Friday, September 05, 2008

MACON, Ga. - For three years UNF and Gardner-Webb battled as Atlantic Sun foes. The two renew its series on Sunday in the A-Sun Men's Soccer Game of the Week at noon on Sunday from UNF's Hodges Stadium. The game can be seen on ASun.TV.

When Gardner-Webb was part of the Atlantic Sun, the Ospreys captured two of the three matches with the Runnin' Bulldogs including last year's 1-0 victory. In that contest, the Ospreys collected the game's only score in the 24th minute on a strike from freshman Adam O'Neill. O'Neill received a cross from teammate Akil DeFreitas and delivered it into the left corner of the net past a diving GWU goalie Dane Geraci.

Both teams enter the match 0-2. UNF dropped both contests at the UC-Irvine College Classic losing 1-0 to the host Anteaters in season opener and 3-0 to Seattle University. Seattle netted its three goals inside a 10-minute span. Goalkeeper Tony Restino and junior Steven Lowenthal earned spots on the UC-Irvine College Classic all-tournament team. Restino made 13 saves in 180 minutes in net for UNF, posting a 2.00goals-against average.

Gardner-Webb dropped both its matches at the Soccer for a Cure Classic, losing to two other Atlantic Sun schools, Lipscomb, 4-0 on Friday and 2-1 in overtime to Belmont on Sunday. Before facing the Ospreys, the Runnin' Bulldogs take on Jacksonville tonight and on September 14, they face USC Upstate for a total of five contests against A-Sun schools in 2008.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life, with a focus on academic and athletic integrity and a balance between the two for the student-athlete, and maintaining a high level of sportsmanship. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun encompasses six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun consists of some of the most dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.