SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — The Slippery Rock University men's soccer team will compete against its third nationally ranked opponent of the season in search of its fourth straight victory when it plays 6 p.m. Wednesday at No. 7 Gannon University.
 
Slippery Rock has bolstered its record to a season best 5-5-4 overall and 4-3 within the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division. The Golden Knights enter at an impressive undefeated 13-0-2 mark overall and 6-0-1 in PSAC West play.
 
WATCH LIVE
Fans can watch Wednesday's game live for free via the links below provided by Gannon Media Relations.

GAME 15 of 17
Opponent: No. 7 Gannon
Date: Wednesday – 6 p.m.
Venue: McConnell Family Stadium
Location: Erie, Pennsylvania
Live Video: PSAC Sports Digital Network
Live Stats: Gannon Media Relations
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)

SERIES HISTORY vs. GANNON
Wednesday marks the 47^th all-time meeting between The Rock and the Golden Knights, a series that dates to 1968. Slippery Rock holds a 23-21-2 record against Gannon but has gone 0-9-1 in the last 10 meetings. SRU's last win over Gannon came in 2015 on the road in a 1-0 decision. On the road, Slippery Rock is 13-9 against Gannon, going 1-4 in the last five away contests.

LAST MEETING
Slippery Rock hosted No. 10 Gannon Oct. 11, falling in a 7-1 result. The Golden Knights posted a trio of first half goals before Arturo Pla Hernandis scored in the 43^rd minute, cutting the lead to 3-1 at the break. Gannon went on to score four more times in the second half, despite the fact that they only led in shots by narrow a 14-12 differential. The Rock led in corner kicks, 10-5.  
 
THE ROCK BY THE NUMBERS
Overall Record: 5-5-4
PSAC West Record: 4-3-0
PSAC West Standings: 3^rd  
Home Record: 4-2-1
Away Record: 1-3-3
Last Five Games: 3-2-0
Streak: W3
Head Coach: Kevin Wilhelm | Sixth season at SRU (30-45-12)

LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock traveled to Pitt-Johnstown last week, coming away with its second straight 3-0 win. Luke Gildea scored in the 17^th minute and then assisted Aitor Jorde's 60^th minute goal, before Jorde added another in the 64^th minute of play. The Rock dominated possession, outshooting the Mountain Cats, 14-5. Adam Davies recorded his third career shutout, making three saves in the winning effort.
 
WHERE THEY STAND
With just two weeks remaining in the regular season, the PSAC Tournament playoff picture is slowly starting to take focus, but there is still much to be decided. The top three teams in both the Western Division and Eastern Division standings at the end of the regular season qualify for the PSAC Tournament.
 
Realistically, there are four teams competing for the three postseason berths in the PSAC West as Gannon enters the week leading the division with 19 points followed in the top four by Mercyhurst (13 points), Slippery Rock (12) and Seton Hill (10).
 
With just three points separating the second and fourth teams in the PSAC West standings, every result for The Rock, Lakers and Griffins the rest of the season will have a direct impact on the postseason.
 
A win or a tie against Slippery Rock is all the Golden Knights need to officially clinch a spot in the PSAC Tournament. A win would secure the No. 1 seed in the PSAC West for Gannon, as it holds a tiebreaker over Mercyhurst should it become necessary.
 
While seeding is yet to be determined, the Easter Division berths have all but been decided as Bloomsburg and Millersville have already clinched bids with West Chester being a point away from doing the same.
 
In Tuesday's United Soccer Coaches' poll, Gannon moved up to No. 7 nationally from its previous ranking at No. 10. 

LEADING THE CHARGE
13 players have recorded points for Slippery Rock, and for the first time this year, Jorde has moved to the top of the charts with 18 points on eight goals and two assists. 12 of his points have come in the last three games, netting five goals in that span.
 
Pla Hernandis has posted a career-high 17 points on eight goals and one assist, while Gildea comes in at eight points on a pair of goals and four assists.
 
Gabin Lonjard and Aashi Pandher have each tacked on five points from two goals and an assist, while Ignacio Rullan holds four points on the year from one goal and two assists.
 
Tying with Gildea for team-high assists honors with four is Shaun Spencer, who has built up his four-point tally solely from his four assists.
 
Will Harrigan, Joe Skillicorn and Jeroen Van Der Veen each have two points on the year. While Harrigan's comes from his first career goal, Skillicorn and Van Der Veen have contributed two assists.
 
Topher Garcia, Chris Mitchell and Max Murphy each have one point to their name from one assist.

PEPPERING SHOTS
As a team, Slippery Rock have outshot its opponents this year, 169-150. Pla Hernandis' 40 and Jorde's 39 shots combine for 46.7 percent of the team's output, as they rank third and fifth in the PSAC, respectively.
 
Gildea has been one of the most accurate shot-takers for The Rock this year, placing 11 of his 16 shots on target. His 11 shots on goal rank third on the team behind Pla Hernandis' 21 and Jorde's 19.
 
Pandher and Rullan have both crossed into the double digits in total shots, as well, rifling a respective 18 and 14 shots.
 
Freshman Ryan Hanes continues to add to his total, now having placed five of his nine total shots on goal, adding four shots in his last two matches.

