BRONX, N.Y. – After starting the 2023 campaign with a convincing win over Sacred Heart on Thursday night, the Fordham men's soccer team will hit the road for the first time this season when it travels to Loretto, Pa., for a Sunday matinee against Saint Francis.
Kick-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on NEC Front Row.
Fordham heads to Western Pennsylvania on the heels of its most lopsided season-opening victory in more than three and a half decades. Prior to defeating Sacred Heart, 3-0, on Thursday night, the Rams had not enjoyed a larger margin of victory in a campaign debut since 1987, when they took down Iona, 6-0, to start the fall.
Three different Rams, all hailing from Germany, found the back of the net against the Pioneers on Thursday.
Timo Hummrich, a Preseason All-Atlantic 10 selection and a member of the TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Top 100 (no. 95), converted on a 28
th minute penalty kick to provide the game-winner. Making his first appearance at Fordham following three years at UConn,
Kai Griese scored the Rams' second goal and assisted on
Florian Deletioglu's insurance marker in the 84
th minute.
Sigfus Arnason and
Louis Lehr picked up assists on Griese's goal of the evening.
Griese and Lehr were two of 10 players to make their Fordham debut on Thursday night. After posting 35 career appearances, including 31 starts, at Wisconsin, goalkeeper
Carter Abbott turned aside all four Sacred Heart shots on goal to record his ninth career solo shutout.
In total, the Rams boast 10 graduate students on their roster, eight of whom are in their first year with the program. Of those eight graduate newcomers, four came from fellow Atlantic 10 programs: Lehr (George Mason),
Harper Cook (Duquesne),
Luis Puchol (La Salle) and
Shizu Yohena (UMass).
Saint Francis will also enter Sunday's match with an unblemished record after defeating Canisius, 2-1, on Thursday.
Alvaro Planas and Andre Isreal both recorded their first collegiate goals to provide the Red Flash's offense. Maximus Rigby, Torren Aikens and Joschi Schelb logged assists. Jordane Jaeger, a sophomore from Munich, played all 90 minutes between the pipes for Saint Francis. Last fall, Jaeager became the first player in program history to be named NEC Rookie of the Year after registering five shutouts and a .798 save percentage.
Fordham and Saint Francis have met just once, a 2-0 win for the Rams during the March of 2021 at Jack Coffey Field.
