GAME INFORMATION
GAME #11: Cornell at Colgate
DATE: Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2010
TIME: 7:00 p.m.
SITE: Van Doren Field - Hamilton, N.Y.
2010 RECORDS: Cornell - 3-3-4 (0-1-1 Ivy League); Colgate - 6-3-2 (3-0 Patriot League)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads, 38-20-4
LAST MEETING: Cornell won, 3-1, on Oct. 13, 2009, in Ithaca, N.Y.
LIVE STATS: http://www.sidearmsports.com/colgate/msoc

The Cornell men's soccer team will take on its most difficult challenge of the 2010 season on Tuesday night, stepping outside of Ivy League play for a contest at No. 24 Colgate at Van Doren Field in Hamilton, N.Y. The Raiders are the first ranked foe that the Big Red will face this season.

HEAD COACH JARO ZAWISLAN
In his second season on the bench directing the Big Red, Jaro Zawislan has implemented his high-pressure, high-tempo offense with the results to back him up. Zawislan has led the Big Red to a 9-9-9 record since taking over the program prior to the 2009 season. He earned his first career victory on Sept. 7, 2009, against Hartwick. His coaching career also includes stops at Stanford and Creighton following a decorated playing career at Clemson, where he graduated in 1993. Zawislan played professionally in the United States and his native Poland before turning to coaching. He is assisted by Joe Schneck, in his fifth year with the Big Red, and Keith Comfort and T.J. Love, both in their first seasons with the Cornell program.

ABOUT THE BIG RED
A week after losing its Ivy League opener to Penn in the game's dying moments, the Big Red got a better bounce of the ball in its last outing, earning a 1-1 draw at Harvard on Saturday to improve to 3-3-4 on the year and 0-1-1 in Ivy League play. Junior Chase Aaronson scored the match-tying goal with 1:46 to play in regulation, equalizing the score after Harvard had scored earlier in the half. Aaronson leads the Big Red offense on the year with seven points on three goals and one assist, while Jimmy Lannon is second with a goal and a team-best three assists. In goal, Rick Pflasterer has played every minute this season, recording a 0.92 goals-against average and a .778 save percentage with a pair of shutouts.

ABOUT COLGATE
The Raiders enter the week ranked, though their status among the nation's top 25 is in jeopardy after dropping a 3-2 contest to Syracuse on Oct. 6. The Raiders rebounded with a 1-0 win against Army on Sunday, however, to improve to 6-2-3 on the year and remain unbeaten in Patriot League play at 3-0. Matt Schuber leads the Raiders offensively with six points on two goals and two assists, while both Mike Reidy and Steven Miller have five points on a pair of goals and one assist. In goal, Chris Miller has played most of the minutes for Colgate, posting a 0.62 goals-against average and a .806 save percentage with five shutouts.

THE SERIES WITH COLGATE
The Big Red leads the all-time series against Colgate, 38-20-4, a series that dates back to the 1946 season with a 1-1 draw in Ithaca. Cornell hasn't lost back-to-back games against the Raiders since losing four straight from 1966 through 1969, and prevented that from happening last season when the Big Red scored a 3-1 victory in Ithaca. Cornell's last win in Hamilton came in 2002, when the Big Red struck for a 2-1 win.

LAST MINUTE HERO
Cornell has shown a flair for the dramatic in the season and a half that Jaro Zawislan has been in charge of the Big Red men's soccer program. The Big Red this season has two games with a late comeback for either a tie or a victory, scoring three times in 3:40 against Hartwick earlier this season to rally from a 2-0 deficit in addition to Chase Aaronson's goal with 1:46 left in regulation to force a tie with Harvard. Last year, Cornell pulled off the same trick twice, getting a draw with an 81st minute goal against Canisius and scored a pair of late goals to beat St. Bonaventure.

IN THE RANKINGS
Sophomore goalkeeper Rick Pflasterer appears in the top 75 of the national rankings in both of the main goalkeeping categories in last week's rankings, coming in 53rd in the nation in goals-against average and 86th in the country in save percentage. He also ranks third in the Ivy League in goals-against average and fourth in save percentage.

TURN UP THE PRESSURE
Cornell's high-pressure style of play, while not yet translating into an outburst of goals, is clearly shown by the Big Red's statistics this season. Cornell is out-shooting its opponents, 138-112, and has forced 57 corner kicks while conceeding just 33. The Big Red is averaging nearly five and a half corner kicks per game.

AND THE AWARD GOES TO...
A trio of Cornellians were honored for their play at the Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Nike Classic on Sept. 10-12 with a spot on the all-tournament team. Junior midfielder Jimmy Lannon, sophomore goalkeeper Rick Pflasterer and freshman midfielder Ben Williams each was recognized for their play in helping the Big Red to a tie with New Hampshire and a loss to tournament champion Vermont.

DON'T BLINK
A span of 3:40 was the difference between a win and a loss for the Big Red on Sept. 6 against Hartwick, as Cornell scored three goals in dramatic fashion to claim the lead and eventually, the victory. First it was Franck Onambele scoring off a header from a Jimmy Lannon throw-in, and just 1:19 later, a Craig Dimbleby cross found the head of Daniel Haber on the back post, and his header equalized the score at two. Then, 2:21 later, it was Haber slotting a pass through traffic to Will Ogden, who slotted a shot past the oncoming goalkeeper.

SAVING THE DAY
Rick Pflasterer had a quiet day in the win against Hartwick, making just one save in the contest, stopping a second-half penalty kick. Unfortunately for Pflasterer, the rebound came directly back to the shooter, who finished into the empty net for the 1-0 Hartwick lead. Fortunately, though, the Big Red rallied for three goals in the span of 3:40 to claim the victory.

START ME UP
Despite falling to Long Island in the season opener on Sept. 5, the Big Red still holds a 33-24-8 record all-time in season openers dating back to the 1946 season.

UP NEXT
Cornell returns to home for just the second time this month when it plays host to Yale in a 7 p.m. contest on Saturday at Berman Field.