Concord Readies for First MEC Tournament Home Game in Program History

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ATHENS, W.Va. – The Concord University men's soccer team gears up for its first ever Mountain East Conference Tournament appearance when it hosts West Virginia Wesleyan 4:00 p.m. Sunday in the quarterfinal round of the conference tournament at the YMCA Cline Complex in Beckley, West Virginia.

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The Concord University Sports Information Department will have live in-game statistics and live streaming video of the game.

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SERIES HISTORY:  West Virginia Wesleyan leads 21-2-2

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VERSUS WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN
October 15, 2023: Concord 0 – West Virginia Wesleyan 0 (Buckhannon, W.Va.)
September 13, 2023: Concord 0 – West Virginia Wesleyan 0 (Beckley, W.Va.)
October 9, 2022: West Virginia Wesleyan 1 – Concord 0 (Beckley, W.Va.)
September 14, 2022: West Virginia Wesleyan 4 – Concord 3 (Buckhannon, W.Va.)
October 17, 2021: Concord 3 – West Virginia Wesleyan 1 (Buckhannon, W.Va.)

CONCORD AT A GLANCE
Overall Record: 7-4-7
MEC Record: 4-3-7
Home Record: 6-1-2
Away Record: 1-3-5

HISTORICAL MOMENT
The Mountain Lions secured their first conference tournament home game by edging West Virginia Wesleyan in the MEC Standings by a point, 19-18, for fourth place. Sunday's contest will be the first conference tournament appearance for CU since the 2000 season. And subsequently, the Maroon and Gray is seeking its first conference tournament victory in program history. The only CU regulars with postseason experience at the NCAA level are junior midfielder Alessandro Raffl and junior forward Carlos Zuniga. Raffl was at Mars Hill when they advanced to the South Atlantic championship game in 2021. Zuniga played in the postseason at Bethany (Kan.) in 2021.

DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE
Concord and WVWC played to a pair of scoreless draws this season. The first matchup this season, September 13, featured just 16 total shots in the game. On October 15, the game opened up a bit more with Wesleyan owning a 14-8 advantage in total attempts. CU has the third-best defense in the MEC as it only allows 1.06 goals by game. Sophomore goalkeeper Keegan Grant has the third-best goals-against average (0.98) in the MEC and has recorded the most saves (92). Sophomore defensive Kai Forsyth and junior defender Dwight Savoury anchor the defensive backline, starting in all 18 games. Logan Nelson and Bryant Sheffield have split time in net for the Bobcats who are allowing 1.17 goals per game, fifth in the MEC. WVWC's top defender is Erik Rostoen who has started 15 games while scoring three goals and adding two assists.

HOME TURF
Six of the seven wins for the Mountain Lions have come at the Cline Complex as they posted a regular-season mark of 6-1-2. Concord outscored teams 15-6 in home game with four of the six goals allowed coming in two games against Charleston and Wheeling. Sophomore midfielder Tomas Kelly scored five of his goals for the season in home contests. Of the 10 points recorded by junior midfielder Andre Nicholson this season, nine were tallied in home games. And Grant had five of his seven shutouts while wearing the home kit, including making four saves to earn the 0-0 draw versus West Virginia Wesleyan.

WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN AT A GLANCE
Overall Record: 8-7-3
MEC Record: 5-6-3
Home Record: 5-2-2
Away Record: 3-5-1

SCOUTING THE BOBCATS
Wesleyan is in a familiar spot as it was the fifth seed in last year's MEC Tournament, having to go on the road to Wheeling where it lost 1-0. Sinasi Emre Deniz tied for the regular-season high in goals in the MEC with 10. Max Evans poked in eight goals despite appearing in just 13 games and starting three of those contests. The Bobcats had 20 different players start at least two games during the regular season. WVWC is winless in its last four games entering the MEC Tournament, scoring just one goal in those four games.