The UMBC men's soccer squad (3-2-1) steps out of conference for its final home game of the 2021 spring season when the Retrievers host the St. Joseph's Hawks (2-5-0) on Saturday, April 3. The contest gets underway at 4:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on the America East digital network.

Last Time Out

UMBC freshman forward Spencer Hanks (Odenton, Md./Arundel) scored a pair of second half goals to rally his side to a 2-1 victory over Stony Brook on Friday, March 26. The victory kept UMBC (3-2-1, 2-2-1) alive for April's America East four-team championship.

Hanks scored in the 58' and 86', converting feeds from Ryan Becher (Hummelstown, Pa.) and goalkeeper Quantrell Jones  (Baltimore, Md./Kenwood) with howling winds aiding the second half comeback.  

The Retrievers started seven freshman versus the Seawolves and 11 of the 16 players that saw action were taking part in their first year of competition. 

Q

Jones leads America East with three shutouts and now has 10 in his career. After making a career-high nine saves in the opener vs. GW, he has been called upon to make only 15 stops in the last six games. He is ranked third in the league in save percentage (82.8) and goals against average (0.78). His save of a Aki Solvason shot in the 72' at Stony Brook earned him No. 6 on the Sports Center Top Ten list on March 3.

Honored

Hanks was named America East Conference Men's Soccer Rookie of the Week for the final full week of March. He joins linemate Taylor Calheira (Towson, Md./Concordia Prep) to score a game-winning goal this spring and earn a league honor.

Calheira and junior goalkeeper Quantrell Jones earned two of the three weekly honors from the America East Conference on March 1.  

Calheira earned Rookie of the Week honors, while Jones was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week.

Making his collegiate debut, Calheira struck off a corner kick in the 106' as the host Retrievers opened the 2020-21 campaign with a 1-0 double overtime victory over George Washington on February 23. Jones set a new career high with nine saves and recorded his eighth career shutout in the Retrievers' 1-0 double-overtime victory over the Colonials.

Milestone

Head Coach Pete Caringi, Jr.is the third coach in UMBC history to mentor a program for 30 or more seasons. He recorded his 300th is next victory on Feb. 27, as UMBC defeated George Washington, 1-0, in double overtime.

Foes Finally Dent the Net

UMBC opened the season by not allowing a goal for the first 260 minutes of action before NJIT converted on a penalty kick rebound. Binghamton became the first team to score the initial goal in a UMBC contest in the spring of 2021.

UMBC vs. St. Joseph's, and More on the Hawks   

• UMBC holds a 7-4-0 mark all-time versus St. Joseph's    
• The last meeting occurred in 2009, when the Retrievers blanked the Hawks, 6-0
• UMBC is 3-2-0 vs. St. Joseph's in Baltimore
• St. Joseph's is 2-5-0 overall, but is coming off a 2-1 Atlantic Ten victory at Rhode Island on March 31.
• Alvin Dahn scored both goals versus the Rams, including the game-winner with 12 seconds remaining.
• St. Joe's had only scored three goals in its previous six games

Dawg Bytes

• The back-to-back shutouts of GW and Stony Brook were the Retrievers' first since the first two games of the 2017 campaign
• The Retrievers received 18 votes (30th-most) in Soccer Wire's Week 1 national rankings (March 2).  

• The America East Championships will be held April 15 and 17 at a single site, with the champion advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
• Juniors Jordan Ehart (Severna Park, Md./Mount St. Joseph) and Quantrell Jones and sophomore Julian Conze (Telgte, Germany) will serve as tri-captains for the 2020-21 campaign.
• Twelve of 23 players on the squad are newcomers. Five freshmen (Calheira, Hanks, Jago Lott, Hans Nesheim, William Forby) have started all six games to date.
• UMBC completes the regular season at NJIT on Friday, April 9 at 7:00 p.m. A win over the Highlanders would give UMBC the top position in Pod C and a spot in the four-team America East Championships.