PREVIEW: Men's Soccer faces Wingate on home turf Wednesday

SALISBURY, N.C. – The Catawba College men's soccer team opens a four-match homestand at Frock Field on Wednesday night in a South Atlantic Conference showdown against Wingate.

Draw at Tusculum

- Catawba played Tusculum to a scoreless draw on Sunday

- The sides were even in almost all facets of the game including shots, corner kicks, and fouls; however, the Catawba Indians won the possession battle at 55 percent and had fewer offside penalties (6-3)

- Zak Stiffler held off the Pioneers with a season-high five saves between the posts to tally his 13th career clean sheet

- The stalemate was the squad's fifth on the year, matching the highest mark in program history set in 1992

Team Leaderboard

- Sophomore Bautista Vecchi-Ramello continues to lead the offensive attack with four goals, followed by Sebastia Cerda-Tous with three

- Among Catawba's six players with an assist, Noah Sapsford is the only two-time distributor

- Vecchi-Ramello and Cerda-Tous are the team's most common shooters, recording 24 and 23 shots, respectively, while the latter has an 11-10 edge in on-target attempts

- Stiffler's perfect outing over the weekend bumped his save percentage to .545 and dropped his goals against average to 1.83

Packing The Frock

- Drawing an average of 221 fans per match, Catawba ranks 39th in the nation for attendance

- Each of the Catawba Indians' home contests have featured crowds of 170-plus spectators, more than any road fixture

- At 0-2-3 in friendly confines, Catawba is ripe for its first triumph at The Frock; its last home victory was Oct. 18, 2023 in a 3-0 vanquishing of Davis & Elkins

All-Time Series

- Catawba leads its series with Wingate at 27-22-3

- The blue and white have won their last two matchups against the 'Dogs, the 2022 victory snapping a 10-year drought that contained eight Wingate victories and two draws

- At Frock Field, the Catawba Indians are 15-9 as most of its triumphs occurred in the 20th century, a time when Catawba went 11-2 on home turf against Wingate

- Prior to the 2022 triumph, Catawba had not prevailed in friendly confines since 2012 when the eighth-ranked 'Dogs were stunned, 3-1

Scouting the Bulldogs

- National vote-receiving Wingate comes into Salisbury with a 5-3-1 overall record at an even 3-3 in SAC play

- The Bulldogs' season-opening trip to the Sunshine State produced two wins including a 2-0 toppling of No. 3 Florida Tech

- After drawing Francis Marion on Sep. 11, Wingate has alternated win/loss three times

- Last Saturday, the 'Dogs dropped a 2-1 decision to Anderson; Catawba defeated the Trojans, 1-0

- Pablo Pozos is tied for third in the league with six goals, leading the SAC in shots (40)

- Moritz Conrad has been solid between the posts for Wingate, averaging just 0.75 goals against with a save percentage of .846 to rank as one of the SAC's top goalies

Follow Along

All South Atlantic Conference matches are broadcast on FloSports ($) as live stats will be available on CatawbaAthletics.com.