Sept. 26, 2011
NORFOLK, VA- The ODU Soccer Monarchs (4-1/0-1) hit the road again Tuesday night against nationally ranked North Carolina (7-1) at 7 p.m.at Fetzer Field. ODU defeated the Tar Heels last year, 2-1 at ODU. College Soccer News has NorthCarolina third and ODU 15th,while TopDrawerSoccer has UNC third and ODU 18th.Soccer America and NSCAA polls come out on Tuesday.
This will be the third straight road contest for the Monarchs who beat Elon, 3-2in overtime and lost its CAA opener at George Mason, 1-0.
Yannick Smith (Hillsborough, NJ.) leads the Monarchs with six goals and one assist for 13 points, while Chris Harmon (Downingtown, PA.), Gideon Asante and Tim Hopkinson (Nottingham, England) all have three assists each (second in the CAA). Asante is second in scoring with nine points, followed by Hopkins with seven.
In the net, ODU's Victor Francoz (Fleurieu Sur Saone, France) has a 0.83 goals against average (second in the CAA) with two shutouts and 23 saves. He had eight against Mason and five against Elon.
The Monarchs have already played two nationally ranked teams, beating Monmouth andEast Tennessee State. The match against West Virginia was cancelled due to badweather in Morgantown.
The Monarchs lead the CAA in goals per game at 3.20, and 2.80 assists per game. Yannick Smith ranks third in the CAA in total points with 13 and second in goals with six.
THE SERIES VS. UNC is even at 5-5-2. ODU defeated the Tar Heels last year atODU, 2-1 on Gideon Asante's two goals. The two tied 1-1 in 2007 and ODU won in 2006, 1-0 in the NCAA College Cup.
North Carolina is under the direction of first year head coach Carlos Somoano. TheTar Heels are led by junior midfielder Enzo Martinez who was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week on Monday for his six-point week in helping Carolina win its fourth consecutive match. Martinez leads the ACC with six assists on the year and has tallied 16 points in eight matches to tie for third in the conference.
Billy Schuler is second on the team with 14 points on six goals and two assists, while goalkeeper Scott Goodwin has a 0.61 goals against average and three shutouts.
ODU NOTES FOR NORTH CAROLINA MATCHHonors Thus Far This seasonGideon AsantePre-season All-CAA - Mac Hermann Trophy Watch List
Yannick Smith3 goals vs. Houston BaptistTopDrawer Soccer Team of the Week (Sept. 5)College Soccer News Team of the Week (Sept. 20)
Alex De JohnStihl Classic All-Tournament
Victor FrancozStihl Classic All-Tournament8 saves vs. George Mason5 saves vs. Elon and Monmouth
Tim HopkinsonTopDrawer Soccer National Team of the WeekDisney Sports/NSCAA National Player of the Week
SERIES VS. UNC (5-5-2)1978 W 1-01979 T 1-11980 L 4-01982 W 2-11994 L 2-02000 L 4-02001 L2-02004 W 3-22005 L2-12006 W 1-0 (NCAA)2007 T 1-12010 W 2-1