Soccer, Sports

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The Boston University men’s soccer team will conclude its non-conference schedule with a trip to Providence College on Wednesday afternoon.

As they did last year, the Terriers (6-3-1, 1-0-0 America East) will enter the final section of their schedule on a winning streak, having defeated Stony Brook University, then-No. 20 Harvard University and the University of Rhode Island in their last three matches. BU has put up seven goals during the three-game streak and allowed only two, one of which came on a penalty kick in the 90th minute against Stony Brook (6-5-1, 0-1-0).

The play of junior Ben Berube, recently converted from a midfielder to a forward, has been one of the most significant parts of BU’s recent success. Berube has scored the game-winning goal in each of the Terriers’ last three games. Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Brandon Briggs has been equally important on the defensive side of the field, recording five saves against Stony Brook to earn the latest AE Rookie of the Week honors.

“I think the last three games we’ve played pretty well,” said BU coach Neil Roberts. “I think we can say we’ve seen things for the last three games moving in a positive direction.”

Providence (5-3-1, 0-2-0 Big East) most recently suffered a 2-1 loss to the University of Notre Dame. The Friars’ last five games have all been decided by one goal, and they have scored more than two goals only once this season.

The team’s goals-for and goals-against averages per game are identical at 1.22. In addition, the Friars have only taken 98 shots over their nine games, an average of 10.8. By comparison, the Terriers have taken 171 shots in 10 games for a 17.1 shots-per-game average.

“I don’t think they’ve scored a lot of goals yet, but I think they’re capable of it,” Roberts said. “They had a number of good opportunities against URI and Harvard. They’ve got some creative players.”

Despite BU’s distinct advantage in shots, Roberts acknowledged that it may be slightly more difficult to get any on net in Wednesday’s contest.

“They’re a very good defensive team, so that will be obviously a test, to be able to deal with that,” Roberts said.

“We’ll have to be patient. . . Before they get too far into the Big East schedule they’ve been working on not conceding goals. They have a very good goalkeeper as well. It’ll be a challenge for us to break that down.”

Last season, BU and Providence met on Sept. 7 for the first time since 1989, and senior forward Aaron O’Neal carried the Terriers to a 3-0 victory with two goals. BU is 10-3-2 in the all-time series against the Friars.

Consistent offense had become a concern for the Terriers

in September as they were outscored 8-1 over a three-game span from Sept. 12-19. Berube has been the catalyst for the team’s recent surge, and BU’s goals-per-game average has risen back to 1.70, after dipping to 1.14 on Sept. 19. They will likely need to stay at or above that mark to avoid the issues they encountered in conference play last year, when they went 3-4 in their final seven games and put up just one goal in each of the four losses.

Though Wednesday’s game will not count on the Terriers’ AE slate, a win would allow them not only to enter the final portion of their schedule on a four-game hot streak but also to improve their chances at an NCAA tournament bid.

“It’s important, especially against a Big East team,” Roberts said. “This is a team at the midway point of the season that definitely has the opportunity to be an at-large team in the tournament, and if we can get a win on the road, that will really help us a lot.

“This is a big game. We’ve done well against some of the teams we’ve played on the road, and this is another chance to come away with a win.”

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