Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Rider Broncs (5-2-0, 0-0-0 MAAC) vs. Monmouth Hawks (3-4-1, 0-0-0 MAAC)
Location: Lawrenceville, NJ – Ben Cohen Field
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Live Video – GoBroncs.com
Live Stats – GoBroncs.com
 
What You Need To Know
- The Broncs won five of their last six non-conference games entering league play, including a 2-1 win last Tuesday on the road over then-No. 21 Fairleigh Dickinson.
- Rider received 20 votes in this week's United Soccer Coaches Division I National Poll and elevated to the top spot in the USC Northeast Regional Rankings.
- Monmouth is 3-4-1 and snapped a three-game losing skid with a 3-1 victory at home over Hartford last Wednesday.
- The two teams in Wednesday night's contest comprise all three MAAC weekly award winners this week. The Hawks' Colin Stripling earned Player of the Week after a two-goal performance against Hartford, while the Broncs' David Pastuna and Pablo DeCastro earned Defensive Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week, respectively, following the win at FDU.  
- Rider and Monmouth have accounted for the last three MAAC Tournament Championships, with the Broncs taking the 2015 and 2016 titles, including a win over the Hawks in the 2015 title game, and the Hawks advancing to the NCAA Tournament in 2014.
- Monmouth leads the all-time series with Rider, 16-7-3. The Hawks took a 1-0 win last Oct. 5 as Daniel Figarella knocked in the rebound of a David Nigro shot in the 88^th minute. Rider unleashed a flurry of shots from inside the 18-yard box in the 90^th minute, but couldn't slip one past goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky, who was drafted by DC United at the season's end. The teams played to a 1-1 tie in 2015 on Ben Cohen Field, before the Broncs defeated the Hawks, 3-2, in the MAAC Championship Game at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, FL.  
- A familiar name and face made his Rider debut off the bench against Villanova. Freshman back Sergio Aguinaga, the younger brother of senior forward Jose Aguinaga, came off the bench and played 31 minutes.  Two games later, he made his first start and contributed an assist in the Broncs' 2-1 win at No. 21 Fairleigh Dickinson.
- DeCastro pulled into the team lead with his third goal at FDU and tied Clement Bourret (one goal, five assists) for the team leads in points with seven.
- Included in Bourret's point total is the golden goal in the 94^th minute against Temple and the assist on Sylvain Coco's game-winner against La Salle.
- Coco earned MAAC Rookie of the Week on Sept. 11 for his game-winning goal against La Salle, following teammate Pablo DeCastro's turn earning the same honor on Sept. 4 for his game-winner against Seton Hall and assist on Bourret's game-winner at Temple. DeCastro later earned the honor again on Sept. 25 for his game-winning goal at No. 21 Fairleigh Dickinson.
- DeCastro also scored in the season opener against Lehigh. He's second on the team with five points (two goals, one assist).
- David Pastuna was named MAAC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 4 after compiling nine saves and allowing just one goal in a pair of wins against Seton Hall and Temple. He repeated the honor on Sept. 25 with three saves in a victory at No. 21 Fairleigh Dickinson.
- A year after scoring 78 percent (28-of-36) of its goals after halftime, the trend had continued in 2017 prior to the La Salle match. Rider had scored four of its first five goals this season in the second half or overtime prior to netting a pair of tallies in the first half against the Explorers. The split is currently a very even five in the first half and six in the second or overtime.
- The Broncs return six starters from their second-straight MAAC Championship squad in 2016, including their top three goal scorers from a year ago in Elliott Otmani (6 goals, 8 assists), Jose Aguinaga (5 goals, 9 assists) and Clement Bourret (8 goals, 2 assists).
- A two-time All-MAAC First Team selection and a 2016 NSCAA All-Northeast Region pick, Aguinaga was named 2017 MAAC Preseason Player of the Year.
- Otmani and Bourret joined Aguinaga on the Preseason All-MAAC Team. Otmani was a 2016 All-MAAC Second Team honoree, while Bourret was named to the All-Rookie Team.
- TopDrawerSoccer.com named Aguinaga (#1), Bourret (#4), Otmani (#8) and Arthur Herpreck (#12) among the Top 20 players in the MAAC.
- Arguably the Broncs' biggest loss to graduation was 2017 Second Team All-American Christian Flath. Flath became Rider's fifth All-American of all-time and the first since 1972.
- Rider has won four MAAC Championships in its 20 years in the league, including back-to-back titles in its first two years in the league (1997-98) and the most recent two years (2015-16).