Deacs Go Title Hunting at Syracuse
• Wake Forest sets its sights on closing the regular season with a victory Friday night at No. 6 Syracuse in New York. With a win, the Demon Deacons would clinch the ACC Atlantic Division title for the second year in a row.
• Friday’s game, set to air on ACC Network Extra, marks the fifth all-time meeting between the Demon Deacons and Orange with Wake Forest leading the series 3-1-0. In each of the first four meetings between the two sides, the home team has come out victorious each time.
Last Time Out
• Last Saturday on Senior Night against Boston College, Wake Forest earned a 1-0 victory on a goal by Jon Bakero in the 19th minute as the Deacs finished the 2016 home schedule with a stellar 9-1-1 record.
• Bakero scored the only goal of the game when he took a long feed from Logan Gdula and was one-on-one with the keeper. As the goalkeeper was charging out, Bakero broke right and had a wide open goal to finish his chance for his third goal of the year.
• In the second half, Boston College outshot Wake Forest 7-1 looking for the equalizer, but Alec Ferrell and the Wake Forest defense stood strong to record the Deacs’ 10th shutout of the season. Along the way, Ferrell made a stop from point-blank range on Zeiko Lewis in the 55th minute and laid out to make a stop on a shot by Callum Johnson in the 79th minute to preserve the clean sheet, his seventh of the season in just 11 games played.
• With the assist, Logan Gdula has now recorded an assist in back-to-back games, as he fed Hayden Partain on Oct. 18 at South Carolina for the game-winning goal. In 23 previous games, Gdula had not recorded any points.
Scouting the Orange
• Though out of the hunt for the ACC Atlantic title, Syracuse is firmly in the chase for one of the four first-round byes in the ACC Tournament. The Orange this season have earned 11 points and sit fourth in the Atlantic Division behind Wake Forest (16 points), Louisville (16) and Clemson (12).
• Overall standing at 10-3-2 on the season, Syracuse is 3-2-2 in ACC play. Going .500 away from home at 3-3-1, the Orange are looking to secure a near-perfect regular season at SU Soccer Stadium with a 7-0-1 mark to date.
• In eight home games to date, Syracuse has only allowed three goals. Against ACC opponents at home, Boston College, North Carolina and Virginia Tech were all shutout in New York. The only two teams to score at SU Soccer Stadium this season are Loyola Marymount and St. John’s.
• The Orange are led by Chris Nanco and Miles Robinson, who have each scored four goals this season. The two are joined by Johannes Pieles in a tie for a team-best nine points.
Looking Ahead
• Wake Forest has already earned a bye through to the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament. Its opponent will be determined Wednesday when the ACC Tournament kicks off with first-round action at various campus sites.
• Wake Forest sets its sights on closing the regular season with a victory Friday night at No. 6 Syracuse in New York. With a win, the Demon Deacons would clinch the ACC Atlantic Division title for the second year in a row.
• Friday’s game, set to air on ACC Network Extra, marks the fifth all-time meeting between the Demon Deacons and Orange with Wake Forest leading the series 3-1-0. In each of the first four meetings between the two sides, the home team has come out victorious each time.
Last Time Out
• Last Saturday on Senior Night against Boston College, Wake Forest earned a 1-0 victory on a goal by Jon Bakero in the 19th minute as the Deacs finished the 2016 home schedule with a stellar 9-1-1 record.
• Bakero scored the only goal of the game when he took a long feed from Logan Gdula and was one-on-one with the keeper. As the goalkeeper was charging out, Bakero broke right and had a wide open goal to finish his chance for his third goal of the year.
• In the second half, Boston College outshot Wake Forest 7-1 looking for the equalizer, but Alec Ferrell and the Wake Forest defense stood strong to record the Deacs’ 10th shutout of the season. Along the way, Ferrell made a stop from point-blank range on Zeiko Lewis in the 55th minute and laid out to make a stop on a shot by Callum Johnson in the 79th minute to preserve the clean sheet, his seventh of the season in just 11 games played.
• With the assist, Logan Gdula has now recorded an assist in back-to-back games, as he fed Hayden Partain on Oct. 18 at South Carolina for the game-winning goal. In 23 previous games, Gdula had not recorded any points.
Scouting the Orange
• Though out of the hunt for the ACC Atlantic title, Syracuse is firmly in the chase for one of the four first-round byes in the ACC Tournament. The Orange this season have earned 11 points and sit fourth in the Atlantic Division behind Wake Forest (16 points), Louisville (16) and Clemson (12).
• Overall standing at 10-3-2 on the season, Syracuse is 3-2-2 in ACC play. Going .500 away from home at 3-3-1, the Orange are looking to secure a near-perfect regular season at SU Soccer Stadium with a 7-0-1 mark to date.
• In eight home games to date, Syracuse has only allowed three goals. Against ACC opponents at home, Boston College, North Carolina and Virginia Tech were all shutout in New York. The only two teams to score at SU Soccer Stadium this season are Loyola Marymount and St. John’s.
• The Orange are led by Chris Nanco and Miles Robinson, who have each scored four goals this season. The two are joined by Johannes Pieles in a tie for a team-best nine points.
Looking Ahead
• Wake Forest has already earned a bye through to the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament. Its opponent will be determined Wednesday when the ACC Tournament kicks off with first-round action at various campus sites.
