ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany men's soccer program breaks from America East competition to play on the road against their penultimate nonconference opponent of the 2023 regular season, Cornell.
 
Game Info
October 3, 2023 at Cornell (7:00 pm)
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Game Notes
 
Leading the Pack

• UAlbany is 0-4-1 on the road this season; Cornell is 1-0-1 at home
• UAlbany ranks tied for sixth in the America East in scoring offense and fourth in scoring defense
• Cornell ranks third in the Ivy League in scoring offense and second in scoring defense
• Alex Pechacek ranks 11th nationally in total assists
• Cornell's Alex Harris ranks in the top-10 nationally in goals per game and points per game
• Cornell is 1-2-0 against three America East teams in 2023

Scouting Cornell
Cornell is 3-2-2 overall in 2023, and are unbeaten in three games since September 19, but have most recently tied Ivy League opponents Harvard and Brown 1-1 in back-to-back games.  Cornell has signature victories this season over then-#19 New Hampshire, defending America East champion, and then-#7 Syracuse, defending ACC and NCAA champion.  The Big Red were picked to finish second in the Ivy League this season behind defending champion Penn after winning 14 games and advancing to the NCAA Third Round in 2022.  Alex Harris leads Cornell with six goals scored and two assists recorded for 14 total points.  In five Division I-era meetings against Cornell, UAlbany is 4-1-0, and are unbeaten against the Big Red in Ithaca.
 
Last Time vs. Cornell
October 22, 2019 | Kaio DaSilva scored the go-ahead goal to push the Great Danes ahead of Cornell 2-1 with 16 seconds left in regulation.  The Big Red held a 1-0 lead at halftime before Andrew Weiner scored in the 60th minute to tie the game at one.  DaSilva's goal in the 90th gave UAlbany the victory, the team's eighth of the season, and fifth in-a-row.
 
Last Time Out
UAlbany returned to Durham, N.H., the site of their 2022 America East title game defeat for 2023's regular season meeting with the 24th-ranked Wildcats.  New Hampshire had beaten UAlbany twice in 2022 by a total score of 6-0, and had won each of the last three, and five of the last six meetings.  Playing without three regular starters, the Great Danes played the Wildcats to a 0-0 tie and earned their first point in the conference standings.
 
Around the America East
Vermont, #14 in the latest United Soccer Coaches national poll, is the sole leader in the America East standings, winning each of its first conference games and earning the maximum six points.  NJIT and UMBC are tied for second with four points each, ahead of Binghamton and #24 New Hampshire, each of which has two points.  UAlbany and Bryant have one point, and UMass Lowell has zero.  Bryant retains the top overall record in the conference, 8-1-1, with a head-to-head defeat against Vermont, and the Bulldogs have still conceded just one goal this year.
 
Tuesday's America East Games

• UMass Lowell at Holy Cross, 6:00 pm
• #24 New Hampshire at Northeastern, 6:00 pm
• Bryant at Dartmouth, 7:00 pm
• Navy at UMBC, 7:00 pm
• UAlbany at Cornell, 7:00 pm
• #14 Vermont at UConn, 7:00 pm

Common Opponents

• Syracuse
  • UAlbany: 9/4 at #1 Syracuse, L, 0-1
  • Cornell: 9/1 at #7 Syracuse, W, 2-1
• UMBC
  • UAlbany: 9/23 vs. UMBC, L, 1-2
  • #25 Cornell: 9/16 at UMBC, L, 1-2
• New Hampshire
  • UAlbany: 9/29 at #24 New Hampshire, T, 0-0
  • Cornell: 9/4 at #14 New Hampshire, W, 1-0

Upcoming Milestones

• Trevor Gorman: 99 career wins
• Program: 499 wins 

Dangerous Strikes
Through the Great Danes' first eight games, the team has scored 12 goals.  Five of their last seven have come on either free kicks or corner kicks, started with three such goals against Marist.  So far, the Great Danes have scored four goals off corner kicks alone.
 
Helping Hand
Alex Pechacek recorded his first assist of the season in the Great Danes' fifth game, at home against Marist.  Pechacek finished the game with three assists, the second-most in a single game in Division I program history.  Including the game against Marist, Pechacek has assisted on six of UAlbany's seven goals scored, and has recorded at least one assist in three of four games.
 
