Coming off a 2-2 tie against Harvard last weekend, the UConn men’s soccer team will open Big East play at home when it faces off against Seton Hall on Friday night.
The Huskies enter the conference opener with a 3-3-2 record and have recorded draws in their last two games. UConn will now face its first Big East opponent of the season, the Seton Hall Pirates, at home.
UConn fell behind 0-1 early into the matchup against Harvard before responding with two goals in the second half. Aidan Sheppela tied the game in the 57th minute right before Evan Pickering gave the Huskies a strong 2-1 lead in final minutes of the game.
Pickering’s goal was his fourth of the season. Both Pickering and Sheppela have been strong offensive players for the Huskies so far this season. Preston Alessio also assisted on Pickering’s goal and finished the game with three shots on goal.
Despite giving up a late goal to tie the game, UConn continued to generate offensive opportunities. The Huskies finished with 13 shots, including six on goal, while holding Harvard to 14 shots and six shots on goals.
UConn goalkeeper Kyle Durham has remained strong in net and will be another key player for the Huskies as they begin Big East play. He has helped UConn remain competitive through the opening eight games of the season with a .607 save percentage so far.
The matchup will also allow UConn the opportunity to build off its most recent meeting with the Pirates.
The two teams last faced off against each other in November where the Huskies took home a 2-1 win after two late goals in the second half.
Seton Hall enters Friday’s game with a 2-2-2 record. In its latest game, Seton Hall fell to the University of Pennsylvania 2-1. The Pirates took an early lead, but Penn scored twice in the final minutes to hand Seton Hall the loss.
The Pirates reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season before being eliminated by Bryant University. They will look to add more conference wins to help them advance to the NCAA tournament.
For UConn, Friday is the start of its Big East schedule where it will also host DePaul, Providence and Georgetown while traveling to St. John’s, Villanova, Marquette and Xavier across the rest of the regular season.
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Morrone Stadium. If fans are unable to make it in person, the game will be available to watch on ESPN+.