10/14/24
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Lackawanna College men's soccer will look to build on its victory from this past weekend with an afternoon match on Tuesday, October 15^th, as the Falcons travel to New Jersey to take on the Titans of the County College of Morris.
 
The game is set for a 4:00pm ET kickoff at the County College of Morris soccer field in Randolph, NJ. There is no video livestream available for this contest.
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (2-4-0) recovered from a tough midweek loss to Harcum with an impressive 2-1 victory at home on Saturday against Bucks County CC. The Falcons scored a pair of goals via the head of Nahuel Minis (Old Forge, PA), then held on for the win in the second half. You can read the recap HERE.
 
Through six games, Lackawanna has faced 125 shots, 93 on target, while putting up 59 shots of its own. Falcons' keepers have a combined 59 saves this year. The Falcons have scored ten goals, while giving up 34 so far this year.
 
Sophomore striker Sebastian Carmona (Scranton, PA) has four goals and two assists this season to lead the team. Carmona scored a pair of goals in the win against Northampton on 10/5, scoring a goal on either side of halftime. He also had an assist in the first half of the win. His other assist came against Union on 10/3, assisting a free kick goal in the 5-2 loss to the Owls. He was named as the EPAC DII Men's Soccer Player of the Week for his efforts last week. He did not score against Bucks. Seba is one of the top scorers from last year's squad, where he had nine goals for the Falcons in 12 appearances. Carmona also had a pair of assists. The forward really didn't get going until his eighth appearance, scoring a hattrick in a win against Union. Carmona scored at least a goal in his last five regular season contests, and had another hattrick, scoring three in a 7-1 at PSU Schuylkill.
 
Another player expected to step up for the Falcons is returning Region XIX Player of the Year, Guillermo Ramírez (Valencia, Venezuela). Ramírez had four goals and an assist last season and was the main player that held down the quality midfield for the Falcons a year ago. Ramírez has mostly played in his midfield spot, but he did a spell at keeper against Union in the first half on 10/3. Ramírez had two shots, including one on target, in the win against Bucks.
 
Also back is sophomore Ermir Hoti (Gjakova, Kosovo), who led last year's team with ten goals and four assists. Hoti is a dead ball striker extraordinaire, and he managed most of the free kick and corner kick opportunities for the Falcons a year ago. His best game last season came against Elmira College JV, where he scored four goals. This season, Hoti has a goal and two assists, all coming in his last four games. He had a goal and an assist against Union on 10/3, then had a great assist on a long through ball that found Carmona in the first half against Northampton on 10/5. He recorded three shots in the win against Bucks County.
 
First-year midfielder Nahuel Minis (Old Forge, PA) has four goals and an assist this season, with all four goals coming in three of his last four games. Minis scored a pair of goals this past Saturday, one on either side of the half, using his head twice to give the Falcons the lead. He scored a nice half-volley strike against Union back on 10/3 off a free kick pass from Hoti, then followed that up with an excellent strike from the top of the box against Northampton on 10/5, curling a shot into the top left corner of the net. Minis recorded his assist in the loss to Essex earlier this season. He had nine shots in total against Bucks County on Saturday.
 
First-year midfielder Alexandro Velazquez (Wilkes-Barre, PA) got on the scoresheet with a goal and an assist against Northampton. His goal came only three minutes into the contest, when he kept possession along the touchline, darted to his right, and slotted a shot past the Northampton keeper. His assist came in the second half, when he took the ball down the right side of the pitch, then crossed it back towards the goal, where Carmona ran onto it and poked it home. Velazquez did not play against Bucks on Saturday.
 
Sophomore Tyler Pepsin (Old Forge, PA) had a goal and three assists last season. He'll switch to more of a hybrid role as a winger/midfielder for the Falcons this season. He has an assist this year, coming on a venture down the left side of the pitch and a subsequent cross that led to the Carmona goal in the loss to Monroe CC.
 
Sophomore Sebastian Charles (Bethesda, MD) played sparingly last year, due to injury, but has started every game in the middle of the defense this season. Charles isn't the only one coming back from injury, as the Falcons will also have the services of defender Jordan Artmont (Dallas, PA), who missed all last season with injury, and is healthy for the Falcons.
 
In goal, Aldo Vargas (Scranton, PA) returns for the Falcons. He has 54 saves this year, facing heavy pressure from the opposition. Vargas played sparingly last season as keeper and will be stepping into a starting role for the Lackawanna this year. Vargas had seven saves in the win against Northampton. He had 15 saves against Harcum on Wednesday and put up seven saves in the win against Bucks County on Saturday.
 
The interim head coach is Danny Berg, who is also the Coordinator of Athletic Operations and Fundraising for Lackawanna College Athletics. Berg has been with the College for nearly 20 years, and was hired as the first-ever women's soccer coach in the mid 2000's. On top of his duties with the Falcons, Berg spent a few seasons as the head boys and girls soccer coach at Valley View HS.
 
About County College of Morris
The Titans (0-12) have struggled this season, scoring just three goals in 12 games, and giving up an average of nearly nine goals a game to their opponents. They recently had a tight 2-0 loss to Atlantic Cape CC back on October 8^th but dropped back-to-back 10-0 decisions to Bergen CC and Ocean County late last week.
 
Morris has had three players score this season, with first-year player Daniel Hernandez leading the way with a goal and two assists. Hernandez scored his goal most recently, being the only goal for Morris in their 5-1 loss to RCSJ Cumberland. He had an assist on the other two goals, assisting both the goal in the loss to Sussex, as well as the goal in the loss to Union College. Hernandez did not play against Bergen or Ocean County this past weekend.
 
First-year defender Sahid Fernandez has a goal this season, coming in the loss at Union on 10/1. He did not play against Bergen, but did start and play in the loss to Ocean County CC.
 
Sophomore Angel Valenzuela scored the first goal of the season, which came in the first half of the 10-1 loss to Sussex on 9/10. He has not played since the September 24^th game against Essex County.
 
First-year keeper Mateo Zapata has been under fire all season, starting and playing in all 12 games. Zapata has been scored on 107 times this year and has made 118 saves. Mateo's best effort came against Atlantic Cape, limiting the Bucs to just two goals and recording 13 saves in the 2-0 loss.
 
The head coach is Santiago Mateus.
 
The Matchup
The game between Lackawanna and Morris is set for a 4:00pm ET kickoff on Tuesday, October 15^th, at the County College of Morris soccer field in Randolph, NJ. There is no video livestream available for this contest.
 
The Falcons are "home," sort of, on Saturday, October 19^th, when Mercer County CC comes to NEPA for a Region XIX DII matchup. Kickoff is set for 12:00pm ET at Mid Valley HS in nearby Throop, PA.