#2 Bulldogs battle #3 Terriers in NEC Tournament Semis Friday at 6:30 pm

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THE PARTICULARS
The Bryant University men's soccer team will open Northeast Conference Tournament action vs. No. 3 seeded Saint Francis Brooklyn., Friday evening at 6:30 p.m. in Loretto, Pa. 
The winner will advance to play the winner of No. 1 Saint Francis U. / No. 4 LIU Brooklyn (Friday, 4 p.m.) in the NEC Championship on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 1 p.m.

THE SERIES
Friday night will mark the eighth meeting between the Bulldogs and the Terriers with St. Francis Brooklyn holding a commanding 5-1-1 lead in the all-time series. After dropping the first three matchups vs. the Terriers, Bryant has bounced back in the last four, defeating St. Francis, 4-3, in 2012, before two epic overtime battles in the last two matches.

In the 2013 NEC Championship, Bryant and St. Francis Brooklyn played one of the best games of the 2013 season, with back-and-forth action. With just over 20 minutes to play, the Bulldogs held a 2-1 lead over the Terriers but A free kick score in the 70th minute push the epic match into overtime where Andy Cormack found the back of the net in the 97th minute to seal the victory and the NEC Title for the Terriers.

This year in Smithfield, the two evenly matched teams fought to a 1-1 double overtime tie. In the 56th minute, St. Francis headed a Bryant cross into its own net to put the Bulldogs up 1-0, until a Paul Galimi goal in the 77th minute knotted the score, 1-1, where it remained after two-time minute OT periods.

SCOUTING THE TERRIERS
Entering this year's Northeast Conference Tournament as the defending champs, the Terriers have lost just one match dating back to Sept. 7, and enter Friday's match with a 9-5-4 overall record. After opening the year 0-4, St. Francis has gone 9-1-4, including 4-1-2 against NEC opponents, in its last 14 matches. Most recently, the Terriers wrapped up regular season play with a pair of shutout victories over Fairleigh Dickinson (Oct. 31) and LIU Brooklyn (Nov. 9).

Leading the way for St. Francis in 2014 has been redshirt junior goalkeeper Jack Binks, who has allowed just 13 goals through 18 matches this season for a 0.68 GAA (first in NEC). His nine shutouts this season is tied for first in the league, while his .806 save percentage ranks second among NEC GKs. Junior forward John Makaya paces the team in the offensive third of the pitch, tallying 17 points on eight goals and an assist through 18 matches, while freshman midfielder Vincent Bezecourt's six assists is tied for second in the conference. 

BACK FOR MORE
Bryant's berth into the 2014 Northeast Conference Tournament marks the program's second-straight trip to the postseason and the Bulldogs' second overall postseason appearance since joining the Division I ranks in 2008. The Black and Gold also set multiple Division I program records in 2014 including wins in a season (9), NEC wins in a season (5), and the highest finish in the NEC Standings (2nd). The nine wins this season are also Bryant's most since its final season at the Division II level when it finished 11-8 overall.

UNDEFEATED
The Bulldogs finished their 2014 Northeast Conference schedule with a 5-0-2 overall record, marking the first time a NEC team has gone undefeated through conference play since 2010 (Monmouth, 6-0-4). The Black and Gold are also just the 10th team in NEC men's soccer history to go unbeaten in league play (since 1985), and just the second to do so and not finish in first place (CCSU, 2003).

GOING STREAKING
After opening the season 2-4, the Bulldogs have rattled off a 7-0-3 unbeaten streak dating back to Sept. 14. During the 10-game stretch, Bryant has outscored opponents, 17-9, and won a trio of overtime matches.

CAPTAIN CONNOR
Coming off his two-goal performance in Friday's 2-1 double overtime victory at Central Connecticut State on Sunday, senior forward Connor Norat was named the U-ADE/Northeast Conference Player of the Week for just the second time in his career. Norat broke a scoreless tie in the 24th minute when he finished off a header inside the box off a service from classmate Shane Murphy, before adding the game-winner in the 103rd minute off a PK. Norat has now scored five goals in the past two seasons vs. CCSU after netting a hat trick vs. the Blue Devils last November in Smithfield.

FREE KICK FRENZY
Dating back to the 2013 Northeast Conference Championship game, the last four goals St. Francis Brooklyn has scored against Bryant have come off free kicks. All three Terrier goals in the NEC Title game and their lone score in this season's 1-1 tie in Smithfield have come off free kick attempts. 

OT BABY
This season, the Bulldogs have endured eight overtime matches, the most OT games in the program's seven-year Division I history. In OT, Bryant has posted a 3-2-3 overall record.