NOVEMBER 6, 2015

KING'S MEN'S SOCCER TO PLAY FOR 3RD STRAIGHT FREEDOM TITLE SATURDAY VS. EASTERN

WILKES-BARRE — The King's College men's soccer team will look to win a third straight MAC Freedom Conference championship in Saturday when the Monarchs play host to Eastern University at 7:00 p.m. at McCarthy Stadium.  The winner will receive an automatic berth into the 2015 NCAA Division III National Tournament.

Admission to the game, as set by the Middle Atlantic Conference Office, is for $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $2 for students and children under six-years-old are free.

Fans can follow the men's game online at the following links:

LiveStats:  http://www.sidearmstats.com/kings/msoc/

Live Video:  http://livestream.com/kingscollege

Top-seeded King's enters the matchup with a 16-3-1 record after posting a 2-0 semi-final victory over Manhattanville in a semi-final matchup on Wednesday.  Third-seeded Eastern, meanwhile, reached the title game for the second consecutive season with a 1-0 double-overtime win over second-seeded FDU-Florham, also on Wednesday.  The Eagles enter the title game ranked eighth in the Mid-Atlantic Region with a 15-2-2 mark but droped out of the national rankings after losing their regular-season finale.

The 2015 championship matchup is a rematch of last season's title game as then third-seeded King's upset top-seeded Eastern 2-1 in double-overtime in St. Davids.  Saturday's game will mark the second time King's will have hosted the league championship contest. In its first home championship game King's posted a 2-1 victory over FDU-Florham in the 2013 title matchup.

Including the 2014 championship game, King's enters the contest with two straight wins over Eastern, including a fast-paced 1-0 thriller at McCarthy Stadium on October 24 in which both squads played non-stop, fast-paced, high-level soccer. Eastern won the two previous meetings, including the 2013 and 2014 regular-season matchups.

King's is led by its four-time All-Freedom Conference duo of Chris Nygren and Daniel Hernandez. The pair have been outstanding in controlling field position and setting up teammates.  Nygren has six points on one goal and four assists and is the Monarchs primary player in taking corner and free kicks, as well as sideline throws.  Hernandez, who scored the winning goal against Manhattanville, has six points on two goals and two assists.

While the senior standouts have been the focus of the opposition, others have stepped up offensively. Junior Daniel Lorandini earned All-Freedom honors after topping the squad with 18 points on eight goals and two assists. Fellow junior Brian Fenster, an All-Freedom selection, follows with 17 points on seven goals and three assists. Freshman Chris Galeano has posted 10 points on four goals and two assists as a reserve forward while sophomore midfielder Brendan Raab has registered nine points on four gals and one assist. Freshman forward Scott Colombo chips in with six points on two goals and two assists.

King's has been solid defensively throughout the year and has allowed just 13 goals in 20 games.  The unit is led by senior two-time All-Freedom selection Kevin Hagmeier. He is joined in the back by senior Tyler Harlan and junior Philip Kistner, another All-Freedom Conference choice. King's topped the Freedom Conference with eight all-league selections.

In goal, King's freshman Owen Geedey also earned All-Freedom honors and owns a 0.83 goals against average with 58 saves and is ties for the program single0season record of seven saves.

Eastern, meanwhile, is paced by junior 2015 Freedom Conference "Offensive Player of the Year J.D. Saracco and sophomore Sean Dougherty who both have 15 points on seven goals and one assist apiece. Senior Hunter Rosenberg follows with 10 points on four goals and two assists while freshman Cade Harmon has contributed eight points on three goals and two assists, including the game-winner against FDU on Wednesday.

Sophomore Jadon Ransing and freshman Jacob Myers also chip in with eight points on four goals each.  Defensively,  Eastern has allowed just 11 goals in 19 games, surrendering an average of just 0.56 each contest.  Junior goalie Jamie Stratton (0.77 GAA) and sophomore goalie Quentin Keibler (0.34 GAA) have split the majority of games this season in net.

Since Eastern joined the Middle Atlantic Conference in 2010, the Eagles have a 5-3-1 advantage over King's.  The teams tied 1-1 in their first meeting in 2008 before Eastern registered the first voctory of the league series in 2009, en route to a three-match win streak. After the Monarchs won 2-1 in 2012, Eastern captured the next two regular-season games in 2013 and 2014. After King's defeated Eastern 2-1 in the conference title game in 2014, the Monarchs won the regular-season matchup this year to take a two-game win streak into Saturday's title matchup.

King's vs. Eastern (Since EU joined MAC)
2015:  King's, 1-0
2014:  King's, 2-1 (OT2) [Freedom Championship]
2014:  Eastern, 2-1
2013:  Eastern, 3-0
2012:  King's, 2-1
2011:  Eastern, 8-2
2010:  Eastern, 1-0
2009:  Eastern, 1-0
2008:  Tie, 1-1 double OT