MIDDLETOWN, CT. – Reaching the NESCAC tournament for the fourth straight season, the seventh-seeded Wesleyan men's soccer team will go head-to-head with second-seed Amherst College, nationally ranked at No. 16, in the quarterfinal round for the second year in a row. Looking to win the NESCAC title for the first time since 2005, the Cardinals and Mammoths will kick off at 12 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 28, at Hitchcock Field.

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WESLEYAN SCOUTING REPORT

• In last year's quarterfinal meeting, the Mammoths got the better of the Cardinals in a 1-0 victory as an early second half goal won the game after both teams were held scoreless heading into the half. Going toe-to-toe in near even statistics, the Mammoths held the offensive pressure for most of the game with the Cardinals picking up the pace in the final minutes.
• The Cardinals will make their 20^th NESCAC tournament appearance, entering the postseason for the fourth year in a row.
• Of last year's 11 quarterfinal starters, seven made the return in 2023 with four bench players making their return as well.
• Six Cardinals recorded goals this season with one goal being awarded to No. 7 Connecticut College.

CARDINALS TO WATCH

• After making only two starts as a freshman in 2022, the regular season finale and NESCAC quarterfinal, Mathis Blanc '26 got the go ahead in goal for the Cardinals this season making the starting lineup 10 times with a 5-2-3 overall record. Recording five shutouts on the season, Blanc has made 18 saves with nine goals against and a .667 save percentage.
• In a low-scoring second half of the season, Zack Burd '25 has been the anchor of the offense in one-on-one scoring opportunities. In the first meeting between the Cardinals and the Mammoths on Oct. 7, Burd scored what looked to be the game-winner on a free kick but a last second goal by the Mammoths forced the draw. The coveted game-winner came against Williams on Oct. 14, and a penalty kick broke the 2-0 lead by Connecticut on Oct. 24.
• The first half of the season went to Lucas Ruehlemann '25, who currently leads the Cardinals in scoring with five goals. Topping last season's four goals, Ruehlemann scored the lone game-winner in the season opener against NYU and had a short break before scoring four in three games against Brandeis, Springford, and Trinity. Still a scoring threat for the Cardinals, he ranks third in the NESCAC in game-winning goals with three.
• Leading the defense is Evan O'Brien '24, the only returning player that started in all 16 games last season and all 15 in 2023. Rarely leaving the field with 1,327 minutes of game action, O'Brien net a goal against Trinity on Sept. 23, and is fourth on the team with 14 shots and seven shots on goal.
• Joshwin Jennings '27, Chris Porte 25, and Will Martin '26 all have contributed a goal on the scoring front and continue to be offensive resources.
• Second only to Ruehlemann in total shots with 20, Yousuf Saeed '27 has started all 15 games as a freshman. Looking to record his first goal as a Cardinal, Saeed should be a concern for the Mammoths.
• Not much gets past Will Geballe '26. Seemingly everywhere on the field at once, Geballe, like O'Brien and Porte, will be standing in the way of any Mammoth scoring chances.

MAMMOTHS SCOUTING REPORT

• The Mammoths (10-2-3) will make their 23^rd appearance in the NESCAC tournament, having made the tournament every year since its inception in 2000.
• Looking for a sixth title, the Mammoths have won the tournament five times with the last coming in 2016.
• The Mammoths are third in the NESCAC in goals with 36, averaging 2.4 goals per game. They are outscoring opponents 36-14 and have recorded six games with three or more goals.
• Allowing 13 goals against, the Mammoths are middle of the pack in the NESCAC.
• The Mammoths enter Saturday's game coming off a 4-0 shutdown of Trinity.

MAMMOTHS TO WATCH

• Max Landa looks to be the starting goalkeeper for the Mammoths with a current 8-2-2 record on the season. Both Landa and Juan Perez (2-0-1) saw action in Wednesday's shutout of Trinity. Landa is seventh in the NESCAC with a .377 save percentage and 2.43 saves per game.
• Ada Okorogheye leads the Mammoths with six goals and four assists but has not recorded a goal since Oct. 3. Okorogheye ranks eighth in the NESCAC with 1.07 points per game.
• Mohammed Nuhu is on a hot scoring tear, netting four in four games and is tied with Okorogheye with six goals.
• The Mammoths lineup holds 15 individual goal scorers this season, 10 with two or more tallies, including Laurens ten Cate who scored the tying goal in the regular season meeting with the Cardinals.

SERIES HISTORY

• The Cardinals hold a current 40-43-21 record against the Mammoths with their 105^th meeting coming on Saturday afternoon.
• Since the Cardinals last win in 2015, the Mammoths have held a competitive edge over the Cardinals with a 7-0-2 record. 2021 saw a double-overtime 2-2 draw and the last was the 1-1 regular season draw on Oct. 7.
• On the road, the Cardinals are 16-26-10 at Amherst.
• Amherst holds a 4-3 NESCAC tournament record over the Cardinals with the last meeting in the 2022 quarterfinal.

2023 REGULAR SEASON MATCHUP (Wesleyan 1, Amherst 1 – Middletown, CT | Boxscore | Recap)

• The regular season matchup was a battle of the defenses through the first half as both teams were held scoreless. The Cardinals held the shooting advantage, outshooting the Mammoths 12-9 overall.
• Burd scored off a free kick in the 74^th minute to give the Cardinals the lead and potential game winner but with less than a minute remaining in regulation ten Cates tied the game.
• Both Blanc and Landa finished with three saves.
• The Cardinals followed this game with two shutouts.

NESCAC TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

• The top four seeds will host quarterfinal matchups on Saturday, Oct. 28. The tournament semifinals will be held on Saturday, Nov. 4. The NESCAC Championship will be held on Sunday, Nov. 5, at the highest remaining seed.
• Visit the NESCAC website for Championship Central and the NESCAC Seeding Announcement