ASHEVILLE, N.C. (Sept. 23, 2024) – After a nine-day lay-off, the ETSU men's soccer team returns to the pitch as the Buccaneers continue their road swing Tuesday night at UNC Asheville. Game time is set for 6 p.m. at Greenwood Soccer Field.
 
GAMEDAY INFO
ETSU (1-4-2) at UNC Asheville (4-2-1)
Tuesday, Sept. 24 • 6 p.m.  • Greenwood Soccer Field • ESPN+ • Live Stats
 
ABOUT THE BUCS

• ETSU, who has been off since its match at South Carolina on Sept. 15, is 1-4-2 on the season
• ETSU has been held scoreless for its last five halves as the Bucs netted first-half goals against UNC Wilmington on Sept. 7 when Henrique Cruz and Gabriel Ramos scored in a draw against the Seahawks
• Cruz and Ramos lead the Blue & Gold with five points each on the season
• Cruz has netted a team-best two goals and has one assist, while Ramos has three assists to go with his one goal
• The Bucs are searching for their first road win since last Oct. 21 when ETSU won 2-0 at Furman
• The Bucs are led by first-year head coach Allen Vital … Vital comes to Johnson City with 27 years of head coaching experience as he spent 14 years at Carson-Newman and spent the last 13 seasons at his alma mater, Tusculum
• ETSU won the Southern Conference regular season title a year ago after finishing the 2023 campaign with an overall record of 9-5-3 and league mark of 4-0-1
• The Bucs return nine players who logged minutes on the pitch last season, including preseason all-SoCon selection Gabriel Ramos
• Ramos, a preseason all-SoCon selection, started all 17 matches last season where he tallied six goals, five assists and 17 points … Ramos led the team in goals and points and was tied for the team lead in assists

ABOUT UNC ASHEVILLE   

• UNC Asheville is 4-2-1 on the season
• The Bulldogs opened Big South Conference play last Friday and fell to reigning champion High Point, 2-1
• UNCA is 3-0 at Greenwood Field this season with wins over Stetson, VMI and Wofford
• The Bulldogs are led by Seth Hammond as he has netted a team-best three goals, while he and Louis Beckett are tied for the lead with six points
• UNCA has outscored its opponents, 11-5 on the season, while goalkeeper Charlie Farrar has an .844 save percentage … Farrar has totaled 27 saves and allowed five goals in seven matches

SERIES HISTORY

• ETSU leads the all-time series, 3-2
• The Bucs dropped a 2-0 decision to the Bulldogs last season in Johnson City
• ETSU is 1-1 all-time in Asheville with the lone win coming in 2022 when the Bucs came away with a 3-2 victory

WHAT'S NEXT
ETSU wraps up its four-game road swing next Tuesday with a 7 p.m. match at Wake Forest.
 
For more information on Buccaneer men's soccer, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's soccer tab.