Men's Soccer Hosts Providence in Home Opener Monday Night
September 6, 2009 | Men's Soccer
Sept. 6, 2009
Gametracker | Watch | Listen
BOSTON - Looking to avoid a letdown following their first win over a nationally-ranked team since 2007, the Boston University men's soccer team (1-0-1) hosts Providence (2-0-0) in their first meeting since 1989 on Monday at Nickerson Field with a start time of 7 p.m. The Terriers earned a convincing 3-0 victory Saturday against 12th-ranked UConn and will now face their second of three Big East squads scheduled for the regular season.
The contest will be broadcast live on WTBU Radio and webcast with live streaming video through BU All-Access.
Ranked 23rd in the CollegeSoccerNews.com preseason poll and 24th in the NSCAA poll, BU holds an overall record of 9-3-3 against Providence with their first-ever meeting occurring in 1974. The Terriers enter the game with plenty of confidence after earning a come-from-behind 1-1 draw at UMass and stunning victory in front of a spirited 3,495 fans at UConn.
Monday's game will mark the 25th home opener for head coach Neil Roberts, who last stood on the field after an official game with his team celebrating the Terriers' first-round NCAA tournament win over Fairleigh Dickinson. In 2008, BU had an 8-2-2 record at home.
Junior Aaron O'Neal has been the offensive spark so far this year, recording the assist on senior Shaun Taylor's score against the Minutemen and then tallying the last two goals against the Huskies. Coincidently, it was O'Neal who scored the lone goal in BU's last victory against a ranked team, then-No. 15 Brown, in Providence, R.I.
Sophomore Ben Berube scored his first career game winner in the upset win off an assist from classmate Michael Bustamante. Senior Samuel Appiah recorded an assist on O'Neal's first goal, and sophomore Stephen Knox assisted on the second.
Senior keeper Hrafn Davidsson is off to a solid start, holding a 0.45 goals against average after two games. He made several impressive saves, keeping the Minutemen from pulling away and shutting out UConn on the road for the second consecutive year.
Finishing last year with a 9-7-3 record, Providence posted identical scores of 1-0 against Sacred Heart and Holy Cross to open the season, with senior Timothy Ritter posting the first one late in double overtime and the second early in the first half against the Crusaders. Graduate student Timothy Murray made 11 saves in the two shutout wins.
Up next for the Terriers will take a quick drive over to Harvard on Friday (Sept. 11) for a 4 p.m. matchup.
