75).
• BC came into this week ranked 30th in the country in scoring offense (1.85) and 31st in goals scored.
• On the other side of the pitch, the maroon and white leads the ACC in shutouts (7), is third in goals allowed (16) and fourth in goals against average (1.14)
LUTHY ANCHORS THE DEFENSE
• Junior Justin Luthy has been a mainstay in goal since his arrival on campus three years ago.
• He has started all 55 matches in goal the last three seasons and was an All-ACC second-team and Freshman Team honoree in 2009.
• In the last seven matches, he has made 26 saves (.867 save percentage) and allowed just four goals (0.58 GAA).
• The Dublin, Ohio product has a 1.16 goals against average this season and has been credited with 51 saves - a .761 save percentage.
• He has helped pitch seven shutouts this season which leads the ACC while being second in save percentage and third in goals against average.
LUTHY'S CAREER NIGHT
• Junior Justin Luthy had to do everything he could to give BC a 1-0 win at Rhode Island September 23.
• He recorded his second shutout of the season, saving a career-high 12 shots in the process.
• Eight of those saves came in the second half, including five in the final 8:30 of play.
• The 12 saves are the most in a match in the ACC this season and it is the only double-digit save performance in the conference this year.
• It was also the most saves by an ACC keeper since Duke's James Belshaw had 15 on September 3, 2010.
BEND IT LIKE BEKKER
• Junior Kyle Bekker has been the catalyst for the attack all season long, leading the team with seven goals, 18 points and four game-winners.
• In his first game of the season against Fairfield, the Oakville, Ontario product provided both goals in a 2-1 triumph.
• His first goal came in the 68th minute to break a scoreless tie and his other was on a free kick from 19 yards out in the 87th minute to win the game.
• In the 5-0 win vs. Quinnipiac, he tallied a goal and an assist and then he also provided a helper September 4 at No. 22 Dartmouth.
• Bekker tallied three assists in a three game span from September 4-16. He had one in a win at Dartmouth and then picked up two more in a 4-3 home victory against Virginia Tech.
• After three scoreless matches from September 20-27, Bekker has three goals in the last three outings.
• He scored against NC State September 30 for his first goal since September 1 and then added both goals in a 2-0 win against Harvard October 11.
• Bekker added the lone goal in a 1-0 win at Boston University Tuesday night.
• The goal was Bekker's team-leading seventh of the season and it was the third time he scored in the last three games. He has accounted for each of the Eagles last three goals.
• Bekker ranks third in the ACC in game-winning goals (4), sixth in goals (7) and seventh in points (18).
RUGG BURN
• Junior Charlie Rugg has also done his part being a spark for the attack.
• The forward has put up a team-leading five assists and also ranks second with six goals and 17 points.
• Rugg has tallied a point in 10 of the 14 matches this season.
• He scored twice in a 3-2 season-opening win against George Mason and earned ACC Player of the Week honors for his performance.
• He recorded an assist against Fairfield and then found the back of the net again vs. Quinnipiac.
• Rugg added another assist in the 2-0 win at No. 22 Dartmouth.
• He scored three goals in a five-game span from September 16-27 and two of them (vs. Virginia Tech, at Rhode Island) proved to be game-winners.
• The goal against the Hokies came in the third minute of overtime off a corner and then the one at Rhode Island came just 1:58 after the opening whistle.
• The Roslindale, Mass. product has pitched in with an assist in three of the last four matches.
• Rugg ranks fourth in the ACC in game-winning goals (3), sixth in assists (5) and eighth in goals (6) and points (17).
ABURMAD-NESS
• Senior Amit Aburmad got off to a torrid start in the first six matches this season. He had five goals and four assists in that span - both of those numbers led the team.
• He currently leads the team with five assists and is third with five goals and 15 points.
• Aburmad ranks sixth in the ACC in assists and ninth in points.
• He has scored five times on 30 shots and has 13 shots on goal.
• Aburmad also ranks second in the ACC in multiple-point games with four.
MEDINA-MENDEZ MAKES QUICK IMPACT
• Freshman Diego Medina-Mendez has started nine matches and appeared in all 14. He is the only freshman to earn a start this season.
• The speedy midfielder has scored four goals and assisted on another for nine points.
• His four goals and nine points rank fourth on the team.
• The Lindsay, Calif. native had two goals in a three-game span from September 27 to October 7, including what proved to be the game-winner at Brown.
