THIS WEEK: With just three matches left in BIG EAST conference play, the Butler men's soccer team will play a pair of home games this week, beginning with a weekday match against Seton Hall (4-7-3, 1-4-1 BIG EAST) on Wednesday, Oct. 29. The showdown at the Butler Bowl is set to begin at 7 p.m. The Bulldogs will look to build upon their previous success against the Pirates, after winning last year's match at Seton Hall 2-0 on goals from junior midfielder Vincent Mitchell and senior midfielder Zach Steinberger.

On Sunday, Nov. 2, the Bulldogs will host their final home match of the season, facing current BIG EAST co-leader Providence (9-2-2, 4-0-2 BIG EAST) at 1 p.m. The team will celebrate its "Senior Day" during the game, honoring seniors Zach Steinberger, Brandon Fricke, Andy Holte, Chad Rigg, Thor Kellin, and Max Odgaard. The two teams met last year at Providence and the Friars claimed a 3-2 victory despite a late Butler rally ignited by sophomore David Goldsmith.
      
WEEKEND RECAP: The Bulldogs had just one match last week, falling 1-0 to host Villanova (7-5-3, 2-2-2 BIG EAST) on Saturday, Oct. 25. Despite plenty of opportunities for both sides, the two teams found themselves scoreless with less than five minutes remaining before Villanova forward Max Kroschwitz scored the game-clinching goal at the 86-minute mark. Butler featured a strong attack for the entirety of the match, finishing with 19 shot attempts and five on-goal. Zach Steinberger paced the Bulldog offense with a team-high six shots, and David Goldsmith added four of his own to the team total. Junior forward Jeff Adkins and junior midfielder Caleb Postlewait each added a shot on-goal, and an empty-net strike from Vincent Mitchell mid-way through the second half was saved by the quick-to-react Wildcat defense. Freshman goalkeeper Eric Dick took the loss for the Bulldogs, finishing with three saves on four Villanova shots on-goal.

BIG EAST SNAPSHOT:  With just two weeks of matches remaining on the BIG EAST schedule, six conference teams are competing for the final two spots in the BIG EAST tournament. The conference takes the top six programs to its postseason tournament, and with Providence, Xavier, Creighton and Georgetown firmly ahead of the pack, the Bulldogs have their eyes on one of the final two postseason openings. Villanova and Marquette currently occupy both spots with eight points and six points, respectively, with DePaul as the first team out with five points. The Bulldogs make a three-way tie with Seton Hall and St. John's at the bottom of the standings with four points. Butler faces Seton Hall this week, but will need to defeat #11 Providence and #9 Xavier to keep their postseason hopes alive.

STRONG MIDFIELD: Beyond the three-forward combination of David Goldsmith, Jeff Adkins, and freshman Joey Bastian, the Bulldogs have received a boost from the midfield in recent games. Zach Steinberger has fired off a combined ten shots in the last four games since returning from a facial injury, including six shot attempts against Villanova last weekend. Vincent Mitchell, who has scored one goal for Butler this season, has 13 shots in the last seven games, including five on-goal. Caleb Postlewait has added three shots of his own in the last five games, scoring two goals and picking up one assist in that stretch.

BULLDOG BITS:  Jeff Adkins, with 44 total shot attempts this season, is currently tied for fourth among all BIG EAST players. David Goldsmith sits not far behind in ninth with 33 shots on the year...Eric Dick ranks sixth among all BIG EAST goalkeepers with a .780 save percentage. His four shutouts this season rank eighth in the conference.

Contact:  Mike Murtaugh (mmurtaug@butler.edu)