HATS OFF TO ANOTHER WEEKLY AWARD
Jorde was named PSAC West Athlete of the Week for the first time in his career, the conference office announced Monday. Jorde led The Rock to a 2-0 record last week as SRU picked up a pair of 3-0 shutout victories over California (Pa.) and Pitt-Johnstown.
 
In his first season at The Rock, Jorde has started 11 of his 14 games played. He has totaled a team-high 18 points on eight goals and two assists, with 12 of those points coming in the last three games. The Bilbao, Spain native has landed 19 of his 39 shots on target.
 
Jorde is the second Slippery Rock player to win a PSAC West weekly award this season, joining Lonjard, who was named PSAC West Co-Athlete of the Week Oct. 2.

SRU vs. RANKED OPPONENTS
Slippery Rock has gone winless in its last 12 matches against nationally ranked opponents, going 0-10-2. Slippery Rock's last win versus a ranked opponent came Nov. 8, 2015 when The Rock defeated No. 21 Millersville University, 2-1, in the PSAC Championship game.
 
SRU tied No. 25 Lake Erie College, 1-1, in its 2021 season opener. Earlier this season, Slippery Rock fell to No. 20 Mercyhurst on the road, 3-1, and dropped a 7-1 decision at home to No. 10 Gannon.
 
The last time that Slippery Rock played at least four nationally ranked teams in the same season was 2011 against No. 6 Mercyhurst, No. 12 Cal, No. 20 Ashland University, and No. 23 West Virginia Wesleyan College.

LOOKING TO STAY HOT
A win over Gannon would mark Slippery Rock's fourth consecutive victory, a winning streak length that has not occurred since 2015 when Slippery Rock won five games in a row, capped off by winning the PSAC Championship.
 
The Rock last went unbeaten through four games in 2022, going on a 3-0-1 tear against Shepherd University, the University of the District of Columbia, UPJ and Cal.
 
SPOTLIGHT ON THE DEFENSE
The Rock's defense continues to be led by Harrigan, Lonjard, Spencer and Van Der Veen. Ethan Boland, Jack Smith and Nate Stalter all made appearances in Slippery Rock's 3-0 win at UPJ last week defensively, as well.
 
In the last three matches, SRU has allowed just 5.67 shots and two shots on goal per game. Additionally, The Rock have allowed just three corner kicks per match.
 
TWO STRAIGHT SHUTOUTS
Davies picked up his third career blank sheet against UPJ, as he has made five saves in the last three games, allowing just one goal to Seton Hill. Davies enters Wednesday's matchup at Gannon with a save percentage of .658 and a GAA of 1.83, combining for 48 saves on the year.
 
Backup goalie Duncan McCoy recorded minutes for the second time this season against Pitt-Johnstown, as well.
 
ACTIVE SRU ROSTER vs. GANNON
Arturo Pla Hernandis – 2 points (1 goal, 0 assists)
Joe Skillicorn – 1 point (0 goals, 1 assist)
Jeroen Van Der Veen – 1 point (0 goals, 1 assist)
Adam Davies – 3 saves (1 game played)
 
THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS
Overall Record: 13-0-2 (.933)
PSAC West Record: 6-0-1
PSAC West Standings: 1^st  
Home Record: 7-0-0
Away Record: 6-0-2
Last Five Games: 4-0-1
Streak: W1
Head Coach: Billy Colton | 5^th season at Gannon (63-15-7, .782)

GANNON SCOUTING REPORT
The Golden Knights are undefeated through their 15 games this season, coming in at 13-0-2. Gannon's only two road draws include a 1-1 deadlock at Saginaw Valley State University and a 3-3 battle with No. 19 Mercyhurst last week.
 
In conference play this season, Gannon has outscored its opponents a combined 31-5. On the year, the Golden Knights have outscored the opposition, 53-14, making Gannon the third highest scoring offense in Division II at 3.53 goals per game.
 
Graduate student Tinashe Katsande has been the leader of the offense, racking up 36 points on 14 goals and eight assists. The Norwich, England native has registered points in all but two matches this year and has scored in each of the last nine games, highlighted by a four-goal performance against Lock Haven University. His 0.93 goals per game ranks third in Division II.
 
Pau Ferrer has collected 23 points on the year from five goals and a team-high 13 assists. His 0.87 assists per game is first in Division II, with teammate Sverre Orten's 11 total assists ranking fifth nationally. The team's 3.73 assists per game is first in Division II, as well.
 
James Pool has been a constant threat offensively for the Golden Knights as well, earning 25 points on 10 goals and five assists.
 
Samuel Alarcon has been Gannon's top goalkeeper, starting 13 of the 15 matches and making 55 saves on 146 shots faced. The sophomore enters Wednesday's match with a 1.01 GAA and a save percentage of .809.
 
As a collective, Gannon takes 15.13 shots per game, third in the PSAC. Their 7.2 corners per match are top of the PSAC and fifth in Division II. Additionally, Gannon commits more fouls than anyone in the PSAC, at 13.6 per game.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Rock will play its last home game of the regular season 3 p.m. Saturday against No. 20 Mercyhurst. The Rock fell to the Lakers earlier this year on the road, 3-1. Saturday will also feature the team's celebration of Senior Day.



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