St. John's University Athletics
Thursday, August 26
Clemson, S.C. (Riggs Field)
7 p.m.
St. John's University
at
No. 6 Clemson
St. John’s to Open Season at No. 6 Clemson
8/25/2021 10:19:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Red Storm reached the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 in its last fall campaign
The St. John's men's soccer program will begin the 43rd season in its storied history on Thursday night when the Red Storm travels to No. 6 Clemson. Kick-off from Riggs Field is scheduled for 7 p.m.
The season opener for both squads will be a matchup of past national champions. Clemson won NCAA titles in 1984 and 1987, a decade before the Red Storm won it all during its first College Cup appearance in 1996. Dr. Dave Masur also led the Johnnies to College Cup trips in 2001, 2003 and 2008. Masur, entering his 31st season at St. John's and his 35th overall as an NCAA head coach, is the fifth winningest active coach in Division I with 427 career victories.
St. John's went undefeated in three preseason matches, defeating LIU and Temple after playing Rutgers to a 2-2 draw. Brandon Knapp was the Red Storm's top performer during exhibition play, tallying two goals and an assist. He played a part in each of the Johnnies' goals against Rutgers before providing the game winner in a 1-0 victory over Temple this past week. Against LIU, Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau, Micaah Garnette, Wesley Leggett and Shawn Coles scored for the Red Storm.
Starting between the pipes for the Red Storm will be Luka Gavran, a 6-foot-6 redshirt junior out of Hamilton, Ont. The fall of 2021 will mark Gavran's first campaign in which he is expected to play the full 90 minutes; he and Jan Hoffelner split time during both the 2019 and 2020-21 seasons. During 10 appearances this past spring, Gavran compiled a 0.72 goals against average and posted an .846 save percentage, good enough for third and second, respectively, in the BIG EAST.
An experienced back line will take the field in front of Gavran, as the Johnnies welcome back every defender that made at least one start a season ago. In addition, the Red Storm added the services of graduate student Lucas Bartlett, a three-year team captain and First Team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection at Drake.
The Red Storm will likely be without star forward Tani Oluwaseyi for the entirety of the fall campaign. Oluwaseyi, the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2019, scored 11 goals and dished out five assists that season as the Red Storm reached the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 for the first time since 2008. This past spring, Oluwaseyi earned his second straight First Team All-BIG EAST honor after leading the Johnnies with five goals and three assists. Four of his five tallies were game winners.
On the heels of a 14-3-3 effort during the split 2020-21 season, Clemson enters the 2021 campaign ranked sixth in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll. The Tigers, who were the top overall seed in this past spring's NCAA Tournament, reached the round of 16 before falling to eventual national champion Marshall in penalty kicks.
The Tigers return two of their top three point producers from that top-seeded team a season ago. Callum Johnson, a New York native and Boston College transfer, tallied five assists and four goals in 2020-21 while James Brighton found the back of the net six times in 19 games.
Last season, the Tigers' 35 goals tied for third nationally in that category.
A Third Team All-ACC selection this past season, George Marks returns in goal for the Tigers. As a junior in 2020-21, Marks started 19 of Clemson's 20 matches and helped pitch a shutout in seven of those appearances. The Raleigh, N.C., native posted a 0.90 goals against average and a .710 save percentage.
St. John's and Clemson will meet for the first time in the history of the two programs when the teams take to the pitch on Thursday.
After taking on the Tigers, St. John's will play five home games in the span of two weeks at Belson Stadium. The first of those matches will come against UAlbany on Aug. 30. Single-game and season tickets are available at RedStormTix.com or by calling 1-888-GO-STORM. Fans can also secure their seat at Belson by emailing redstormsports@stjohns.edu
The season opener for both squads will be a matchup of past national champions. Clemson won NCAA titles in 1984 and 1987, a decade before the Red Storm won it all during its first College Cup appearance in 1996. Dr. Dave Masur also led the Johnnies to College Cup trips in 2001, 2003 and 2008. Masur, entering his 31st season at St. John's and his 35th overall as an NCAA head coach, is the fifth winningest active coach in Division I with 427 career victories.
St. John's went undefeated in three preseason matches, defeating LIU and Temple after playing Rutgers to a 2-2 draw. Brandon Knapp was the Red Storm's top performer during exhibition play, tallying two goals and an assist. He played a part in each of the Johnnies' goals against Rutgers before providing the game winner in a 1-0 victory over Temple this past week. Against LIU, Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau, Micaah Garnette, Wesley Leggett and Shawn Coles scored for the Red Storm.
Starting between the pipes for the Red Storm will be Luka Gavran, a 6-foot-6 redshirt junior out of Hamilton, Ont. The fall of 2021 will mark Gavran's first campaign in which he is expected to play the full 90 minutes; he and Jan Hoffelner split time during both the 2019 and 2020-21 seasons. During 10 appearances this past spring, Gavran compiled a 0.72 goals against average and posted an .846 save percentage, good enough for third and second, respectively, in the BIG EAST.
An experienced back line will take the field in front of Gavran, as the Johnnies welcome back every defender that made at least one start a season ago. In addition, the Red Storm added the services of graduate student Lucas Bartlett, a three-year team captain and First Team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection at Drake.
The Red Storm will likely be without star forward Tani Oluwaseyi for the entirety of the fall campaign. Oluwaseyi, the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2019, scored 11 goals and dished out five assists that season as the Red Storm reached the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 for the first time since 2008. This past spring, Oluwaseyi earned his second straight First Team All-BIG EAST honor after leading the Johnnies with five goals and three assists. Four of his five tallies were game winners.
On the heels of a 14-3-3 effort during the split 2020-21 season, Clemson enters the 2021 campaign ranked sixth in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll. The Tigers, who were the top overall seed in this past spring's NCAA Tournament, reached the round of 16 before falling to eventual national champion Marshall in penalty kicks.
The Tigers return two of their top three point producers from that top-seeded team a season ago. Callum Johnson, a New York native and Boston College transfer, tallied five assists and four goals in 2020-21 while James Brighton found the back of the net six times in 19 games.
Last season, the Tigers' 35 goals tied for third nationally in that category.
A Third Team All-ACC selection this past season, George Marks returns in goal for the Tigers. As a junior in 2020-21, Marks started 19 of Clemson's 20 matches and helped pitch a shutout in seven of those appearances. The Raleigh, N.C., native posted a 0.90 goals against average and a .710 save percentage.
St. John's and Clemson will meet for the first time in the history of the two programs when the teams take to the pitch on Thursday.
After taking on the Tigers, St. John's will play five home games in the span of two weeks at Belson Stadium. The first of those matches will come against UAlbany on Aug. 30. Single-game and season tickets are available at RedStormTix.com or by calling 1-888-GO-STORM. Fans can also secure their seat at Belson by emailing redstormsports@stjohns.edu
Players Mentioned
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
/ Men's Soccer
Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Goalkeeper
/ Men's Soccer
Goalkeeper
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder/Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Forward/Midfielder
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