SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. The Slippery Rock University men's soccer team is set for a key Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division match at Seton Hill University 1 p.m. Wednesday.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Live video and in-game statistics will be provided by the Seton Hill Athletic Communication department at the links below.
 
GAME 16 DETAILS
Opponent: Seton Hill University
Date: Wednesday – 1 p.m.
Location: Dick's Sporting Goods Field – Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Live Video: Link
Live Stats: Link
In-game Updates: Twitter (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: Griffins lead 9-6-1
Last Played: Oct. 8, 2022 (SHU won 3-1)
 
SERIES HISTORY vs. SETON HILL
Seton Hill holds a 9-6-1 lead over Slippery Rock in the all-time series. A win over the Griffins on the road would mark The Rock's first such since their 3-1 defeat of SHU on Oct. 5, 2011.
 
LAST MEETING
SRU fell, 3-1, to Seton Hill Oct. 8 at James Egli Field. Arturo Pla Hernandis led The Rock with one goal while Topher Garcia registered one assist. Hossam Aly tallied four saves over 90 minutes.
 
SLIPPERY ROCK PRIMER
Roster: Link
Stats: Link
Overall Record: 5-8-2
PSAC West Record: 3-4-1
PSAC West Standings: Fourth
Home Record: 4-3-1
Away Record: 1-5-1
Last Five Games: 1-3-1
Streak: L1
Head Coach: Kevin Wilhelm | Fifth season at SRU (25-38-8)
 
SCOUTING THE ROCK
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock was edged, 1-0, on the road to non-conference opponent Daemen University Oct. 22. Alex Plimmer led the SRU attack with two shots.
 
Rock goalkeepers Aly and Adam Davies split time equally over the match with Davies playing the opening 45 minutes before giving way to Aly, who made three saves and allowed one goal, in the second half.
 
POSTSEASON PUSH
With only two regular season games remaining, The Rock finds themselves in a must-win situation against the Griffins, as they are fourth in the PSAC West standings with 10 points. The top three teams in the PSAC West and East standings at the conclusion of the regular season qualify for the conference tournament.
 
Ahead of SRU in the standings are No. 2 Mercyhurst University (24) in first place followed by Gannon University (17) and Seton Hill (14). Mercyhurst and Gannon have both already clinched spots in the PSAC Tournament.
 
While not impossible, Slippery Rock's path to the PSAC Tournament is a difficult one as the regular season comes to a close.
 
How SRU Can Qualify for the PSAC Tournament
· Win both of its final two games (at Seton Hill, vs. Mercyhurst) + Seton Hill loses out (vs. Slippery Rock, at California)
· Win both of its final two games (at Seton Hill, vs. Mercyhurst) + Seton Hill loses to SRU and ties California on Saturday.
 
SRU Is Eliminated If…
· Seton Hill defeats The Rock.
· Seton Hill and Slippery Rock finish in a tie.
· Seton Hill and Slippery Rock conclude the year with the same number of points due to Seton Hill currently owning the tiebreaker.
 
ON THE ATTACK
Continuing to lead The Rock's offense is Pla Hernandis, who is tied for fourth in the conference in goals (8) and tied for seventh in points (16).
 
Shaun Spencer is second for SRU in points with nine on four goals and one assist while Plimmer has eight points on three goals and two assists. Ramses Minaya tallies seven points on two goals and three assists.
 
Joe Skillicorn, one goal and one assist, and Max Murpyh, one goal, round out Rock multi-point scorers.
 
Garcia, Luke Gildea, Harry Griffin, Nathan Kortyna and Patrick Phillips each have one assist for SRU.
 
SECOND HALF SUCCESS
After being held do just six total goals over the first half of its contests, Slippery Rock has doubled its scoring output in the final 45 minutes with 13 goals. SRU has also matched its opponents 13-13 in second-half scoring.
 
GAME-WINNERS
Pla Hernandis has tallied three game-winning goals on the season. He has matched the second highest number of game-winning goals by a Rock men's soccer player since the 2016 season. During the 2019 season Mo Kanani registered three while and Abdallah Bangura tallied four.
 
DEFENSIVE STAND
The Slippery Rock defense has settled in as of late. After allowing nine goals in its first four matches this year, SRU has only allowed four goals in its most recent four contests.
 
Additionally, The Rock backline has posted back-to-back matches holding its competitors to no more than five shots on goal. SRU has now limited its opponents to five or less on-target shots in six contests.
 
Leading the way for the Slippery Rock defense is Aly who enters Wednesday's match second in the conference in both saves (76) and saves per game (5.43) in addition to being sixth in save percentage (.752) and eighth in goals against average (1.87).
 
SHOOTING FOR THE STARS
Accounting for The Rock's 66 shots on goal this season are Pla Hernandis (21), Plimmer (12), Spencer (7), Minaya (6), Garcia (4), Murphy (3), Skillicorn (3), Gildea (2), Samuel Hillman (2), Ryan John (2), Griffin (1), Jack Smith (1) Noel Williamson (1) and Rafal Wlodarczyk (1).
 
Pla Hernandis and Plimmer, the lone Rock players to have tallied double-digit shots on goal, have combined for 50 percent (33-of-66) of SRU's on-target shots.
 
CONSISTENT STARTERS
Over 15 matches, Slippery Rock has featured a consistent line up as Hillman, John, Skillicorn, Plimmer and Pla Hernandis have each started all 15 contests.
 
Rounding out the SRU lineup and starting at least 12 games this year are Harrigan (14), Minaya (14), Aly (13), Kortyna (13) and Griffin (12).
 
PREVIOUSLY vs. SETON HILL
Aly – 2 games (0-2): 5 save, 5 goals allowed.
Pla Hernandis – 3 games: 1 goal
Garcia – 1 game: 1 assist
Derek Hoffman – 2 games (0-2): 10 saves, 3 goals allowed
 
REMAINING REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
Oct. 29 – 12 p.m. vs Mercyhurst (Senior Day)
 
SETON HILL PRIMER
Roster: Link
Stats: Link
Overall Record: 6-8-2
PSAC West Record: 4-2-2
PSAC West Standings: Third
Home Record: 3-4-1
Away Record: 3-4-1
Last Five Games: 3-1-1
Streak: L1
Head Coach: Dilveer Chaggar | First season at SHU (6-8-2)
 
SCOUTING THE GRIFFINS
Last time out: Seton Hill suffered a 6-0 loss to PSAC West leader No. 2 Mercyhurst Oct. 19 at Dick's Sporting Good Field.
 
Leading the Seton Hill offense is Fletcher Amos who totals 14 points on seven goals. Assisting in the attack is Archie Lock with a team-high five assists to go along with two goals.
 
Griffin goalkeepers Nathaniel Huff and Bobby White have split time for SHU with six and nine starts respectively. Huff enters Wednesday's match with a 1.45 GAA, .761 save percentage and 35 saves while White tallies a 2.85 GAA, .556 save percentage and 30 saves.
 
In Seton Hill's 3-1 win over SRU earlier this season, Amos, Yuriy Kryskiv and Mortiz Stuehn all scored one goal apiece while Anton Dupont Linden dished out a pair of assists. White earned the win after making five saves and allowing just one goal over 90 minutes.
 
UP NEXT
Slippery Rock returns home to host Mercyhurst 12 p.m. Saturday at James Egli Field on Senior Day as it honors it eight-member senior class for their contributions to the program over their careers. Earlier this year SRU fell 3-0 the Lakers on the road.









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