MORGANTOWN — The No. 4-ranked WVU men’s soccer team returns home to Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium to take on Dayton at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
“We’re facing another quick turnaround with this dangerous Dayton team,” WVU coach Dan Stratford said. “They are very good at getting forward, so we must be ready and remain organized at all times. This is another big chance for us to get a result against a team with some real quality, so we’re looking forward to getting back out there and working toward building on the start to the season that we’ve produced to this point.”
Tuesday marks the fourth meeting between the Mountaineers (4-0-2) and Flyers (3-2-2) all time. The two schools met for three consecutive years from 2017-19, with West Virginia holding a 2-1 mark over UD. In the most recent matchup, Dayton earned a 2-0 win on Sept. 21, 2019, in Morgantown.
The match also is the first of two consecutive Atlantic 10 opponents for the Mountaineers this week, as the squad also takes on St. Bonaventure on Saturday. In all, WVU is 46-30-5 all-time against current members of the A-10.
WVU is coming off a 2-2, double-overtime draw at No. 6 Marshall on Sept. 17, in Huntington. Senior forward Yoran Popovic scored his first career goal in the 17th minute, while sophomore forward Ciro Bourlot Jaeggi found the back of the net for his team-leading second goal of the year in the 42nd, but it wasn’t enough to secure the road victory.
Fifth-year senior midfielder Pau Jimenez Albelda, senior forward Tony Pineda and junior midfielder Luke McCormick all earned assists in the tie, while fifth-year senior goalkeeper Steven Tekesky made four saves on the night. Marshall outshot WVU, 15-9, including 6-5 in shots on goal. The match marked the first time the Mountaineers traveled to Huntington for a regular-season contest since 2003.
The Mountaineers jumped two spots to No. 4 in this week’s College Soccer News Top 30 National Poll, which was released on Monday. Additionally, the squad remained at No. 10 in TopDrawerSoccer.com’s poll.
WVU also sits at No. 4 in the most recent United Soccer Coaches poll from Sept. 14, good for the program’s highest ranking by the organization since Oct. 31, 2006.
West Virginia’s six-match, unbeaten start to the 2021 season marks its longest season-opening stretch without a loss since 2006, when WVU went 6-0-2 to open the year.
Stratford sits at 10-3-3 during his two-year tenure as the head coach of the Mountaineers. What’s more, he enters Tuesday’s fixture with a 6-0-2 mark against non-conference opponents in that time.
Dayton is led by 17th-year coach Dennis Currier, who was named the 2020-21 A-10 Coach of the Year. Overall, he is 159-104-46 in his time with the Flyers.
The Flyers are 3-2-2 on the season and coming off a 1-1 draw against Kansas City on Sept. 18. The squad has earned wins over UAB (5-1 on Aug. 27), Incarnate Word (3-2 OT on Sept. 4) and Detroit (2-0 on Sept. 6).
UD was picked to finish third in the A-10 preseason poll, receiving two first-place votes. Forward Forster Ajago paces the club in a variety of offensive categories, including goals (4), points (9), shots (19) and shots on goal (9).
The match marks the first Dollar Day of the campaign, with tickets and select concessions available for just $1 each. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance by visiting wvugame.com to avoid lines at the gate on game day. Of note, all tickets are general admission. Additionally, WVU students are admitted for free with a valid WVU Student ID.
Additionally, the match can be seen live on ESPN+, with Nick Farrell and Adam Zundell on the call, as well as heard on 91.7-FM in Morgantown.
