Matchday Information – Butler vs. No. 16 Providence
DATE:                         Thursday, November 11 / 1:30 pm
LOCATION:                Washington D.C. / Shaw Field
LIVE STATS:              gohoyas.com
LIVE VIDEO:              BEDN/FloSports
SERIES RECORD:     Butler leads, 6-2-1
LAST MEETING:        October 16 - Indianapolis - Butler 2, #20 Providence 1

Full Notes
 
The No. 6 seed Butler men's soccer team is preparing to play No. 2 seed Providence in a semifinal match in the BIG EAST Tournament on Thursday, November 11, at 1:30 pm. After playing to a 0-0 draw through two overtime periods, Butler advanced out of the quarterfinal round by winning a PK shootout with No. 3 seed St. John's, 4-2. The Friars most recently lost to Creighton, 1-2, in their regular season finale.
 
BULLDOG BITS

• Gabriel Gjergji's current national rankings (as of 11/07/21) include: 37th in Save Percentage (0.772), 41st in total saves (61), 45th in shutouts (5), and 46th in Goals Against Average (0.956). He finished the BIG EAST season ranked second in Goals Against Average (0.96), tied for second in shutouts (3), fourth in Save Percentage (0.787), and fifth in total saves (37).
   
• Butler is appearing in the BIG EAST Tournament for the sixth time in nine seasons. The Bulldogs' overall record is 4-1-4.
• Butler's record in overtime matches this season is 2-0-3.
   
• Wilmer Cabrera, Jr. was selected to the All-BIG EAST First Team, while Rhys Myers was selected to the Second Team.
• For their performances against St. John's in the regular season finale on Wednesday, November 3, Hemi Nasser was selected as the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week, and Gabriel Gjergji was chosen as Goalkeeper of the Week. Gjergji also was named to the eleven member CollegeSoccer.com Team of the Week, and Griffin DeBolt was selected to TopDrawerSoccer Team of the Week.
   
• Butler has produced a record of 3-3-1 against ranked opponents this season.
  • The Bulldogs defeated No. 18 Lipscomb (3-1) on September 21, No. 20 Providence (2-1) on October 16, and No. 24 St. John's (1-0) on November 3.
  • Butler tied No. 24 St. John's (0-0) on November 6.
  • The Bulldogs lost to No. 1 Indiana (0-1), No. 1 Georgetown (0-1), and No. 5 Marshall (0-2).
• As of 11/08/21, Butler's strength of schedule is ranked No. 7 by RPI Update.

The Matchup

• In the previous match: Butler's Henri Kumwenda scored in the 11^th minute, and a Providence own goal in the 32^nd minute put the Bulldogs up, 2-0. The 20^th-ranked Friars scored one on their offensive end, just two minutes later, but that was it for the scoring. Butler held on defensively through the end of the first period and throughout the second to maintain the winning margin.
   
• Butler and Providence have met nine times overall, with the Bulldogs coming out on top in six.
• The two sides have met only one time previously in the BIG EAST Tournament. In 2015, after playing to a 2-2 draw through two overtime periods, Providence advanced on PKs, 4-2.
• The Friars' most recent win (3-2) was September 22, 2018.

Scouting Providence
Previous match: Creighton L, 1-2

• Providence lost to #14 New Hampshire, and defeated #23 Fordham.
• The Friars have scored 34 goals this season and given up 18.
• Thirteen different players have scored at least one goal, and thirteen have at least one assist.

Individual Statistics

• Offensive standouts for Providence include:

        #21 Luis Garcia (5g, 4a)
        #17 Brendan McSorley (6g, 2a)
        #9 Davis Smith (4g, 4a)
        #6 Paulo Lima (4g, 3a)
        #8 Simon Triantafilou (1g, 5a)

• Lukas Burns (9-3-4) has started all 16 matches in goal. He has made 44 saves (.733) and has allowed 16 goals (0.96 GAA). He has five shutouts.