DETROIT (11/6/2019) -- The University of Detroit Mercy men's soccer team closes out the 2019 regular season Friday evening, playing in a pivotal Horizon League match against host Cleveland State from Krenzler Field in Cleveland, Ohio. The match is set to begin at 7 p.m. ET and is slated to be streamed live on ESPN-Plus.

The Titans (6-10-1, 3-3-1 HL) are currently in fourth place in the Horizon League standings entering the final night of regular-season play in the conference. With a win or a tie, Detroit Mercy would clinch a spot in the upcoming 2019 Horizon League Championship. The red, white and blue would host a postseason match with a victory over the Vikings on Friday, earning the No. 3 seed. The Titans can also clinch a tournament spot with a Wright State loss to IUPUI or a Milwaukee tie or loss to UIC. The Flames have secured the top seed in the postseason as the HL regular-season champions and are set to host the semifinals and championship match in Chicago.

Detroit Mercy is 3-1-1 in its past five Horizon League matches, earning shutout victories over Northern Kentucky (2-0), Green Bay (2-0) and IUPUI (1-0), while also tying Oakland (1-1). The Titans are 17-11-3 in 31 meetings all-time against the Vikings.

On The Pitch:

• Detroit Mercy is 17-11-3 in 31 all-time meetings with Cleveland State in men's soccer. The Titans won 2-1 in their last meeting in Cleveland in 2017.
• With 10 points in the Horizon League standings, Detroit Mercy is in sole possession of fourth place. The top six teams make the Horizon League Championship. The Titans are looking for their first appearance since the 2017 season, when they advanced to the HL semifinals.
• Sophomore forward Kyle Bandyk and senior defender Garret Weaver each scored goals in Detroit Mercy's 2-0 victory over Green Bay on Oct. 26, while junior Demetri Pliakos scored a golden goal in the Titans' 1-0 victory over IUPUI last Saturday.
• Sophomore goalkeeper Devin Mendez has a league-best five shutouts on the season and in league play, Mendez leads Horizon League goalkeepers in saves per game (5.1) and total saves (36), ranking second in save percentage (83.7), goals against average (0.94) and shutouts (three).
• Bandyk leads the team with eight points (team-best three goals, two assists). Junior midfielder Collin Cavanaugh has a team-best three assists.
• Bandyk, Mendez, Weaver and sophomore defender Ryan Halloran have all started all 17 matches this season and the last three have played every minute (1,572) in 2019.
• Junior midfielder Demetri Pliakos leads the squad with 48 shots, shots on goal (15) and game-winning goals (two) this season.
• Weaver was named as one of 30 candidates nationally for the 2019 Senior CLASS Award this season. He's made 65-straight starts on the back line for Detroit Mercy dating back to 2016.
• Ten different Titans have found the back of the net among their 14 goals in 2019; Bandyk (three goals) and juniors Mohamad Miri (two goals) and Pliakos (two goals) are the multi-goal scorers for the red, white and blue this season.
• Head coach Nicholas Deren '99 is in his 10th season at the helm of the Titans and has 63 victories in his head coaching career with the red, white and blue.

Scouting Cleveland State:

• The Vikings are in a tie-for-fifth place in the Horizon League standings entering the final regular-season match Friday.
• Cleveland State is 7-6-1 overall on the season and 3-4 in the Horizon League. The Vikings also hold a 5-1 mark in home matches this season.
• Gabe Pewu leads the squad in scoring with nine goals and also has a team-high 19 points. He has four game-winning goals in 2019.
• Lawrence Karpeh has added four goals (three game-winners) and 10 points, while Vlad Jandric has three goals, two assists and eight points.
• Omeed Naeemy has played every minute in net and holds a 1.11 GAA and 78.7 save percentage, while making 59 total saves.
• Sinisa Ubiparipovic is in his first season as head coach of the Vikings after serving as an assistant for the program.

2019 #HLMSOC Standings:

• UIC, 18 points (6-1) -- at Milwaukee
• Oakland, 14 points (4-1-2) -- at Northern Kentucky
• Green Bay, 12 points (4-4) -- Bye
• Detroit Mercy, 10 points (3-3-1) -- at Cleveland State
• Wright State, 9 points (3-4) -- at IUPUI
• Cleveland State, 9 points (3-4) -- vs. Detroit Mercy
• Milwaukee, 8 points (2-3-2) -- vs. UIC
• IUPUI, 7 points (2-4-1) -- vs. Wright State
• Northern Kentucky, 6 points (2-5) -- vs. Oakland
• SCHEDULE -- Oakland at NKU (1pm ET), Detroit Mercy at Cleveland State (7pm ET), Wright State at IUPUI (7pm ET), UIC at Milwaukee (8pm ET)

Up Next
The 2019 Horizon League Championship begins on Monday, Nov. 11 with the No. 3 and 4 seeds hosting first-round games on their respective campuses. The semifinals and championship match are slated for Thursday, Nov. 14 and Saturday, Nov. 16, respectively, and will be hosted by UIC in Chicago. The semifinals are slated for 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. ET, with the championship match set for 7 p.m. ET and 6 p.m. CT in Chicago.