Soccer Game Central

HAMILTON, N.Y. (10/28/11) – The Colgate men's soccer team will play its second to last Patriot League game of the regular-season this weekend when it hosts Bucknell on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 4 p.m. at Van Doren Field.
 
The Raiders are coming off a 1-0 setback to Dartmouth on Tuesday night, resulting in its fourth loss of the season.
 
LEAGUE PLAY
Colgate (9-4-3), which was picked to finish first in the league's preseason poll, is currently tied for second in the league standings with a 3-1-1 mark. The Raiders are level with Lehigh, which also has 10 points from a 3-1-1 record. American continues to sit at the top of the standings with 12 points while Navy and Lafayette are tied for fourth with seven points apiece. A win against the Bison this weekend and a loss or tie by either Navy or Lafayette would give Colgate a spot in the 2011 Patriot League Tournament.

RAIDERS' POINT LEADERS
Senior co-captain Steven Miller continues to lead the team with 14 points from seven goals, two of which were game-winners. He is tied for first in the league in goals and goals per game, and is tied for second in points and points per game. Miller is followed by junior Shane Conlin who has nine points from four goals, three of which were game-winners, and one assist. Senior co-captain Mike Reese, freshman Jimmy McLaughlin and junior Mike Reidy all sit at third on the team with four points apiece.
 
LETOURNEAU NAMED DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior Patrick Letourneau was named the BRINE Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week on Monday for his performances last week. The defender scored the Raiders' only goal in their 1-1 double overtime tie against Binghamton and then went on to anchor the defense in their 1-0 double overtime win over Lafayette. Letourneau, who received the award for the second time this season, has started in all 16 games and is sixth on the team with three points from one goal and one assist.

SERIES
Colgate leads the all-time series against the Bison, owning a 22-9-6 record since the teams first met in 1963. The Raiders have a 14-4-1 record at Van Doren Field, losing the last two meetings at home against Bucknell. The most recent setback was in the first semi final game of the 2010 PL Tournament that was played in Hamilton, N.Y. Colgate was the No. 1 seed and fell to No. 4 seed Bucknell 1-0.

SCOUTING BUCKNELL
The Bison (7-7-2, 2-3-0 PL) are coming off a 0-0 double overtime tie with Penn State on Wednesday. The team, which was picked to finish second in the preseason poll, is currently sitting in sixth place tied with Army, which also has six points from a 2-3 league mark. The defending Patriot League Tournament Champion will need a win against the Raiders to keep its hope of a PL Tournament bid alive. Although a loss would not eliminate Bucknell from the tournament, it would hurt its chances drastically.
 
The team is led by sophomore Alli Mayowa, senior Luke Joyner and junior Brendan Burgdorf. Mayowa has a team-high 16 points from seven goals and two assists. He leads the league in game-winning goals (four), points and points per game, and is tied for first with Colgate's Steven Miller in goals and goals per game. Mayowa is followed by Joyner who has 13 points from five goals and three assists while Burgdorf, who is second in the league in assists and assists per game, has two goals and a team-best five assists for nine points.

PL WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS
The Raiders have had four players win a BRINE Patriot League Weekly Award this season, including three defensive players of the week, two rookies and one offensive player award. Senior Mike Reese and junior Patrick Letourneau have each won a Defensive Player of the Week, with Letourneau winning his second award this week, while freshman Jimmy McLaughlin was a two-time Rookie of the Week selection and senior Steven Miller received Offensive Player of the Week accolades.
 
PATRIOT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
The Colgate men's soccer team was picked to finish on top of the league in the 2011 Patriot League Preseason Poll voted by head coaches and sports information directors in the league. The Raiders, who had 94 points and 10 first-place votes, were projected to finish first above the 2010 defending PL tournament champions, Bucknell, which had 86 points and 4 first-place votes.