Boston College Athletics
No. 11 Men's Soccer Hosts Viginia Tech Friday Night
September 15, 2011 | Men's Soccer
Sept. 15, 2011
Match Notes
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CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - The No. 11 Boston College men's soccer team opens up the home portion of its conference schedule when it hosts Virginia Tech Friday night at 7 p.m. at the Newton Campus Field.
The Eagles (4-1-0, 0-1-0 ACC) are coming off their first loss of the season - a 4-0 setback at Maryland last Friday - that moved the Terrapins to No. 1 in the country. The Hokies (3-2-0, 1-0-0) knocked off former No. 1 North Carolina in Blacksburg last weekend, winning 1-0 in double overtime. Virginia Tech has won each of its last three matches.
EAGLES FACE VIRGINIA TECH IN ACC HOME OPENER
• The No. 11 Boston College men's soccer team hosts Virginia Tech in its ACC home opener Friday night at 7 p.m. at the Newton Campus Field.
• BC is 7-1-1 all-time against the Hokies, including a 5-0-1 mark in ACC play since 2005.
• The Eagles' lone loss in the series came in 2003 at home.
• Last year, BC earned a 3-1 victory in Blacksburg in the regular season finale.
TWO GOALS THE KEY
• Boston College and Virginia Tech have met nine previous times on the pitch with the Eagles holding a 7-1-1 record.
• In every BC win, the Eagles have scored two or more goals.
• The loss and the tie against the Hokies came in consecutive meetings, and in both instances, were only able to score one goal.
• Virginia Tech won a 2-1 decision in 2003 in Newton and forced a 1-1 draw in 2005 in Blacksburg.
• The Eagles have scored two or three goals in all seven of its victories.
LAST TIME OUT
• Patrick Mullins provided two goals for the Terrapins to lead No. 2 Maryland past the No. 8 Eagles, 4-0, last Friday night at Ludwig Field in the ACC opener for both teams.
• Mullins led a Maryland offense that outshot BC 18-4 in the match. Casey Townsend and Taylor Kemp provided the other two goals for the Terps while Sunny Jane pitched in with a pair of assists.
• Junior GK Justin Luthy saved five shots in net for the Eagles.
LAST TIME vs. VIRGINIA TECH
• Kyle Bekker's goal in the 56th minute broke a 1-1 tie and classmate Sacir Hot added his second goal of the season less than three minutes later as 20th ranked-Boston College earned a 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference win at Virginia Tech.
• The teams were tied at 1-1 after the first half of play. Charlie Rugg netted his eighth goal of the season in the second minute, before Virginia Tech's David Clemens evened the score at 35:51.
• Both teams registered nine shots in the match.
• Justin Luthy made two saves in goal while Virginia Tech's James Daly made three stops.
POLL VAULTERS
• Boston College rocketed into the top 10 of three different national polls two weeks ago following its 3-0 record that week and 4-0 start overall.
• 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.
• Despite its 4-0 setback against now No. 1 Maryland a week ago, BC is still ranked in the top 11 in three different 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.
TEAM STATS
• The Boston College attack had been firing on all cylinders before the shutout it suffered at No. 2 Maryland.
• The Eagles rank third in the Atlantic Coast Conference in assists (12) and fourth in goals (12) and points (36).
• BC comes in ranked 15th in the country in goals scored and 18th in scoring offense (2.40).
• On the other side of the pitch, the maroon and white ranks third in the ACC in shutouts (2) and fourth in saves (19).
ABURMAD-NESS
• Senior Amit Aburmad has gotten off to a torrid start this season. He has four goals and three assists in the first five contests.
• Aburmad ranks second in the ACC in points (11), third in assists (3) and fourth in goals scored (4).
• The Zofim, Israel product ranks in the top 25 in five different offensive catgeories nationally, including: total points (10th), points per game (14th, 2.20), assists (15th), total goals (16th) and goals per game (24th, 0.80).
• He has scored four times on just nine shots and has five shots on goal.
• In two of the last three matches, Aburmad has three goals and two assists.
• He scored twice and assisted on another goal - all in the second half - in a 5-0 win against Quinnipiac. Then he had a goal and an assist at No. 22 Dartmouth on September 4.
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 46 matches in goal the last three seasons and was an All-ACC second-team and Freshman Team honoree in 2009.
• Through the first four games of the season, he allowed just three goals in 353 minutes of action. He was replaced with seven minutes to go in a 5-0 win against Quinnipiac.
• Following the 4-0 loss at No. 2 Maryland last weekend, the Dublin, Ohio product has a 1.42 goals against average and has been credited with 19 saves - a .731 save percentage.
• He has helped pitch two shutouts this season which ranks third in the ACC.
• Luthy also ranks fourth in the conference in saves (19).
BEND IT LIKE BEKKER
• Junior Kyle Bekker had to sit out the season opener due to a red card he received in the NCAA Tournament game at Brown last season, but he has made an impact since.
• Bekker has recorded a point in three of the last four outings.
• 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 has been an offensive force and ranks second in the ACC in game-winning goals (2).
• He is also seventh in the conference in goals scored (3) and assists (2) and eighth in points (8) and shots (17).
• Bekker also ranks 20th in the nation in points per game (2.00).
RUGG BURN
• Junior Charlie Rugg has also done his part being a spark for the attack.
• The forward has put up the same numbers as classmate Kyle Bekker with three goals and two assists.
• Rugg has tallied a point in four of the five matches to date.
• 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.
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 two 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.
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 3-0-0 start this year.
• Boston College is 13-0-3 in its last 16 regular season home games dating back to 2009 and is 17-4-3 overall in Newton since 2009.
• BC's last home loss came at the hands of Drake on November, 29, 2009 in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles lost 6-4 that day.
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.
