BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, NY – St. Francis College Brooklyn men's soccer head coach
Tom Giovatto has announced the Terriers 2019 schedule. St. Francis is slated to play a total of 15 matches, which includes six non-conference games and nine Northeast Conference (NEC) contests.
"We feel it is a pretty strong schedule; it can get us prepared for conference play. We are playing some good teams. We start the season off with Stony Brook, and they had a great year in 2018. I think they are going to have an even better year this year, so it is going to be an excellent way to test ourselves out of the gate," said coach Giovatto while discussing his 2019 schedule.
The Terriers open up the season with a three-match homestand beginning on Friday, August 30, when they take on Stony Brook from Brooklyn Bridge Park. On Tuesday, September 3, St. Francis welcomes La Salle to Brooklyn Heights for a 4 p.m. kick-off. The first homestand of the season concludes on Saturday, September 7, when the Terriers face Lafayette at 1 p.m.
St. Francis continues non-conference play on Saturday, September 14, when it travels to Jersey City, NJ to go head-to-head with Saint Peter's. The Terriers next match comes on Tuesday, September 17, as they make a stop in the Nation's capital for a meeting with Howard. The final non-conference contest of the season is on Saturday, September 21, when St. Francis hosts Manhattan at the Poly Prep Country Day School in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. The Terriers are slated to play two of their home matches at the Poly Prep Country Day School in Bay Ridge this season.
"The teams on our non-conference schedule are all skilled, hard-working teams, very similar to the ones that we play in the Northeast Conference. We try to mirror the teams that we play in the conference when scheduling non-conference games. We do this to prepare for the conference portion of our schedule, and I think we did a pretty good job of that with some good teams in the non-conference schedule. On top of it, some of them are rivalry games, so it even has a little bit more meaning. I think it's a good schedule and it's going to prepare us," added Giovatto.
Conference play kicks-off on Friday, September 27, when St. Francis squares off with Central Connecticut at 6 p.m. in New Britain, CT. The Terriers return to Brooklyn Bridge Park for their conference home opener on Sunday, September 29, against Saint Francis (PA) at 1 p.m.
St. Francis hosts its second three-match homestand of the season from October 13-20. On Sunday, October 13, the Terriers play host to the newest member of the NEC, Merrimack at 1 p.m. from Brooklyn Bridge Park. The second contest of the three-match homestand takes place on Friday, October 18, at the Poly Prep Country Day School when the Terriers take on Bryant. The last game of the homestand features St. Francis and Robert Morris on Sunday, October 20, at 1 p.m. back at Brooklyn Bridge Park.
The Terriers hit the road for two of their final three games of the regular season. On Saturday, October 26, they take a short trip to Teaneck, NJ to face Fairleigh Dickinson at 1 p.m. St. Francis honors its seniors on Sunday, November 3, when it hosts Sacred Heart at 1 p.m. The 2019 regular season finale takes place on Sunday, November 10, as the Terriers battle the LIU Sharks in Brookville, NY.
"The league is going to be tough, as always. Ever since I have been in this league, every game has been decided by a goal, and there are no easy games. It is going to be tough as always. With Merrimack coming in now, they are a great program and have done well on the Division II level. Their facilities are fantastic; I think that they are going to come in and have a significant impact just as Bryant did when they came into the NEC. I think they are very similar to Bryant, it is going to be another tough team in our conference, and we are excited to play them," noted Giovatto.
The 2019 NEC Tournament will be held on November 15 & 17 and features the top four teams from the final regular season standings. The highest seed will serve as the host of the Tournament.
