FULL SCHEDULE
JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | The New Jersey City University men's soccer team will open its 55th season of competition on Friday, August 30 when the 2013 Gothic Knights play the first match of an 18-game slate under the direction of second-year head coach Patrick Snyder. NJCU's 2013 opponents had a combined record of 193-145-27 for a .566 winning percentage last year. Included on the challenging schedule are 10 teams that advanced to the post-season in 2012, including four NCAA qualifiers.
The Knights finished 11-10-1 in 2012 and advanced to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III semifinals. The 2013 schedule includes eight home, nine away and one neutral-site contest. NJCU was 5-4 at home last season and is now 72-22-2 at the Robert L. McNulty Memorial Soccer Field over the last 10 years.
Overall, NJCU will play one game in August, seven in September and 10 in October, leading up to the start of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Tournament on November 2.
Two of NJCU's opponents, conference rivals Montclair State University and Rutgers University-Camden, are ranked in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Division III 2013 Preseason Poll, at sixth and 14th, respectively. MSU reached the NCAA Elite 8 and Camden advanced to the NCAA Second Round while Skyline Conference champion St. Joseph's College (LI) and CUNYAC winner Baruch College each reached the NCAAs and can be found on the schedule.
Six of the seven teams other than NJCU that advanced to the 2012 ECAC Tournament are on the schedule, including a road rematch with ECAC champion New York University on October 8—one year after NJCU stunned the then unbeaten and #6/7 ranked Violets, 2-1, in Jersey City.
NJCU opens the schedule on August 30 in the CSI Soccer Fall Classic Tournament in a rematch of its ECAC Quarterfinal match against Brooklyn College that resulted in a tie and a shootout, before meeting host College of Staten Island, another ECAC semifinalist, on Sunday, September 1.
NJCU also plays in the Blue Jay Invitational on September 7-8 in Baltimore, MD. In a pair of away games on the trip, the Knights face a historically successful Johns Hopkins University program in the opener before meeting Goucher College.
NJCU plays its 2013 home opener on Wednesday, September 4 against City College of New York. The annual Alumni Game will be on Saturday, September 14.
Meanwhile, NJCU will open the nine-game NJAC schedule on Saturday, September 21 when it visits William Paterson University. The Knights will play four home conference games against ECAC qualifier Ramapo College (September 25), Kean University (October 2), perennial power Montclair State (October 19) and The College of New Jersey in a Senior Day match-up on October 26.
Its five road NJAC contests are against William Paterson, ECAC runner-up Richard Stockton College (October 5), Rowan University (October 12), ECAC qualifier Rutgers-Newark (October 16) and two-time defending NJAC champion Rutgers-Camden (October 30).
Three of the four remaining non-conference games will be at home. On September 11, NJCU hosts Baruch. After the road contest against NYU, the Knights face St. Joseph's (LI) on Columbus Day, October 14.
In a rare night game, NJCU will face SUNY Maritime on Tuesday, October 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Jersey City's Caven Point.
The NJAC Quarterfinals kick off on November 2. The semifinals are November 6 with the league champion decided November 9.
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