Creighton University
Providence
Men's Soccer Journeys To Providence For Saturday Afternoon Match
10/24/2019 3:35:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Bluejays and Friars are tied for third in the BIG EAST standings
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Creighton heads to Providence for a Saturday afternoon match and the Bluejays' third contest in eight days.
Follow the Match
Saturday's match will be broadcast on the BIG EAST Digital Network, which can be streamed on Twitter (@BIGEASTChamps), YouTube (youtube.com/BIGEASTConference) or Caffeine TV (www.caffeine.tv/bedn). Â
Live stats will be provided via SIDEARM Sports.
Links to live stats and video streams can be found on the Creighton Men's Soccer schedule page.
Updates will be provided on Twitter (@CreightonMSOC), Facebook (Facebook.com/CreightonSoccer) and Instagram (CreightonMSOC).
Scouting Creighton (7-5-1, 3-3-0 BIG EAST)
The Bluejays head to Providence with a 3-3 record in BIG EAST play and in a tie with the Friars and Marquette for third place in the league standings.
Creighton snapped a three-match losing streak and scoring drought of over 400 minutes with a 1-0 win at home against DePaul on Wednesday.Â
Luke Haakenson leads Creighton with five goals and five other Bluejays each have a pair of goals. Â
Musa Qongo paces the team with four assists while three other players have three a piece.Â
Creighton averages 1.31 goals per match, while goalkeepers Paul Kruse and Collin Valdivia have combined for a 1.19 goals against average.
Head coach Johnny Torres is in his first year at the helm of the Bluejays after spending 12 years as an assistant coach.
Scouting Providence (9-5-0, 3-3-0 BIG EAST)
Providence earned a 2-0 win at Villanova on Wednesday afternoon for the team's third league victory.Â
Senior Joao Serrano leads the Friars with 12 points from four goals and four assists.Â
During league play, six different players have scored Providence's six goals.Â
Senior goalkeeper Austin Aviza, a transfer from UConn, has started each of the Friars' 14 matches this season and owns a 0.88 goals against average, which ranks sixth in the BIG EAST.
Head coach Craig Stewart is in his eighth year at Providence.Â
Series History Against Friars
The series between Creighton and Providence is tied, 5-5-2.Â
The Bluejays and Friars tied 0-0 last season in Omaha and in 2017 in Providence.Â
The last goal scored in a match between the two schools was during the 2016 NCAA Tournament as the Friars' Danny Griffin  converted a game-winning goal during the 83rd minute to claim a 2-1 victory and advance to the Elite Eight.Â
Creighton's last win against Providence came in the 2016 BIG EAST Championship semifinals.Â
Last Time Out
Luke Haakenson's goal during the 81st minute lifted Creighton to a 1-0 win over DePaul on Wednesday night at Morrison Stadium.
Haakenson hit the back of the net off a cross into the center of the box from Kuba Polat. Polat received the ball down the right side of box on a pass from Younes Boudadi before sending it towards the top of the six-yard box where Haakenson one-touched the ball past the DePaul goalkeeper for his team-leading fifth goal of the season.
The goal marked Creighton's first since Sept. 29 against Villanova, as the Bluejays also snapped a three-match losing streak. Additionally, Wednesday marked Creighton's third shutout during BIG EAST play.
Official RPI Rankings
Creighton is ranked No. 53 in this week's NCAA RPI Rankings (released Oct. 21).
The BIG EAST Conference is ranked second among 24 Division I conferences in terms of RPI ranking.
St. John's owns the No. 1 spot in the RPI, while Georgetown is No. 2. All 10 of the BIG EAST teams are in the top 75.Â
Providence is No. 44 in this week's rankings.
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Kruse Back In Goal
Paul Kruse started on Oct. 19 against St. John's for his first appearance since Sept. 9 against Columbia.
The sophomore was listed as the BIG EAST Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year, but missed seven matches because of injury.
The Heilbronn, Germany native posted his first shutout of the season on Wednesday against DePaul.
Kruse has allowed seven goals during 550 minutes this season (1.14 GAA).Â
He did not miss a minute last season and held a 0.64 goals against average with seven shutouts (12 goals allowed).Â
BIG EAST Shutouts
Creighton owns three shutouts during BIG EAST play, which ranks third in the conference.Â
The Bluejays opened league play with a 1-0 win at Marquette (Sept. 20), posted a 1-0 victory against Villanova (Sept. 28) and most recently held DePaul off the scoreboard with a 1-0 result on Wednesday.
The most BIG EAST shutouts the Bluejays have had in a single season is four, during both the 2018 and 2014 campaigns.
Conversely, all three of the Bluejays' league losses this season have been shutouts.Â
Creighton's has never had a BIG EAST season with shutouts during all nine league matches, but the Bluejays did compete in six shutouts during their complete 2011 Missouri Valley Conference schedule (five wins, one loss).Â
Better Late Than Never
The Bluejays' victory on Wednesday marked their fourth with a game-winning goal in the final 10 minutes of regulation or overtime. Luke Haakenson owns two of the dramatic winners.
Creighton had only one game-winning goal last season during the final 10 minutes regulation (Sept. 29, 2018 against Seton Hall).
Creighton GW Goals During Final 10 Mins or OT
Date     Opponent       GW Goal Time (Scorer)
9/16/19 Nebraska-Omaha 87:58 (Haakenson)
9/20/19 Marquette 85:01 (Espeleta)
9/24/19 Tulsa 105:44 (Tashiro)
10/23/19 DePaul 80:05 (Haakenson)
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Luke Haakenson Season-High Goal TotalÂ
Senior Luke Haakenson owns five goals this season, which is a new individual season-high during his four-year Bluejay career.
Haakenson tallied three during each of the past two seasons.Â
He owns three game winners this season, which is also a new season high.Â
The Maple Grove, Minnesota native currently owns 12 career goals as a Bluejay, including seven game-winning tallies.Â
