Men's Soccer | 9/15/2023 9:00:00 AM

GAME 7
RMU (3-1-2 / 1-0 #HLMSOC) vs. IUPUI (2-3-1 / 1-0 #HLMSOC)
Saturday, Sep. 16 | 2:00 p.m.
North Athletic Complex | Moon Township, Pa.
TV: ESPN+
Talent: Spencer Witt (pxp), Ethan Morrison (analyst)
Twitter & Instagram: rmumsoccer
 
Opening Kick-Off

• The Robert Morris men's soccer team is set to play their first Horizon League game at home for the season, facing IUPUI on Saturday, September 16 at 2:00 p.m.
• Last time out, RMU lost their first game of the season to Duquesne, 0-1.
• Against the Dukes, the Colonials posted more shots, 13-9. Freshman goalkeeper Kieran Gorgenyi made four saves in the match and defender Fabian Overkamp was the lone player on the roster to play all 90 minutes.
• Previously, RMU won their first conference game of the season, taking down Northern Kentucky, 2-1.
• Early on, the Norse took a 1-0 lead. The Colonials climbed back in the second half, making an incredible comeback, scoring two goals off penalty kicks. Freshman Yanis Rucquois scored from the penalty spot in the 77^th minute and Anass Hadran scored the game-winner with three seconds left in the game.
• Head coach Jonathan Potter and his team went undefeated for the first five games of the season. This year's team made history as they were the first squad since the 1993 and 1995 group, to start the first five games unbeaten.

GAMEDAY LINKS
- Live Stats
- Live Video
- RMU Athletics Gameday App

The All-Time Series (IUPUI) – Saturday's game will only be the third match between these two programs. Neither side played one another till joining the Horizon League. RMU is currently all-time, 2-0 against IUPUI. The first meeting came in 2021 at the Jaguars site. The Colonials came away with a 1-0 victory. This past season, RMU hosted IUPUI and dominated, winning 5-0. On that day, current players Evan Lamarca and Chase Gilley both scored. Connor Hain and Darren Gray each added one assist. Between two games, RMU has posted more shots (24-19), more shots on goal (13-5) and have earned more corner kicks (17-4) in the all-time series.
 
Scouting the Jaguars – Looking back at last year, IUPUI finished the campaign with a 7-7-6 overall record and finished 4-2-3 in conference. Making the Horizon League playoff tournament, the Jaguars made a run to the championship. They took down Detroit Mercy in the first round 1-0, followed by a 3-0 victory over Wright State in the semifinals, and then fell to Cleveland State in the final, 3-0. Last year, the Jaguars produced most of their offense through a trio of attacking players. Junior Lucas Hackaa led the team in point production with eight goals and nine assists. Freshman Josemir Gomez ended with a team-high nine goals with three assists. And, junior Logan Finnegan scored six goals and four helpers in his campaign. IUPUI's backline was led by freshman Dominic Breidenbach, compiling 1,533 minutes on the year. And, in goal, junior Lucas Morefield earned seven wins and made 74 saves in 17 games.
 
So far in 2023, IUPUI has won two games against Southern Indiana (3-1) and Wright State (2-0) in Horizon League action. Their lone tie came against Eastern Illinois, battling for a 1-1 draw. And, the Jaguars three losses all ended in a shutout, losing to Notre Dame (5-0), Dayton (4-0) and A10 member Loyola Chicago (5-0). Through those six games, Hackaa is back to producing as he's already collected two goals and one assist. Finnegan in his senior year, has pounced in two goals. Six different Jaguars in the lineup have recorded an assist since the beginning of the campaign. Morefield has featured in five games between the posts for IUPUI, making 13 stops and earning two wins.
 
EVOLVE AND ADVANCE
A trio of Colonials have already surpassed their production through six games this season, compared to the previous year. Veteran and Montour High School product Nolan Hutter scored his first career goal and assist earlier in the season. Captain Gabe Norris recorded his first collegiate goal in the home opener, scoring against VMI (8/24). He popped in another goal at Bucknell (9/1) in a 3-2 win. And, sophomore Anass Hadran in 2022 paced for one goal and one assist. So far, he has doubled that exactly in 2023, while earning a point in four of the team's six games.
 
COLONIALS CONFERENCE HOME OPENERS
When the Colonials have played their first home conference game to begin a season, they've had success in recent history. Opening up Horizon League action in front of their home crowd, the Colonials are 2-1 the past three years. Last two seasons included a 2-1 and 1-0 win over Northern Kentucky. In 2020, RMU fell to Cleveland State, 0-2. Before becoming a member of the Horizon League, RMU was playing in the NEC, winning their conference home opener in 2019 and 2018. Both games were 1-0 victories at the NAC, defeating Mount St. Mary's and St. Francis Brooklyn.
 
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