DETROIT (9/1/2021) -- Following an unbeaten opening weekend to the 2021 fall season, the University of Detroit Mercy men's soccer heads back out on the road for the second weekend of the season, heading to Dayton, Ohio for the Dayton Flyer Classic, beginning on Thursday.
The Titans play Incarnate Word on Thursday at 5 p.m. ET from Baujan Field and then return to Dayton on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 6 to face the host Flyers, also at 5 p.m. ET. Monday's match against Dayton is set to be streamed live on ESPN-Plus. Live statistics will be available for both matches.
Detroit Mercy (1-0-1) is ranked regionally in the United Soccer Coaches rankings. The Titans are ranked No. 10 in the North Region rankings following the first weekend of the season.
Last Time Out
After drawing with Michigan, 1-1, on the road in its season opener, the Titans earned a road victory at Chicago State on Sunday, picking up a 2-1 double-overtime victory over the Cougars. Senior
Kyle Bandyk scored off a penalty kick in the 104th minute of the match for the win. Senior
Ryan Halloran also scored in the match for the Titans, which allowed just three shots in the contest, the fewest by a Titan squad since the 2019 season opener against Niagara.
The Titans played a man down for more than 89 minutes of last Thursday's opener at Michigan, with senior
Demetri Pliakos scoring a goal on the first shot of the game in the third minute as the lone Titan marker. Freshman goalkeeper
Jonathan Kliewer stood tall in net at several moments in the game against the Wolverines, turning aside seven shots on goal and making a key save in the 83rd minute of the match.
Pliakos Named Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week
Senior
Demetri Pliakos had a hand in all three goals last week and earned Horizon League Offensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts. Pliakos scored the first goal of the season at Michigan and then assisted on Halloran's game-tying goal at Chicago State. Pliakos helped set up the game-winning PK in double overtime as he was fouled in the box.
Pliakos also had a team-high three shots at Michigan and added two more shots against Chicago State for a team-high five after two matches. His goal at Michigan was his fifth career goal. It was the first time in his Titan career that Pliakos has received a weekly honor from the league office.
All-Time Series
The Titans and Incarnate Word have never played each other in men's soccer. Detroit Mercy and Dayton have met nine times previously with the Flyers holding a 7-1-1 advantage over the Titans. The red, white and blue earned a win in the first-ever meeting -- a 2-1 overtime win in 1988. The Titans are 0-4 in matches played in Dayton against the Flyers.
Scouting Incarnate Word / Dayton
The Cardinals are 1-1 on the season after winning their most recent match over St. Thomas (Minnesota) by a 2-1 margin. Incarnate Word dropped its opening game of the 2021 season to Florida Atlantic, 1-0. Both games were part of the Houstin Baptist Tournament in Houston, Texas. Wilmer Aguilar has three points (one goal, one assist) to lead the squad in scoring early in the season.
The Flyers are 1-0-1 early in the 2021 season following a 5-1 win over UAB and a 1-1 draw with Memphis at the Ohio State Tournament over the first weekend of the regular season. Forster Ajago and Jaden Jones-Riley both have seven points on three goals and one assist each entering this weekend's matches. In net, GK Marc Kouadio has an 81.8% save percentage to go along with nine saves to start the season.
#HLMSOC Preseason Poll
The Titans were selected to finish in eighth out of 11 teams in the HL preseason poll, it was announced on Tuesday. Detroit Mercy received 40 points in the poll. Four different teams earned first-place votes with Oakland earning seven of the 11 to earn the top spot in the poll with 113 points. OU was followed by Milwaukee (102 points), UIC (93), Northern Kentucky (87) and Wright State (82) to round out the top-five.
Up Next
Following its match with Dayton, the Titans are off competitively until Saturday, Sept. 18, when the red, white and blue open the Horizon League schedule with a road clash with Cleveland State. It'll be the fifth-straight game away from Titan Field to open the 2021 fall campaign.
