Men's Soccer Travels to Florida Atlantic for Sunday Matchup

 
BOCA RATON, Fla. – Heading down to the Sunshine State for the first time in over a decade, the Belmont University men's soccer team travels to Florida Atlantic this weekend for a late Sunday afternoon affair in Boca Raton, Florida. Kickoff from the FAU Soccer Stadium is slated for 5 p.m. CT/6 p.m. ET.
 
The non-conference road match will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live stats can be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
What's Bruin

• For the second consecutive season, the Bruins are undefeated through the first three matches.
• Belmont is fresh off of back-to-back home victories this past week.
• On Thursday night, the Bruins defeated Northern Kentucky 2-1 behind senior captain midfielder AJ Chastonay's first-half brace in the opening 30 minutes of the match. After a late first-half goal by the visiting Norse, Belmont held off Northern Kentucky in a spirited second half.
• Chastonay's brace was his first since his college debut against his father's team, Bellarmine, on Feb. 21, 2021. The Louisville, Kentucky (Saint Xavier HS), native has scored three goals in the last two matches. He has 16 career goals in five seasons.
• Last Sunday evening, the Bruins shut out Southern Indiana 3-0 at E.S. Rose Park in Nashville. Three different Belmont players found the space between the pipes led by senior defender Alex Clayton's four points. The Wellington, New Zealand, native scored the opening goal in the 51st minute and assisted on the Bruins' other two. For his performance, Clayton was named Tennessee Sports Writers Association (TSWA) Player of the Week.
• Belmont began its 2024 campaign with a scoreless road draw at Georgia State on opening night.
• The Bruins are seeking their first road win since Oct. 6 of last year when Belmont topped Bradley 3-1 in Peoria, Illinois.
• Belmont is making its first trip to Florida since a 1-0 win at Jacksonville University on Sept. 28, 2013.
• Thursday's triumph extended the Bruins' home unbeaten streak to six.
• Redshirt junior forward Jimiyu Mark has assisted on a goal in each of the last two matches.
• Senior midfielder Eric Stiles earned his first career assist on Chastonay's second goal against the Norse Thursday night.
• Belmont went 8-7-3 overall last fall, finishing in the top 90 of the NCAA RPI (Rating Percentage Index) for the fourth-straight season. It also marked the Bruins' fourth consecutive 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 42 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.

Versus FAU

• Sunday will be the seventh all-time meeting between the two programs with the Owls holding a slight 3-2-1 advantage in the series.
• It marks the second-straight season Belmont and FAU have met.
• Last August in the Music City, the Bruins and the Owls played to a 1-1 draw. Junior forward Brock Kiper gave Belmont a 1-0 lead in the 31st minute before FAU tied things up in the 75th minute. Graduate goalkeeper Grant Calvert made six saves in the match.
• The Bruins are making their third visit to Boca Raton and first since Oct. 25, 2003. The Owls won both of Belmont's first two contests at FAU, 3-1 in 2001 and 4-0 in 2003.
• The Bruins and Owls are former Atlantic Sun Conference foes (2001-05).

About the Owls

• FAU enters Sunday 0-1-1 after its home match with Stetson Thursday evening was suspended in the 53rd minute due to lightning. The Owls led 3-1 following senior forward Mamadou Diarra's hat trick in the opening 35 minutes.
• Last week, FAU went 0-1-1 in a season-opening road trip to Omaha, Nebraska, where the Owls played a scoreless draw at storied Creighton and dropped a 3-2 decision at the University of Nebraska Omaha.
• Junior midfielder Sebastian Zettl scored both of FAU's goals in their road loss at Omaha last Sunday.
• The Owls were picked fifth out of eight teams in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Poll.
• Last year, FAU went 6-8-3 overall and 3-5 in The American, finishing sixth in the conference.
• Senior forward Noah Kvifte and sophomore forward Oliver Moller-Jensen were both preseason all-conference selections. Moller-Jensen landed a spot on the American All-Rookie Team last season.

Up Next
Belmont continues its strenuous three-match road stretch to begin the month of September next weekend at the University of South Carolina. The Bruins take on the Gamecocks next Saturday at 6 p.m. CT/7 p.m. ET at Eugene E. Stone III Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
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.