ITHACA, N.Y. – After a two-game home stand, Cornell men's soccer hits the road again on Wednesday night. But the team doesn't have to go far. Local rival Binghamton will host the Big Red in a midweek non-conference game, with Cornell having won last season by a 4-0 margin. Cornell will look to stay undefeated, move to 6-0 and break a 40-year-old school record in the process.
 
MATCH INFORMATION
MATCH #6: Cornell at Binghamton
MATCH TIME: Wednesday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m.
MATCH SITE: Bearcats Sports Complex (Vestal, N.Y.)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads 9-4-1
LAST MEETING: Cornell won 4-0 on Sept. 21, 2011
2012 RECORDS: Cornell (5-0), Binghamton (3-4)
LIVE STATS: Binghamton Live Stats
LIVE VIDEO: Bearcats TV (subscription required)
 
ABOUT THE BIG RED
With an exciting come-from-behind victory against Wofford over the weekend, Cornell improved to 5-0 and is off to its best start since 1996. The team fell behind midway through the first half, but Conor Goepel and Daniel Haber notched second-half goals to give the Big Red a tense win. A balanced and  aggressive team, Cornell leads the Ivy League in offense (2.20 goals per game) and is second in defense (0.40 goals allowed per game). Cornell has not lost a non-conference contest in more than a year.
 
HEAD COACH JARO ZAWISLAN
Now in his fourth year with the Big Red program, Jaro Zawislan has unquestionably put his stamp on the team. With a stifling defense and an aggressive offense, Zawislan has transformed what was a 1-15 team before his arrival into an 8-2-6 team in 2011 and a potential contender for the Ivy League title in 2012. Zawislan, a native of Poland, holds a 23-16-15 record during his time in Ithaca. He played soccer for four years at Clemson and then spent time professionally in the United States and Poland.
 
ABOUT BINGHAMTON
The Bearcats, based in Vestal, enter Wednesday's contest with a 3-4 record. Binghamton is coming off a 3-2 win over UNC-Wilmington last weekend as well as a 1-0 loss against Appalachian State. Binghamton's other wins were a 2-0 shutout against Buffalo and a 2-1 victory over Army. Jake Keegan leads his squad with seven goals – equal to Cornell's Daniel Haber – and Steven Celeste has scored twice. No other Bearcats player has recorded a goal. Logan Calvey is one of three goalies who has earned playing time this season, and he has allowed eight goals in five games.
The Bearcats are coached by Paul Marco, who is now in his 11th year leading the team.
 
THE SERIES WITH BINGHAMTON
Cornell holds a 9-4-1 advantage against the Bearcats over the series' lifetime, which dates back to 1974. The Big Red claimed a 4-0 victory over the visiting Bearcats last season with Patrick Slogic, Stephen Reisert, Tyler Regan and Matt Kagie all netting goals. That was the Big Red's highest-scoring game of 2011. The teams tied in 2010 and Binghamton last won against Cornell in 2009.
 
A WIN AGAINST BINGHAMTON WOULD…
…keep Cornell as the Ivy League's only undefeated team at 6-0…be Cornell's first 6-0 start since 1996…extend Cornell's non-conference winning streak to 14 games…break a school record for consecutive games with a goal at 22 contests.
 
NATIONALLY RANKED
Thanks to its 5-0 start, the Big Red earned its first national ranking this season when it was voted No. 24 in the NSCAA Coaches' Poll released on Tuesday. The Big Red was ranked No. 25 for one week last year but had not been ranked before that since 2011. Cornell is the only Ivy League team in the national rankings. Cornell is also receiving votes from College Soccer News and is three spots out of its top 30. On SoccerTimes.com, Cornell is receiving four votes and is seven spots from the top 25.
 
RECORD BREAKERS?
The Big red is on the verge of what would be an impressive and long-standing school record. With a goal against Binghamton, Cornell will have scored in 22 consecutive games to break the school record of 21 set in the 1970 and 1971 seasons.
 
TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS
For the second consecutive season, the Big Red men's soccer team claimed the CU Inaria Classic title when it defeated Wofford on Sunday. Though Cornell and Vermont only played one contest each because of a rainout on Friday, the Big Red finished the tournament with three points in the standings and a head-to-head victory against Wofford to win the title. Wofford finished second with three points while Vermont took third and Colgate finished last. Cornell defeated Hofstra and Long Island University last season to win the first CU Inaria Classic.
 
AMONG THE UNBLEMISHED
Cornell is one of just seven teams remaining in the country who have not lost a game yet. Besides the Big Red, UC Riverside (7-0), Marquette (7-0), Notre Dame (7-0), George Mason (6-0), High Point (6-0) and Old Dominion (6-0) still have not lost or tied a contest. There are still 18 teams left in the country who have not lost but who have tied games.
 
TWO-TIME PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior forward Daniel Haber was rewarded with his second consecutive Ivy League Player of the Week award last week, which is the first time a Cornell player has done that as far back as the league's records go. Haber was also the College Sports Madness Ivy League Player of the Week for the second consecutive week.
 
NATIONAL STATISTICS
Cornell continues to rank high up in the country in multiple statistical categories. As a team, the Big Red is fifth in team goals against average (0.4) and 10th in shutout percentage (60 percent). The Big Red's scoring offense of 2.2 goals per game is 20th in the nation, and Cornell's win percentage (100 percent) is tied for first with six others.
Individually, Daniel Haber remains on top of the nation in points per game (3.2), goals per game (1.4) and is tied for first in total goals (seven) despite playing one to three games fewer than the other athletes who also have seven. Haber is fifth in the country in total points (18).  The Big Red has four players in the top 100 national for assists per game (Nico Nissl, Atticus DeProspo, Tyler Regan and Haber) and goalie Rick Pflasterer has the sixth-best goals against average (0.41) in the country.
 
HERMANN TROPHY WATCH
Patrick Slogic is getting some national recognition as well, as he has made the 2012 Hermann Trophy Watch List. The trophy is given to the nation's top soccer player every year by the Missouri Athletic Club, and Slogic was one of 42 athletes who made the initial watch list. He will find out if he makes the first cut down to 15 players in November.
 
BRING IN THE YOUNG GUNS
The 2012 Cornell squad features five new players, including four freshmen and one sophomore. The freshmen class includes midfielders Ben Feldman, Simba Meki and Sanath Shettigar, who will all hope to play a vital role in the center of the action in their first years. Also new to the team on defense are freshmen Skyler Erickson – a walk-on player – and sophomore Devin Morgan, who practiced with the team during the spring.
 
UP NEXT
The Big Red returns home for a Saturday-afternoon game against St. Joseph's. The teams take to Berman Field at 4 p.m.