Lennox Crews and Toby Gower
Bryce Dolak

Men's Soccer Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Game Preview: Gannon to Play Saginaw Valley State for First Time Since 2007

No. 7 GANNON GOLDEN KNIGHTS (6-0-0, 0-0-0 PSAC West) at SAGINAW VALLEY STATE CARDINALS (3-2-1, 1-0-1 GLIAC)
DATE/TIME: Friday, September 22, 2023 | 12 noon
STADIUM/LOCATION: Robert C. Braddock Field l University Center, Mich.
LIVE STATS
LIVE VIDEO
 
THE GANNON-SAGINAW VALLEY STATE SERIES
Gannon leads 15-1-0
Gannon and Saginaw Valley State clashed when the two teams were both members of the GLIAC. The Golden Knights have dominated the series which first began in 1995, but this marks the first meeting since 2007. Gannon has won the last ten meetings.

Last Meeting: Sept. 28, 2007 – at Gannon 2, Saginaw Valley State 0 
After claiming a 6-3 win at SVSU two weeks earlier the Golden Knights posted a 2-0 shutout over the Cardinals.

ERIE, Pa. – Gannon concludes a grueling four-game road trip with a match at Saginaw Valley State on Friday, September 22. The match between two former rivals in the GLIAC gets underway at 12 noon at Robert C. Braddock Field.

In his search for a demanding non-conference schedule, head coach Billy Colton has assembled a schedule that has seen his Golden Knights travel close to 3,000 miles roundtrip while playing at Wilmington, Del., Amherst, N.Y., Albany, N.Y., and now University Center, Mich.

Gannon has come out unscathed in the first three games of the road swing with wins at Wilmington (2-1), Daemen (4-1), and Saint Rose (1-0), the last coming on Monday.

The Golden Knights now head west to Michigan to play their second straight game against a 2022 NCAA Tournament team. Saginaw Valley State was 14-0-5 a year ago. Despite not suffering a loss, SVSU was eliminated in the Super Region 3 quarterfinals by Lake Erie. The two teams battled to a 1-1 tie but The Storm prevailed on penalty kicks 3-2.

After appearing for the first time in the United Soccer Coaches Division II Top 25 for the first time a week ago, Gannon climbed two spots to seventh in the latest poll following the wins over Daemen and Saint Rose. The Golden Knights come in at 6-0-0, the best start since the 2019 team also won its first six games. The 2012 squad opened the season with nine straight victories.

Gannon was selected as the PSAC West co-favorite along with crosstown rival Mercyhurst after finishing the 2022 campaign at 12-5-3. The Golden Knights advanced to the PSAC Tournament semifinals before dropping a 3-2 decision to Bloomsburg. Gannon was left out of the NCAA Tournament after two straight appearances.

Last Time Out
Gannon made the long journey to Albany, N.Y. for a first-ever meeting with the Golden Knights of Saint Rose. Saint Rose made its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament last year. As has been the case for much of the season, Gannon grabbed an early lead. James Pool (Hastings, England/Claverham) scored his team-leading fifth goal of the season in the fifth minute of play. Samuel Alarcon (Madrid, Spain/Colegio el Valle II) and a stout Gannon defense made that goal stand up for the team's first shutout of the season and Alarcon's fifth of his career. The sophomore recorded one save as both teams finished with eight shots. Gannon had just two shots on goal and Saint Rose one. Both teams had three corner kicks.

Head Coach: Billy Colton is in his fifth season as Gannon's head men's soccer coach in 2023, and his ninth year overall as a member of the staff. He owns a 56-14-5 record with the Golden Knights making the NCAA Division II Tournament in 2019 and 2022. (NOTE: The NCAA did not hold a tournament in 2020 due to COVID-19). It marked the first time Gannon's men's soccer team made consecutive NCAA Tournaments since 1989-90. Colton guided Gannon to a 13-5-2 finish in 2022, picking up his 50th career victory with a 4-3 win over Seton Hill in the PSAC Tournament quarterfinals. He is the second-fastest coach to 50 wins in Gannon annals, exceeded only by Rob Russo who won 60 matches in his first four seasons. However, Colton was limited to just six matches in 2020 due to COVID. He was named the PSAC West Coach of the Year in 2018 after leading the Golden Knights to an 18-3-0 finish, the second-best in school history.

