BLACKSBURG - After a 1-0 victory at Thompson Field last weekend over Charlotte, the Virginia Tech men's soccer team returns to the pitch on Sunday, Nov. 25 for a Sweet Sixteen clash with in-state foe James Madison.
The Hokies (11-6-3) are seeking a place in the Elite Eight for the second time in three seasons, reaching that round in 2016 in spectacular fashion with an overtime winner at Indiana.
Last time out, Mathijs Swaneveld and the Hokies recorded their fifth shutout of the season, making three saves. Swaneveld, a third team All-ACC selection, leads the conference in saves.
ROUND OF 16 INFORMATION
Virginia Tech vs James Madison
Nov. 25, 2018 – 4 p.m.
BROADCAST
ESPN3
SCOUTING JMU
JMU opened the Tournament with a 3-0 win at High Point in the First Round and then last weekend won 2-1 at UNC to reach the Sweet Sixteen.
The Dukes, who were the CAA regular season champions and won the CAA Tourney in penalties over Hofstra, played six common opponents throughout the course of the season; North Carolina, NC State, William & Mary, Longwood, Air Force and Gardner-Webb. Tech amassed a 4-3 records against that group, while the Dukes were 5-1-1, which includes wins over North Carolina, two over William & Mary, Longwood and Gardner-Webb. The Dukes fell in overtime to Air Force and drew at NC State.
In the all-time series, which hasn't been contested since 2005, JMU leads 20-4-2.
JMU's attack is led by Manual Ferriol, the club's leading scorer with 9 goals and 5 assists. He is suspended for the Round of 16 due to a late red card accumulated in the match at UNC last weekend. Aaron Ward-Baptiste (7 goals, 5 assists) and Carson Jeffris (7 goals, 3 assists) will be
In goal, the Dukes will feature first team All-CAA performer TJ Bush who owns 0.50 goals against average. He has 47 saves on the year and 12 shutouts. The Dukes' defense has only given up two goals in the same game two times, a 2-1 overtime loss at UC Irvine and a 2-1 double overtime loss at UNC Wilmington.
The Dukes have outscored their opponents 36-11 on the season.
