Cards Return Home to Take on Syracuse

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville men's soccer team returns home to take on Syracuse on Friday night at Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and will be televised on ACC Network Extra.

ABOUT THE CARDINALS
Louisville suffered a 3-2 defeat on the road at No. 7 Pitt one week ago. Josh Jones and Gaetano D'Argento each scored in the loss.

SERIES HISTORY
The Cardinals hold an 11-3-6 edge in the all-time series against Syracuse in a series that has been tightly contested. Of the 20 previous meetings, 17 of them have been decided by one goal or ended in a draw.

Louisville and Syracuse played to a 2-2 stalemate in the most recent meeting last September. Gage Guerra scored the opening goal in the 11th minute, but the Orange struck twice in the first half to take a 2-1 lead. Guerra then found the equalizer with less than two minutes to play to help the Cardinals earn a point.

JONES GETTING IT DONE ON BOTH ENDS
Senior center back Josh Jones has anchored Louisville's defense throughout his four-year career at Louisville, playing a part in 18 clean sheets during that time.

The defender has also made his presence felt on the attacking end, serving as one of the top set piece targets in the country.

This fall however, Jones has expanded his arsenal to include joining the attack in the run of play. The senior scored Louisville's first goal against Jacksonville and at Pitt, both during the run of play. Jones is one of four Cardinals tied for the team lead with two goals.

NEW FACES APLENTY ON PITCH FOR CARDINALS
John Michael Hayden and his staff brought 15 newcomers into the fold for the 2024 season. Through the first five matches, those new faces are playing huge roles.

Nine different Cardinals have started at least five matches, five of which are new to the Louisville program – Noah De Blasis, JP Jordan, Jack Lewis, Olayinka Ogunleye and Harvey Sellers.

Louisville newcomers have accounted for 3,539 minutes (59.9 percent), two goals and seven assists.

FRESHMEN CLASS MAKING HUGE EARLY IMPACT
Louisville returned five starters and 12 players overall from the 2023 squad that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Those returners have been huge for the Cards through six matches with Gage Guerra, Sander Roed, Ethan Subachan and Josh Jones combining for 19 of Louisville's 35 points.

However, the freshmen class is making its mark as well. Seven different freshmen have played meaningful minutes so far, with at least four in the starting lineup in each of the last two matches.

Leon Kondic scored the game-winner in the 90th minute at Kentucky. Jack Lewis assisted on Kondic's winner and tallied a winner of his own against Bellarmine. TJ Kahoalii and Chase Vazquez assisted on the Lewis goal, while Noah De Blasis (Jacksonville) and Kondic (Tulsa) also have assists on game-winning goals.

Defensively, De Blasis has started all six matches and Olayinka Ogunleye has started five of six flanking Jones in the backline. De Blasis has played all 540 minutes this season, while Ogunleye has logged 411.

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Players Mentioned

Gaetano D'Argento

Noah De Blasis

Gage Guerra

Josh Jones

JP Jordan

TJ Kahoalii

Leon Kondic

Jack Lewis

Olayinka Ogunleye

Sander Roed

Harvey Sellers

Ethan Subachan

Chase Vazquez

University of Louisville Athletics