• He also came off the bench and scored a goal in the 79th minute against Wake Forest.
AGER ENTERS POINT COLUMN
• Sophomore Chris Ager has started 27 games on defense and it took 20 to record his first career goal and assist - and both came in the same game.
• The Gjettum, Norway product scored and assisted on another goal in BC's 4-3 overtime win against Virginia Tech on September 16.
• Ager headed in a corner kick from junior Kyle Bekker in the 29th minute to tie the game, then assisted on the next score less than two minutes later to give the Eagles a 2-1 edge.
RUGG NAMED ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Junior Charlie Rugg was named the first Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Soccer Player of the Week this year.
• Rugg paced the Boston College offense with a pair of goals in a 3-2 win against George Mason August 26.
• His first score came in the 44th minute to give the Eagles a 2-0 edge.
• After Mason made it a 2-1 game with a tally in the 79th minute, Rugg beat a couple of defenders by himself in the left side of the box and then beat the keeper for the game-winning goal in the 89th minute.
• It was the third time in his career that he scored a pair of goals in a match, and the first since 2009.
• In addition to the conference honor, Rugg was also recognized by regional and national outlets. College Soccer News and Top Drawer Soccer both named him to their respective National Teams of the Week.
• He was also named the SoccerSavings.com/New England Soccer News College Player of the Week.
GOALS COME IN PAIRS
• Goal scoring came in bunches in the first three matches of the season.
• In the season opener against George Mason, junior Charlie Rugg recorded two goals to lead the Eagles to a 3-2 victory.
• Rugg had a goal in each half, including what proved to be the game-winner in the 89th minute.
• It was the third time in his career that he scored twice, the last coming in 2009.
• In the next contest against Fairfield, junior Kyle Bekker made his first appearance of the season with a bang.
• He scored both BC goals in a 2-1 win against Fairfield.
• It was the first multi-goal game of Bekker's career, who peppered the net with a game-high eight shots.
• His first goal came in the 68th minute to break a scoreless tie and his other was on a free kick from 19 yards out in the 87th minute to win the game.
• Senior Amit Aburmad scored two second half goals and assisted on another to lead the BC to a 5-0 win against Quinnipiac.
• Aburmad established a career high with five points in the match. It was also the first time he scored two goals in his career.
• Bekker added two more goals to his season total against Harvard when he scored both Eagle goals in a 2-0 win.
HURRICANE IRENE
• Hurricane Irene wreaked havoc up and down the east coast on the first weekend of the season.
• The storm forced BC to postpone its match against Fairfield on Sunday, August 28.
• The game was played the next day and the Eagles won, 2-1.
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
• Boston College scored five goals in a 5-0 shutout victory against Quinnipiac September 1.
• Senior Amit Aburmad scored two second half goals and assisted on another to lead the squad.
• It was the most goals scored by the Eagles since an 8-0 win against Maine on September 18, 2007.
• Aburmad established a career high with five points in the match. It was also the first time he scored two goals in his career.
• Junior Kyle Bekker recorded a goal and an assist.
• Junior Charlie Rugg scored a goal while freshman Diego Medina-Mendez found the back of the net for the first time in his BC career.
• Junior Stefan Carter and sophomore Ryan Dunn were both credited with assists. It was the first of Carter's career.
TOUGH AT HOME
• BC has been hard to beat at the Newton Campus Field over the last two seasons.
• The Eagles went 6-0-3 at home in 2010 and are off to a 6-1-0 start this year.
• Boston College is 16-1-3 in its last 20 regular season home games dating back to 2009 and is 20-5-3 overall in Newton since 2009.
• BC's last home loss came at the hands of Connecticut on September 20.
• Prior to that, the Eagles were unbeaten in their last 13 home matches.
THREE CAPTAINS NAMED
• The Eagles selected sophomore D Chris Ager, senior D/M Conor Fitzpatrick and junior D/M Colin Murphy as captains for the 2011 season.
• Ager is serving as team captain for the second time after starting the last 20 games dating back to 2010.
• Fitzpatrick has been a mainstay on the pitch since his arrival on campus, starting 63 games and appearing in 64. He has seven goals and two assists in his first three seasons.
• Murphy earned valuable international experience by representing New Zealand in the U-20 World Cup over the summer. He has played in 47 games with 44 starts at BC.
