SU Travels to Rutgers, St. John's

Game #3 - Syracuse (2-0-0) at Rutgers (2-0-0) Game #4 - Syracuse (2-0-0) at St. John's (0-2-0)
Rutgers Game Details	Thursday, Sept. 4 - 7 p.m. \| Piscataway, N.J. Yurcak Field \| Weather
Rutgers Game Coverage	ScarletKnights.com: Live Stats \| BTN Plus: Video Twitter: @SUMensSoccer
St. John's Game Details	Saturday, Sept. 6 - 7:30 p.m. \| Queens, N.Y. Belson Stadium \| Weather
St. John's Game Coverage	RedStormSports.com: Live Stats \| ESPN3: Video Twitter: @SUMensSoccer
Syracuse Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats \| Guide \| Notes
Rutgers Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats \| Guide \| Notes
St. John's Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Stats

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Syracuse (2-0-0) hits the road for the first time in 2014 for matchups against former BIG EAST rivals Rutgers and St. John's. The Orange takes on Rutgers (2-0-0) Thursday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. at Yurcak Field, and then St. John's (0-2-0) on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 7:30 p.m. at Belson Stadium.

Live video of the Rutgers is match is available on BTN Plus. Danny Breslauer and Glenn Crooks have the call. The St. John's game will be streamed live on ESPN3. Live stats for each game are available on the host school's website.

ANOTHER HOT START
With its two wins to start the 2014 campaign, the Orange has now started 2-0-0 in each of the past three seasons. The team is looking for its first 3-0-0 start since 2006, when the Orange defeated Niagara, Loyola and Albany in succession to open the season.

MURRELL EARNS NATIONAL RECOGNITION
Senior defender Jordan Murrell had four points (1 goal, 2 assists) over the weekend and was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week in addition to receiving CNY Classic Defensive MVP honors.

Murrell assisted on SU's first goal of the season, lobbing a beautiful cross that Louis Cross finished in the 22nd minute. Against St. Mary's, Murrell again assisted on SU's opening goal then scored one of his own on a free kick in the 40th minute.

MAKOWSKI UP FOR SENIOR CLASS AWARD
Senior defender Chris Makowski is one of 30 candidates for the 2014 Senior CLASS Award, presented annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division I men's soccer student-athlete. The award focuses on the "Four C's" of classroom, character, community and competition and will be presented at this year's College Cup in December.

Makowski has been named to the SU Athletic Director's Honor Roll (min. 3.0 GPA) three times and has made the School of Education's Dean's List (min. 3.4 GPA) twice. Makowski led all SU field players in minutes in 2012 (1,914) and 2013 (1,661). He has contributed to 22 shutouts in his career and has two assists.

NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
Syracuse is 16-2-0 the past three years against non-conference opponents during the regular season, including a 2-0-0 record in 2014. SU has outscored its non-league foes by the count of 47-7 and recorded 14 shutouts in that stretch. Overall, the Orange has won 13 straight against non-conference opponents, including its 2012 NCAA Tournament victories at Cornell and VCU.

SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers is 2-0-0 on the season. Last year, they were 7-11-1 and 2-5-1 in the AAC before shifting to the Big Ten for the 2014 campaign. The Scarlet Knights return 11 letterwinners from last season, including seven starters.

Jason Wright has all three Rutgers goals on the year, scoring twice against Lafayette and once versus UMKC. Keeper David Greczek has both victories. Greczek has six saves overall, including three in the team's shutout of UMKC.

Coach Dan Donigan is in his fifth season at Rutgers. He is 148-78-31 overall as a college head coach, including a 28-36-8 record in Piscataway. He guided the Scarlet Knights to the semifinals of the AAC Tournament last season.

THE RUTGERS SERIES
Rutgers holds 10-8-1 lead in a rivalry that dates back to a 2-1 Orange victory in 1995. Syracuse's most successful series stretch was between 2000 and 2004 when the Orange went 4-0-1 versus the Scarlet Knights.

Their most recent meeting was in 2012. Syracuse won 2-1 in overtime on a goal by Lars Muller in the 93rd minute.

Syracuse is 2-6-1 in road games versus the Scarlet Knights.

SCOUTING THE RED STORM
The Red Storm is 0-2-0 after being shutout by both West Virginia (1-0) and Penn State (3-0). St. John's returns 11 letterwinners, including six starters from last years 11-7-2 squad which reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

There is a new face between the posts for the Red Storm in 2014. Redshirt junior Jordan Stagmiller takes the reins after the graduation of four-year starter Rafael Diaz. Stagmiller has allowed four goals and has five saves on the year.

Senior defender Tim Parker anchors the Red Storm defense. Parker is on the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List for the second year in a row. He was also named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team for the third straight season.

Leading returning scorer Daniel Herrera (3 goals, 2 assists) registered a career-high three goals last season and appeared in all 20 games with four starts.

Coach Dave Masur is the fourth-winningest active Division I head men's soccer coach by percentage (.709) and ranks seventh among active coaches in career victories (378). He is in his 24th season at the helm for the Red Storm.

THE ST. JOHN'S SERIES
St. John's owns a 19-7-6 advantage in the all-time series, dating back to the first meeting in 1982. Matches between Syracuse and St. John's have needed extra time to determine a winner on 10 occasions. Only Colgate has gone into overtime against SU more often (14 matches).

The most recent meeting was won by St. John's in 2012. Brandon Savino scored the game's only goal in the 78th minute to lift the Red Storm to a 1-0 victory at Belson Stadium.

UP NEXT
The Orange returns home to take on defending national champion Notre Dame in its ACC opener. The Orange and Irish square off Saturday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. at the SU Soccer Stadium. The game will be televised by Time Warner Cable SportsChannel. Admission is free.

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