The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
No. 25 UAB Hosts FIU On Senior Night
10/28/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 28, 2011
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The 25th-ranked UAB men's soccer team is set to take on the FIU Golden Panthers on Senior Night this Saturday night at West Campus Field. The contest, which is set to kick off at 7 p.m. CT, will mark the final regular-season home match for the Blazers.
The six seniors (Babayele Sodade, Josh Stewart, Tucker Stone, Ken Tabata, Chris Williams and Carl Woszczynski) will be honored prior to the start of Saturday's game.
The Blazers enter the contest as one of the hottest teams in college soccer, having won six straight game to improve to 11-3-2 overall. Five of the victories over the six-game stretch have come against league competition, which has vaulted UAB into a share of first place with South Carolina with equal 5-1 records.
Even more important, the Green and Gold now have an RPI of No. 14 in the nation entering Saturday night's match up.
UAB is coming off a crucial 1-0 win at No. 15 SMU on Wednesday night. Freshman Darion Copeland recorded the game's lone goal on a header off a corner kick from classmate Stewart Abrahart.
Leading the offensive attack for UAB is senior forward Babayele Sodade, who was named the league's offensive player of the week and College Soccer News' National Player of the Week on Monday. Additionally, he was also selected to the Soccer America National Team of the Week. Sodade has scored the game-winning tally UAB's last four contests (vs. then-No. 6 UCF, vs. Memphis and at Marshall) and leads the team in goals (11), assists (5) and points (27). He also leads the conference in game-winning goals (6) on the year.
Junior defender Mladen Lemez is second on the squad with nine points (4g, 1a), while freshman forward Diego Navarette has eight points (4g, 0a).
Defensively, goalkeeper Carl Woszczynski anchors a back line that allows 0.97 goals per game and has five shutouts on the campaign. The Columbus, Ind. native and three-time C-USA Defensive Player of the Week honoree ranks second in the league in saves (68), shutouts (5) and goals against average (0.92)
FIU comes into Saturday's match looking its first win nearly a month, going 0-4-1 over the five-game stretch. Most recently, the Golden Panthers dropped a wild 4-3 decision against South Carolina last Saturday night in Miami, Fla. FIU's last victory came on Oct. 2 when it beat Kentucky, 1-0, in overtime.
Freshman forward Quentin Albrecht leads the team with five goals and 12 points (5g, 2a). Freshman Colby Burdette is second on the team in goals (3) and points (9) and leads FIU with three assists on the year.
Admission is free to all UAB students with a valid ID. Students are encouraged to attend a pregame tailgate with free food and drinks beginning approximately 60 minutes prior to the start of the match.
UAB Rewards Program
UAB athletics has announced its new UAB rewards program. It's simple, the more athletic events you attend, the more FREE stuff you receive. The program is FREE and loaded with great rewards. Pick up a stamp card at designated UAB athletic events throughout the year.