Gannon Moves Up to Seventh in Latest United Soccer Coaches Poll
The United Soccer Coaches released the third regular season poll of the 2023 season last Tuesday. Gannon debuted in the national rankings last week, ranked ninth. The Golden Knights moved up two spots to seventh this week and are the top-ranked team in the Atlantic Region. Gannon is off to its best start since the 2019 squad also opened with six straight victories.
 
Gannon Sweeps PSAC Weekly Awards
It was a sweep for the Gannon men's soccer team in the PSAC West weekly awards. Sverre Orten (Orsta, Norway/Aalesund vgs) was named the PSAC West Offensive Athlete of the Week and Pau Ferrer (Valencia, Spain/ISES Isabel de Villena) was selected as the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week. Both players helped Gannon move to a 5-0-0 on the season with a 4-1 victory at Daemen on Wednesday. Orten came off the bench to assist on the last two goals of the victory.  Orten recorded three shots, including one shot on goal. Ferrer won the defensive honor for the second time this season. He assisted on the first two goals against Daemen to move his team's leading assist total to four. Ferrer also led a strong defensive effort as Gannon outshot Daemen 18-12. Last week goalkeeper Samuel Alarcon (Madrid, Spain/Colegio el Valle II) was selected the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week.
 
Golden Knights Road Warriors Early in the Season
After failing to make the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time after back-to-back trips last year, Gannon head coach Billy Colton had a simple strategy. Find as many difficult non-conference matches as he could to prepare for another run at the postseason tournament. The strategy has worked well with his Golden Knights of to a 6-0-0 start and ranked seventh in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25. It has also left his squad with plenty of hours riding the custom Gannon bus. Factoring in the trip to University Center, Mich., along with previous trips to Wilmington, Del., Amherst, N.Y., and Albany, N.Y., the Golden Knights' four-game road swing has totaled close to 3,000 miles roundtrip.  
 
Scouting Saginaw Valley State
Saginaw Valley State is a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) and is off to a 3-2-1 start. That includes a 1-0-1 getaway in GLIAC action. After opening the season with back-to-back shutout losses the Cardinals have three wins and a tie in their last four contests. They last played on Sunday at Northern Michigan, scoring a goal late in the first half for a 1-0 win. returning All-American Jonathan Monney leads the SVSU attack with four goals. He earned D2CCA first team All-American and United Soccer Coaches third team All-American honors after leading the GLIAC with 16 goals and 37 points. He was the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Year. Jack Simms has recorded two shutouts in goal and has a 1.00 GAA.  SVSU was chosen the GLIAC preseason favorite to repeat as conference champions after finishing at 14-0-5 a year ago. The Cardinals were the number one seed in Super Region 3 and suffered a heart-breaking loss on penalty kicks against Lake Erie in the regional quarterfinals. The match was tied 1-1 in overtime before The Storm prevailed 3-2 on penalty kicks.

Next for the Golden Knights
It's showdown time as Gannon and Mercyhurst meet on the pitch for the first of two PSAC West encounters on Wednesday, September 27. The match gets underway at 6:00 p.m. at McConnell Family Stadium. They will meet a second time on October 18 at Mercyhurst. The match marks the start of divisional play and also pits the two teams picked as co-favorites in the PSAC West. Mercyhurst is off to a 5-0-0 start and ranked 19th.
 
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Players Mentioned

Samuel Alarcon

#1 Samuel Alarcon

GK
6' 0"
Sophomore
Cyber Engineering
Pau Ferrer

#4 Pau Ferrer

D
5' 9"
Redshirt Sophomore
Computer Science
Sverre Orten

#23 Sverre Orten

M
5' 9"
Sophomore
Business Administration 
James Pool

#6 James Pool

M
5' 10"
Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

Samuel Alarcon

#1 Samuel Alarcon

6' 0"
Sophomore
Cyber Engineering
GK
Pau Ferrer

#4 Pau Ferrer

5' 9"
Redshirt Sophomore
Computer Science
D
Sverre Orten

#23 Sverre Orten

5' 9"
Sophomore
Business Administration 
M
James Pool

#6 James Pool

5' 10"
Redshirt Senior
M