Richard Bland Travels To Play At Nationally-Ranked No. 8 Louisburg

SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. – Richard Bland College plays at nationally-ranked and defending NJCAA Division I Men's Soccer National Champion Louisburg (N.C.) College in Region X Conference action on Wednesday afternoon, October 19, at 4 p.m. in Louisburg, North Carolina. The Statesmen (9-5-1, 6-5-1 Region X) will be looking for their first-ever win against the host Hurricanes (13-2, 12-1 Region X), who are ranked No. 8 in this week's NJCAA Division I Men's Soccer Poll.

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Richard Bland at Louisburg
Date: Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Louisburg, N.C.
Series History: Hurricanes lead 9-0

Scouting the Statesmen
Richard Bland is 9-5-1 overall, including 6-5-1 in Region X, while approaching its second consecutive 10-win season in the four-year history of the program. The Statesmen, who are 6-2-1 in their last nine matches, are coached by head coach Eduardo de Souza, who is in his third season, and assisted by first-year assistant coach Nick Surkamp. Richard Bland has been led in scoring through 15 matches by freshman Eduardo Pessoa/Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with 10 goals for 20 points. Pessoa is followed by classmate Dusan Stankovic/Belgrade, Serbia with five goals and four assists for 14 points, along with sophomore Sebastian Hendi/Alexandria (5g), as well as freshmen Peter Diawuo/Alexandria (2g, 6a) and Miguel Ramos/Casal de Cambra, Portugal (2g, 6a), with 10 points each. Freshman goalkeeper Justin Ennis/Gainesville has started eight of 10 matches, playing 742:58 with three shutouts, a 0.85 goals against average and 26 saves for a save percentage of .788 percent.

Scouting the Hurricanes
Louisburg is 13-2 overall, including 12-1 in Region X, and has won seven-straight matches. The Hurricanes are coached by head coach Martin Dell, who is in his third season, while assisted by Ted Awana. The defending national champions are led in scoring by sophomore Jorge Quintanilla with nine goals and eight assists for 26 points, followed by classmates Andrea Viano with 11 goals and one assist for 23 points and Mark Taylor with seven goals and eight assists for 22 points. Freshman keeper Gio Solis has started nine of 10 matches, playing 797:00 with three shutouts, a 0.90 goals against average and 32 saves for a save percentage of .800 percent.

Series History
Louisburg leads the all-time series between the two schools in the sport of men's soccer, 9-0. The Hurricanes have outscored Richard Bland by a margin of 55-6 in the nine previous matches. The Statesmen, however, fell just 1-0 against Louisburg at home earlier this season on September 6, and by a similar 1-0 decision on the road in North Carolina last October 25, 2015.

Last Time Out
Richard Bland dropped a 1-0 Region X road decision at USC Salkehatchie on Oct. 16 in Allendale, South Carolina. Ennis started in front of the net for the Statesmen and played the entire 90 minutes, making one save while yielding the lone goal.

Up Next
Richard Bland will play its final regular-season home match against Region X opponent USC Lancaster on Sunday, Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. It will be Sophomore Day for the 10 Statesmen who will be playing their final regular-season contest. Richard Bland will play a Region X Tournament Quarterfinal match on Tuesday, Oct. 25 ... the opponent and location of the match, which could be at home on Statesman Field, yet to be determined.