Men's Soccer Welcomes Northern Kentucky Thursday Night

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Seeking its third-straight shutout to begin the 2024 season, the Belmont University men's soccer team returns to match action Thursday evening at E.S. Rose versus Northern Kentucky. Kickoff from the Music City is slated for 6:30 p.m.
 
The non-conference matchup will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Spencer Boehme on the call. Live stats of the match can be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
An enter-to-win raffle will be available to all fans in attendance with the winner receiving a 75-dollar gift card to the BruinShop.
 
What's Bruin

• The Bruins began their new campaign last week with back-to-back shutouts, earning a scoreless road draw at Georgia State last Thursday night before defeating Southern Indiana 3-0 Sunday evening in Belmont's home opener.
• Through the first two matches of the season, the Bruins have allowed only one shot on target and seven total shots.
• Belmont is one of only 14 teams in NCAA Division I soccer with multiple shutouts already this season.
• Three different Bruins notched a goal in Sunday's victory at Rose Park led off by senior defender Alex Clayton in the 51st minute. Junior forward Brock Kiper in the 54th minute and senior midfielder AJ Chastonay in the 73rd minute also found the back of the net, with Clayton assisting on both goals.
• Following his four-point performance Sunday, Clayton was named Tennessee Sports Writers Association (TSWA) Player of the Week. The Wellington, New Zealand, native has tallied a trio of goals and assists since the start of last season.
• Kiper has recorded seven goals since the start of last season.
• Chastonay's finishing goal against the Screaming Eagles Sunday was his 14th score and first since Sept. 10, 2022, when he had the game winner at UNC Asheville.
• Fellow senior midfielder Rubyn Singh Gill also assisted on Kiper's goal Sunday. He has accounted for an assist in all five seasons of his collegiate career.
• Redshirt sophomore defender Nate Mefford, redshirt freshman defender Dru Stanton, sophomore defender Griffin Moore and freshmen midfielders Emmanuel Aranda and Caleb Robertson all made their Belmont debuts Sunday versus Southern Indiana.
• The Bruins are unbeaten in their last five home matches.
• Belmont went 8-7-3 overall last fall, finishing in the top 90 of the NCAA RPI (Rating Percentage Index) for the fourth consecutive season. It also marked the Bruins' fourth-straight winning season.
• In its second year back in the Missouri Valley Conference after being an affiliate member of the Valley for the 2000 season, Belmont tied for fifth place with a 3-4-1 league record.
• The Bruins were picked fifth in the 2024 MVC Preseason Poll.
• Junior defender Dylan Steely was tabbed Preseason All-MVC after earning United Soccer Coaches All-West Region Third Team honors last season. The Hoover, Alabama (Hoover HS), native was an All-MVC Second Team pick last year and garnered MVC All-Tournament Team and MVC All-Freshman Team accolades in 2022.
• Head coach David Costa has led Belmont to 41 match wins and 16 draws, including two conference tournament championship match appearances, over six seasons.
• The Bruins challenge themselves against some of the nation's best this season, facing eight top-100 programs from a year ago including four NCAA Championship teams.

Bruins at Home

• Belmont has gotten a result in 29 of its last 31 matches at Rose Park, outscoring its opponents 49-19 during that stretch.
• Since the start of the 2018 season, the Bruins are 26-8-10 at home.
• Belmont has finished .500 or better at home each of the last six seasons.

Versus Northern Kentucky

• Thursday night will be the fifth all-time meeting between the Bruins and the Norse and the first since September of 2017.
• Northern Kentucky has won each of the first four matchups.
• Belmont has not scored a goal against the Norse since the two team's first meeting in 2012.
• Each of the last three matches have been 1-0 affairs.
• Northern Kentucky is making its first visit to Rose Park since 2016.

About the Norse

• The Norse also earned a road result to begin the season last Thursday, playing Xavier to a scoreless draw in Cincinnati.
• On Sunday, Northern Kentucky dropped a 2-1 home decision to Bellarmine. The visiting Knights scored the game-winning goal in the 82nd minute.
• The Norse were picked last in the Horizon League preseason predicted order of finish after finishing ninth out of 10 teams last season. Northern Kentucky went 4-10-3 overall and 3-6 in the Horizon League last fall.
• Sophomore winger Jason Purks was a Horizon League All-Freshman Team performer last year and senior midfielder/forward Tyler Murphy scored the Norse's lone goal the opening week of the season.

Up Next
The Bruins begin a strenuous three-match road stretch to start the month of September Sunday at Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton, Florida. Kickoff from the FAU Soccer Stadium is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT/6 p.m. ET. On Saturday, Sept. 7, Belmont takes on South Carolina in the Palmetto State before facing Bellarmine in Louisville, Kentucky, on Tuesday, Sept. 10.
 
How to Follow
Follow Belmont men's soccer on social media – @BelmontMSoccer on X, formerly Twitter, @belmontmsoccer on Instagram and Belmont University Men's Soccer on Facebook – for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.