Pitt to Close out Homestand with Akron

PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh men's soccer team will close out its four game homestand with a match against Akron 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16 at Ambrose Urbanic Field.

HOW TO FOLLOW

Monday's game will be broadcast live on ACCN and may be viewed by clicking here.
Live stats for Monday can be found here.
Fans can also follow the match with live updates on Twitter.

PROMOTIONS

The first 100 students in attendance will receive this year's Pitt soccer scarf.

LAST TIME OUT

Pitt dropped a 2-0 contest to No. 1 Wake Forest Friday, Sept. 13 at Ambrose Urbanic Field.
In a physical match that saw 20 total fouls and six total yellow cards, goals by Wake Forest in the 34^th and 53^rd minute led to the eventual Demon Deacon win.
Junior Edward Kizza led the team with three shots, followed by sophomore Rodrigo Almeida with two. Juniors Alexander Dexter and Sito Sena and freshmen Josh Hesson and Arturo Ordonez each added one shot apiece in the matchup.
In goal, redshirt junior Arie Ammann collected two saves while allowing two goals in 90 minutes of action.

SIZING UP THE 2019 SLATE

Pitt faces some tough competition in the 2019 season, with a schedule that includes 10 NCAA Tournament teams and two NCAA College Cup squads from a year ago.
The Panthers have already faced then-ranked No. 2 Indiana and No. 1 Wake Forest on the season, and are set to square off with seven other teams either ranked or receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches Poll in No. 2 Duke, No. 6 Virginia, No. 9 Virginia Tech, No. 10 Notre Dame, No. 18 North Carolina, RV Boston College and RV Akron.

KIZZA COMMANDING ATTENTION

Junior Edward Kizza closed out his 2018 campaign tied for third in program history for single-season goals (15) while ranking fifth in points (30).
Kizza ranked fifth in goals nationally, ninth in shot accuracy (.622) and 11^th in points per game (1.67), while ranking first in each category among ACC players.
The historic season led Kizza to First Team All-ACC honors, Second Team All-Region recognition and a spot on the All-ACC Academic Team.
Through five games, Kizza paces the team in shots (18), shots on goal (nine), points (eight) and goals (four).
The Kampala, Uganda, native picked up right where he left off to start the 2019 season, recording a brace against No. 2 Indiana in the squad's season-opener Friday, Aug. 30. In the match, Kizza recorded the fastest consecutive goals in program history after scoring at the 35:24 and 35:31 mark, with the seven-second difference besting the old record of 34 seconds set by Michael Tuohy and John Cordier in 2013.

FRESHMEN FOCUS

The Panthers freshmen class has made an immediate impact through the first five games of the 2019 season.
Five freshmen have already seen playing time through the early stretch of the season in Lucas Cyriacus, Josh Hesson, Valentin Noel, Arturo Ordonez and Veljko Petkovic, with starts from Noel (five), Hesson (four), Ordonez (three) and Petkovic (two).
Pitt's freshmen class has accounted for 25 percent of the team's goals so far this season, with Hesson and Petkovic recording one apiece, while juniors Edward Kizza (four) and Sito Sena (two) have collected the others.

THE SERIES – AKRON

In a series that dates back to 1957, the Panthers and Zips have met 27 times previously, with Akron owning an 18-7-2 all-time edge.
The two teams' last meeting came in 2018, with then-ranked No. 4 Akron picking up a 1-0 home victory against Pitt.
The Panthers' last win against the Zips came via a 1-0 home victory in 1983, with the two squads' next contest not coming for another 34 years following the matchup.

SCOUTING THE ZIPS

Akron enters Monday's contest with an 0-4 record, most recently dropping a 1-0 road contest to No. 14 Maryland Friday, Sept. 13.
The Zips closed out their 2018 campaign with a 15-7-2 (1-2-1 MAC) record, advancing all the way to the NCAA College Cup Final before dropping a 1-0 decision to Maryland.
Akron entered the year ranked No. 3 in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll, but after a slow start to the 2019 season, the Zips fell out of the top-25 and received just two votes in the most recent poll.
The Zips are coached by Jared Embick, who owns a 94-34-13 record during his time at Akron while amassing a 141-55-21 career record after spending time at both Akron and Missouri Baptist.
Through four games, fifth-year Christian Lue Young and junior David Egbo lead the Zips offensively with one goal apiece.
In goal, redshirt junior Tor Saunders has started all four matches for Akron, collecting 12 saves while allowing seven goals.

TICKETS NOW ON SALE

Flex season tickets for all nine regular season home matches are available to purchase for $30. The package includes nine tickets that can be used traditionally (one ticket/game) or in any combination (3 tickets/3 games, 9 tickets/1 game, etc). Season ticket holders will also receive a Pitt soccer scarf. Single game tickets for all home matches are now available as well. Purchases may be made online at pittsburghpanthers.com/tickets or by calling the Panthers Ticket Office at 800-643-7488.

UP NEXT

The Panthers will jump back into ACC play with a contest against Boston College 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20 in Newton, Mass.

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Pitt to Close out Homestand with Akron

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Rodrigo Almeida

Arie Ammann

Lucas Cyriacus

Alexander Dexter

Josh Hesson

Edward Kizza

Valentin Noel

Arturo Ordoñez

Veljko Petkovic

Sito Sena

Pitt to Close out Homestand with Akron

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Rodrigo Almeida

Arie Ammann

Lucas Cyriacus

Alexander Dexter

Josh Hesson

Edward Kizza

Valentin Noel

Arturo Ordoñez

Veljko Petkovic

Sito Sena

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