First Halves
Until Penn scored in the 11th minute in the Great Danes' seventh game of the season, UAlbany had held its first six opponents scoreless in the first half of each game.  Conversely, UAlbany had scored four goals in first halves this season.
 
At the Top
In Week 3 of the United Soccer Coaches regional rankings, America East institutions accounted for each of the top four, and five of the top 10, spots in the Northeast Poll.  Vermont, New Hampshire, both nationally ranked, took the top two spots, followed by UMBC and undefeated and untied Bryant.  UAlbany landed seventh out of 10, behind Cornell and LIU.
 
Defensive Player of the Week
Tiago Dias' two-goal performance, including the game-winner, earned his first career America East Defensive Player of the Week honor.  In scoring twice, first in the 17th minute and next in the 54th, Dias powered the Great Danes to victory over Marist, and doubled his career goals total.
 
Helping Hand
Graduate midfielder Alex Pechacek recorded an assist on all three UAlbany goals against Marist.  The three assists were the second-most in a single game in the program's Division I history, ranking only behind Daniel Krutzen's four at American University during the 2018 season.  No other player in the program's Division I era had recorded three assists in a game.
 
From the Back
All three of UAlbany's goals against Marist came from the defensive line, and specifically center backs Tiago Dias and Santiago Frias.  Dias scored the first two goals of the game, in the 17th and 54th minutes, and Frias added one in the 57th.  All three goals were scored on set pieces, with midfielder Alex Pechacek assisting on each.
 
Shutting Out
After earning shutouts in back-to-back games early in the 2023 season, the UAlbany men's soccer team has recorded seven shutouts in its last 10 games dating back to the 2022 season.  Since playing Colgate to a 1-1 tie on October 18, 2022, UAlbany has allowed just six goals in 11 games, including two shutouts in 10 days against then #8-ranked Vermont.  UAlbany's shutout streak reached a peak of 505 consecutive minutes between allowing goals to Colgate and in the 2022 America East title game against #22 New Hampshire.
 
Without Borders
Including the United States and Canada, the 2023 men's soccer roster features 29 players representing 13 different countries.  In total, 21 players have joined the team from outside the United States.
 
New Faces
The Great Danes' roster of 29 players features 13 new faces.  Three of the 13 are freshmen, while the remaining 10 have transferred into UAlbany from their previous institutions.  The transfers hail from such programs as Akron, South Florida, and defending national champion Syracuse, among others.
 
Picked Third
After a run to the America East title game in 2022, the Great Danes were picked to finish in a tie for third in the 2023 America East Preseason Coaches' Poll.  They shared their point total of 34 with UMBC, and narrowly edging the Retrievers by garnering one first-place vote.
 
Schedule Strength
Including defending national champion and preseason #1 Syracuse, five of the Great Danes 17 opponents in 2023 hold preseason rankings in the United Soccer Coaches national poll.  Behind the Orange, the Great Danes will play games against #12 Vermont, #20 Cornell, #23 New Hampshire, and #25 Penn.
 
Phoenix Rising
Former UAlbany defender Daniel Krutzen '18 signed a deal in January with Phoenix Rising FC of the USL Championship, the second-tier league in the United States.  Krutzen made the move after playing four years in the Canadian Premier League for Forge FC, winning three league titles.
 
Hall of Fame Semifinalist
The most prolific scorer in UAlbany men's soccer history, Lee Tschantret, was named a semifinalist to the National Soccer Hall of Fame's 2023 Veteran Ballot.  Tschantret played at UAlbany from 1987-90, scoring a program-record that still stands today 51 goals.  He earned All-America honors in 1988 and 1989, and after his collegiate season enjoyed a 20-year professional career.
 
U.S. Open Cup
Former UAlbany goalkeeper Danny Vitiello and his Sacramento Republic FC team advanced to the championship game of the 2022 U.S. Open Cup against Orlando City SC of the MLS.  Sacramento was the first team from outside the MLS to reach the title game since Charleston Battery played against D.C. United in 2008.  Vitiello and Sacramento defeated three MLS teams en route to the final, the San Jose Earthquakes, the L.A. Galaxy, and Sporting Kansas City.  In the latter game, the semifinal, Vitiello recorded the decisive save in the penalty kick shootout to advance Sacramento to the final.  Sacramento's magic run ended against Orlando City, falling 3-0.
 
Next: UAlbany hosts Binghamton on October 7.