Temple University Athletics
Temple University
Jacksonville
Men's Soccer Begins Stetson Soccer Classic Friday
9.16.11 | Men's Soccer
De Land, Fla.—Looking to bounce back from its 2-0 loss on Sunday afternoon to the Brown Bears, Temple men's soccer (2-1-0) readies itself for another weekend tournament. The Owls head to Florida for a pair of matches at the Stetson Soccer Classic, where they will take on the Jacksonville Dolphins (1-2-1) Friday afternoon beginning at 5:00 p.m. and the hosting Stetson Hatters (2-3-0) on Sunday at 2:00 p.m.
Coming into these games, it is uncertain whether or not junior Cody Calafiore—Temple's leading scorer this season—will be in the lineup. In the first half of Sunday's match against Brown, Calafiore left the match with an apparent ankle injury. His status for this weekend is unknown.
In the latest NCAA rankings, Calafiore, a Herman Watch-List selectee, ranks fifth in the nation in goals per game (1.0) and 20th in points per game (2.0).
Sophomore goalkeeper Bobby Rosato has anchored the Owls defense through the first three games. Not seeing action until this season, Rosato has already posted a shutout victory in goal and began his collegiate career with not allowing a goal in the first 175 minutes he stood in between the posts. Currently, the rookie netminder owns a 1.00 goals against average and has made eight saves.
In its match with Holy Cross last Friday, Temple saw the potential its offensive unit has in 2011. The Owls put up two goals in each half of the game and outshot the Crusaders, 12-7. On the four goals Temple put up, seven Owls made it on the scoresheet.
Taking a look at the competition the Owls will face this weekend; Jacksonville is coming off a 1-1 tie to Florida International last Sunday. Stefan Durr , Tyler Williams and Predrag Ivanovic have provided the bulk of the scoring for the Dolphins so far this season. Jacksonville's only win of the season came at the hands of an Atlantic 10 Conference opponent Massachusetts back on Sept. 4th.
Jonathan Mendoza leads the Stetson Hatters into this weekend's tournament as the team's leading scorer, having five goals and 10 points through five games. Before hosting the Owls on Sunday afternoon, the Hatters will be looking to shatter a three-game losing streak when they take on Furman Friday evening in their own tournament. Stetson opened the season by gathering victories in each of its first two matches on the schedule, knocking off Florida Tech before defeating Penn State.
