Wake Forest University
Syracuse University
No. 4 Wake Forest Facing Third-Straight Top-10 ACC Foe at No. 7 Syracuse
10/6/2022 10:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
The Demon Deacons and Orange share the ACC Atlantic Division lead at the midpoint of conference play.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – For the third-straight ACC contest, the No. 4 Wake Forest men's soccer team will face a top-10 opponent, this time in No. 7 Syracuse on Friday night at SU Soccer Stadium.
Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the match will be streamed on ACC Network Extra.
The Matchup
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Wake Forest and Syracuse will meet in a top-10 showdown on Friday night, as the Deacs will enter SU Soccer Stadium at 10-1-0 overall on the season while Syracuse is 8-2-1 through 11 matches.
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Both the Demon Deacons and Syracuse sport 3-1-0 records in ACC action, as the two sides share the ACC Atlantic Division lead. Wake Forest has scored conference victories over NC State, Virginia Tech and Clemson while Syracuse has taken down Notre Dame, Virginia Tech and Clemson.
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Wake Forest rebounded from its first loss of the season with a 1-0 victory over Jacksonville on Tuesday night as Syracuse fell 2-1 to No. 22 Cornell in the team's second home loss of the year.
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While the Deacs rank No. 6 nationally in goals per game (2.82), Syracuse is No. 4 in the country in goals allowed per game at 0.45.
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This will mark the 10th meeting between the two conference foes, as the Demon Deacons hold a 5-2-2 all-time record against the Orange.
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This will also be Wake Forest's first road appearance at Syracuse since Oct. 5, 2018.
Last Time Out
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Wake Forest took down Jacksonville 1-0 on Tuesday night for the team's 90th victory at Spry Stadium since the start of the 2015 season.
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The Deacs would get the match's lone goal in the 56th minute courtesy of junior Oscar Sears. It marked his second game-winning goal of the season (Air Force, Aug. 28).
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Wake Forest did not allow a shot on goal for the third time this season and recorded a clean sheet for the fifth time in 2022. The Deacs ultimately would outshoot the Dolphins 13-3.
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The victory marked the 10th of the season for Wake Forest, as the Demon Deacons have reached a double-digit win total each of the last 11 years.
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Twenty-two players contributed to the 1-0 decision with 18 of those players logging more than 20 minutes of action.
Scouting The Orange
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Syracuse – alongside Wake Forest – currently holds a share of the top spot of the highly-contested ACC Atlantic Division.
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The Orange have been stout defensively so far in 2022, allowing just five goals in 11 matches. Syracuse has recorded seven clean sheets including shutout victories over then-No. 22 Notre Dame (1-0) and Virginia Tech (3-0).
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Syracuse's offense has been led by Nathan Opoku's five goals and four assists and Levonte Johnson's three goals and five assists.
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Reigning ACC Defensive Player of the Week Russell Shealy has started 10 matches in goal, collecting 30 saves while sporting a 7-2-1 record. Also earning recognition two weeks prior, Shealy is the only player in the conference to earn multiple ACC Player of the Week awards this season.
Looking Ahead
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Wake Forest will play its penultimate non-conference regular season match on Tuesday night traveling to Virginia to face William & Mary. It will mark the first road match against the Tribe since Oct. 12, 2010.
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Kick-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the match will be streamed on FloFC.
