10/9/24
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Lackawanna College men's soccer, coming off its first win of the season, now ramps up its competition level considerably, as the Falcons travel to take on Region XIX Division I foe Harcum College on Wednesday, October 9^th, for an afternoon contest.
 
The game is set for a 1:00pm ET kickoff at The Proving Grounds in Conshohocken, PA. There will be a video livestream available via the Harcum Athletics YouTube Channel, which you can access HERE.
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (1-3-0) finally got many things to go right this past weekend, as the Falcons scored four goals in a 4-2 win over Northampton CC, the first win of 2024. Lackawanna scored three goals in the first half, building a 3-1 lead, then cruised to victory from there. You can read the recap HERE.
 
Through four games, Lackawanna has faced 90 shots, 61 on target, while putting up 38 shots of its own. Falcons' keepers have a combined 38 saves this year. The Falcons have scored eight goals, while giving up 20 so far this year.
 
Sophomore striker Sebastian Carmona (Scranton, PA) has four goals and two assists this season to lead the team. Carmona had a pair of goals in the win against Northampton, 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 last week, 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. 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 Thursday night.
 
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 two games. His goal came on a free kick against Union on Thursday. His assist was a long through ball that found Carmona in the first half against Northampton.
 
First-year midfielder Nahuel Minis (Old Forge, PA) has two goals and an assist this season, all coming in the last two games. Minis scored a nice half-volley strike against Union on Thursday off a free kick pass from Hoti, then followed that up with an excellent strike from the top of the box against Northampton last Saturday, curling a shot into the top left corner of the net. Minis recorded his assist in the loss to Essex earlier this season.
 
First-year midfielder Alexandro Velazquez (Wilkes-Barre, PA) got on the scoresheet with a goal and an assist this past weekend 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.
 
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 the big guy who will man the middle of the defense is back for the Falcons, healthy and ready to roll. 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 33 saves through his first two games, 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.
 
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 Harcum College
The Bears (7-0-1) come into the contest unbeaten through eight games and ranked #10 in the latest NJCAA Division I Men's Soccer polls. Harcum has won five straight matches, including its last game, a 1-0 win last Friday on the road against the defending national champion, Monroe University. In that game, the Bears were outshot, 15-10 and had just two shots on goal. One of those two shots was all Harcum needed, however, coming in the 86^th minute on a free kick from Harcum's own end. A long ball hoofed down field connected with the head of a Bear just on top of the 18-yard box, who deflected it towards Kingsley Annan on the right side. Annan initially looked to be trapped with a bad angle on the touchline, but he split two defenders to get a 1v1 chance and buried the ball in the net to give Harcum the late lead and, eventually, the win.
 
The Bears have four clean sheets this season and have only given up more than one goal just once all year, coming in a 2-2 draw with Montgomery College (MD) on the road. Harcum has 34 goals in eight games this year, putting 71 of their 111 shots on target. Harcum keepers have 23 saves so far this season.
 
Sophomore forward Zsombor Pall leads the squad with 12 goals and two assists this year. Pall leads the team in shots (26) and shots on target (19) this year. He's had two hattricks this year, scoring three goals in a 9-0 win against Catonsville back on 8/22, and then putting three goals past CCBC Essex on 9/10 in a 4-1 victory. He had three shots in the win at Monroe last Friday.
 
First-year winger Ronell Perdigao has four goals and an assist this season, putting up eleven shots and putting six on target. Perdigao has scored two game winners for the Bears this year. He had a stretch where he scored goals in four straight matches between 9/7 and 9/20, scoring a goal each in wins against Harford, CCBC Essex, Eastern, and Monroe CC. He did not record a shot in the win at Monroe.
 
First-year defender Max Asplin-Rowley has three goals and three assists this season. His three assists are second on the team. Asplin-Rowley has 15 shots, seven on target this year. He had a hattrick in a 6-0 win at Mercer County CC back on 8/27. He had two assists in the win against CCBC Essex on 9/10. He recorded one shot in the win at Monroe University last week.
 
First-year forward Luis Josuè Valverde Ureña has three goals this season, with eight of his nine shots going on frame. He scored two goals in the win against Catonsville, and had another goal in the win at Mercer County CC. He has not played in the last three matches for Harcum.
 
First-year defender Emil Collatz has a team-leading six assists and a goal this season. Collatz does have 12 shots, putting seven on target. He had a three-assist game against Mercer County CC on 8/27. He had a goal and an assist in the win at Catonsville on 8/22. He most recently had an assist in the 3-1 win at Monroe CC on 9/20. He did not record a shot or assist in the win at Monroe University.
 
The keeper is Noah Djebali, a first-year player who has been great for the Bears in goal. Djebali has only given up five goals in the seven matches he has with statistics, putting up 23 saves and three clean sheets. His best performance was eight saves in a 2-2 draw with Montgomery College (MD) back on 9/1. He also recorded six saves in the 3-1 win at Monroe CC on 9/20. He had four saves in the shutout victory at Monroe University last week.
 
The head coach for the Bears is David Hughes, now in his fifth season in charge of the men and his second season in charge of the women's program. Hughes is a Glasgow, Scotland native, and played in the English Football League with Carlisle United FC. He also coached in the Carlisle Academy program. He holds a UEFA B License and an NSCAA Advanced National certification. Hughes is 49-10-3 in his time in charge of the men's soccer program at Harcum.
 
The Matchup
The match between Lackawanna and Harcum is set for a 1:00pm ET kickoff at The Proving Grounds in Conshohocken, PA on Wednesday, October 9^th. There will be a video livestream available via the Harcum Athletics YouTube Channel, which you can access HERE.
 
Lackawanna is back to action on Saturday, October 12^th, when the Falcons are set to play host to Bucks County CC in a non-region matchup. Kickoff is scheduled for 11:00am ET at Schautz Stadium in Dunmore.