WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary men's soccer hits the road to face in second Atlantic Coast Conference opponent of the season in No. 6-ranked Wake Forest on Tuesday night. The Tribe's first trip to Winston-Salem since 2011 kicks off at 7 p.m. from Spry Stadium and will be available on ACC Network Extra.
Scouting the Tribe
- The Tribe had its four-match win streak snapped on Saturday night in a 1-0 setback to Old Dominion.
- For the fourth time in five weeks, the Tribe picked up a Colonial Athletic Association weekly award on Monday as freshman
Alfredo Bozalongo was named the league's rookie of the week. He scored his first two collegiate goals on free kicks, including the game-winner with 11 seconds remaining in the first OT period, in a 2-1 victory over Elon on Oct. 9.
- The Tribe came in a No. 134 in the first NCAA RPI released on Monday. W&M is 4-5-2 overall and sits in fourth place in the CAA at 2-1-1 in league action.
- On three occasions this season, a Tribe player has been recognized as the CAA Defensive Player of the Week. Freshman goalkeeper
Kieran Baskett garnered the distinction twice on Sept. 14 and Oct. 7, while junior back
Sam Golan received the honor on Sept. 30 after tallying a goal and an assist in a road win at Charleston.
- Freshman midfielder
Nathan Messer garnered the CAA Rookie of the Year honor on Sept. 30 after assisting on the game-winner against Loyola Maryland and scoring the game-winner at Charleston, his first collegiate goal.
- In each of the last nine matches, the Tribe has started at least five freshmen. On two occasions, the Tribe had six freshmen in the first XI, marking the first time that has occurred since 2007. W&M is 4-3-2 when starting at least five freshmen, including a 2-0 mark with six in the starting lineup.
- Freshman
Alexander Levengood, who netted his first career game-winner at Coastal Carolina chipping the goalkeeper from 25 yards out in the 96th minute, leads the Tribe in goals (4) and points (8). He ranks fourth in the CAA in goals and 10th in points.
- Freshman
Diba Nwegbo, senior
Julian Ngoh and Bozalongo are tied for the team lead and rank 10th in the CAA in assists with two apiece.
- Baskett leads the CAA in saves (47) and save percentage (.783) while coming in second in shutouts (3) and third in goals against average (1.12). He is 29th nationally in saves and 34th in save percentage as of Oct. 14.
- Baskett tallied a career-high 11 saves against UNCW, which were the most for a W&M player since 1998 when Adin Brown tallied 12 against St. John's. The total was the most in a CAA game since 2015. He was named to College Soccer News National Team of the Week for his efforts.
- Six true freshmen (
Marcos Villeda, Bozalongo, Nwegbo, Messer, Baskett and Levengood) have started at least one game this season. It marks the most true freshmen to start games in a season since 2011.
- In total, 57.9 percent of the Tribe's starts this season (70-of-121) have come from its underclassmen – freshmen and sophomores. The rookies own 54 of those starts.
Scouting Wake Forest
- The Demon Deacons are ranked No. 6 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches poll. Wake Forest sits at 10-2 on the year and 4-1 in the ACC. They are 7-0 at home this season and came in at No. 3 in the NCAA RPI released on Monday.
- Last week, Wake Forest notched a pair of wins behind a 5-0 home victory over High Point, 5-0, on Tuesday and 3-1 triumph at No. 20 NC State on Friday.
- The Deacs' losses this season came by one-goal margins at current No. 16 James Madison, 1-0, on Sept. 17, and 2-1 at Boston College, who is ranked No. 14 by Top Drawer Soccer.
- Wake Forest averages 2.17 goals per game, which ranks 20th nationally. The Deacs are 11th nationally in shutout percentage with six clean sheets in 12 matches.
- WF moved up to No. 1 earlier this season. They have been ranked in the top 10 in 42 consecutive polls, and in the top 25 in 62 consecutive polls, dating back to the 2015 preseason poll.
- Senior Bruno Lapa, who was a First Team All-American last season, leads Wake Forest with 10 points on four goals and two assists. He notched a pair of markers in the 3-1 win at NC State.
- Junior Machop Chol is tied for the team lead with 10 points on three goals and four assists, while classmate Justin McMaster shares the lead with four goals.
- Lapa, McMaster and Calvin Harris each have two game-winning goals this season.
- Sophomore Andrew Pannenberg has played every minute in goal for the Deacs and has a goals against average of 0.67 with 26 saves. His GAA ranks 20th nationally.
Series History: W&M vs. Wake Forest
- The Tribe and Demon Deacons meet for the first time since 2011.
- Wake Forest leads the all-time series with W&M at 6-1, including a 1-0 win in the last meeting between the two teams in Winston-Salem.
- W&M's victory over the Deacs came in Williamsburg, 2-0, in 2010.
W&M vs. the ACC
- Wake Forest is the Tribe's second ACC opponent in 2019. It marks the seventh consecutive season that the Green and Gold has faced multiple ACC opponents.
- On Sept. 10, W&M played to a 1-1 draw with NC State in Williamsburg. Senior
Cole Smith scored the equalizer in the 83rd minute, while freshman goalkeeper
Kieran Baskett made seven saves.
- The Green and Gold owns six wins against the ACC in the last nine years, including a pair of victories in 2017 (NC State and Virginia Tech).
- During head coach
Chris Norris's tenure, the Tribe owns nine wins and four ties against Power 5 Conference opponents.
Up Next
- The Tribe returns home to host Hofstra in the CAA tilt as part of Homecoming on Saturday night.
- Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. from Martin Family Stadium at Albert-Daly Field and the game will be broadcast on Tribe Athletics TV.
