Men’s Soccer Prepped for C-USA Tournament Quarterfinals Against Kentucky

(5) Florida Atlantic vs. (4) Kentucky at 2019 C-USA Soccer Championships
Game Details	Date: Wednesday, Nov. 13 Time: 4:30 p.m. Location: ODU Soccer Complex Norfolk, Va.
Game Coverage	ESPN+ Link \| Tournament Central Twitter: @FAUMensSoccer Instagram: @FAUMensSoccer_
Florida Atlantic Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule
Kentucky Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University men's soccer team (7-7-1, 3-4-0) will open up the Conference USA Tournament with a quarterfinal matchup against Kentucky (11-3-3, 4-2-1) tomorrow at 4:30 p.m. FAU enters their first ever C-USA Tournament as the fifth seed and will square off against the No. 4 seed Wildcats. The match will be played at Old Dominion Soccer Complex, with the Monarchs being the host of this year's tournament.

How We Got Here

FAU's game against ODU on Friday night was straight out of a movie with the winner of the match moving on to the conference tournament. ODU came out strong, scoring two goals in the first 13 minutes. At the 39th minute, three different Owls took shots at goal, all of which were blocked, until Alex Alexis struck with his first goal of the season on coincidently his senior night to cut the lead in half, 2-1.

In the second half, Andres Macias set up for a perfect opportunity after an ODU defender headed the ball out of the box to land within the midfielder's grasp. Macias then took a shot, which slid right past the ODU keeper to come up with the equalizer. At the 80th minute, the Monarchs took advantage of an opportunity to go ahead in the game, 3-2, but FAU was not satisfied. With the Owls clawing to keep their season alive, Joe O'Sullivan's first goal of the season could not have come at a better time, as he came up clutch at the 88th minute to send the game into overtime.

In overtime, an Owl fouled inside the box to set the Monarchs up for a penalty kick try, but the ball hit the crossbar to keep the game going. Just two minutes later, freshman Jose Alastuey's goal on an indirect free kick was good to send the seniors off with a 4-3 win and a trip to the C-USA Tournament.

About the Owls

The Owls' season has been historical, to say the least, as they have been enjoying the best record since 2013, having the most shutouts since 2009 and seeing four Owls make the All-C-USA Team, among other things. Ivan Mykhailenko has been the Owls leader in goals and points since the first game of the season against No. 17 James Madison. The Kyiv, Ukraine native is the leader in goals (seven), points (17), game-winning goals (three) and shots (31), and in the conference, he is tied for second in goals and sixth in points.

Alexis has also been a key component to the Owls' striking offense, as he leads the team with seven assists. His 0.54 assists per game is ranked second in C-USA and 11th in the NCAA. Alonso Coello Camarero has been the Owls' leading midfielder all season long, taking 16 shots and playing 1,130 minutes, which is the second most on the team despite missing last Friday's game. Adam O'Sullivan leads the team in minutes with 1,309 with fellow defenders in Tom Abrahamsson (1,089), Daniel Skistad (981) and Graeme Pratt (814) playing the majority of the previous matches in full, as well.

Hagay Jalon has seen the most starts at net as of late, earning the past four starting nods. The redshirt senior has recorded a 1.60 Goals Against Average and 34 saves. He has also been recorded as the C-USA Defensive Player of the Week twice this season after shutouts against No. 15 Marshall and No. 17 James Madison. Daniel Ragoo has also been at net this season for six starts. The senior keeper has tallied a 2.11 GAA and 30 saves.

FAU continues to have the edge on the opposition in shots, outshooting opponents 84-73 in the first and 100-90 in the second. The team's 22 goals is also the most scored by the program since 2013 when the team scored 25. FAU has endured one of the toughest schedules in the country, having faced eight opponents who have been ranked or received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll.

About the Wildcats

The Wildcats have finished the regular season as the No. 15 team in the country. Kentucky's only losses come against Louisville and C-USA opponents in No. 15 FIU and No. 20 Marshall. The team has also finished in draws against No. 11 Xavier and No. 4 Indiana. Defender Aimé Mabika was recently named C-USA Player of the Year and Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Mabika led the Wildcats' backfield to a league-leading eight shutouts and allowed just 14 goals. The Wildcats also saw Kalil ElMedkhar make the First Team, as well as Enrique Facusse, Marcel Meinzer and Daniel Evans chosen to the Second Team.

Throughout the season, the Wildcats have outscored opponents, 33-14, as well as taken almost double the shots, 227-124. Kentucky is led by El-Medkhar (six goals and seven assists) and Daniel Evans (seven goals and five assists) who each have 19 points apiece. Evans' seven goals is tied with Mykhailenko for the second most in the conference. Facusse has been the leading goaltender for the Wildcats, gathering all 17 starts. The junior leads the league with eight shutouts and his 0.80 GAA is ranked second in the league and 19th in the country.

Match History

The Owls hold a 0-7-1 record against the Wildcats, as they look to gather their first win over the team tomorrow. FAU played their first road game of the season at No. 21 Kentucky in mid-September, but were shutout by the Wildcats, 3-0. In last year's matchup, the Owls came close to sending the game into overtime, but Kentucky capitalized in the 88th minute to seal the deal. Jean Paul Rafols scored the Owls' goal in the 71st minute off Coello Camarero's assist. FAU's only draw against Kentucky came in 2014.

All-Conference Honorees

Four Owls made the All-Conference Team, which is the most since joining C-USA. The last time the Owls had more than four players make the team was in 2007 when FAU belonged to the Atlantic Soccer Conference. Alonso Coello Camarero made the First Team, while Ivan Mykhailenko and Alex Alexis were chosen to the Second Team. Tom Abrahamsson rounded out the list with Third Team and All-Freshman Team honors. Read the full release here.

FAU in Conference Tournaments

The Owls have not played in a conference tournament since 2008, when they belonged to the Mid-Atlantic Conference and lost to Buffalo in the first round, 6-0. In the previous year in 2007, the Owls came off their only conference tournament championship by knocking off Longwood in penalty kicks. At the time, the Owls were members of the ASC, which did not receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, so FAU's season ended at 11-7-2. From 2004-2007, the Owls would make it to the finals twice, while being members of the Atlantic Sun Conference and ASC.

Up Next

With a win over Kentucky, the team would move onto the semi-finals to face No. 1 seed Marshall on Friday at 4:30 p.m. More information on the tournament can be found here.

Owls on Social Media

For complete coverage of FAU men's soccer, follow us on Twitter (@FAUMensSoccer), Instagram (@FAUMensSoccer_) and Facebook (FAU Men's Soccer).

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