Marshall University Athletics
Roberts and Pita Sweep Conference USA Men’s Soccer Weekly Awards
11/11/2019 2:02:00 PM | Men's Soccer
First weekly honor for Roberts this year, third for Pita
IRVING, Texas – Marshall men's soccer junior forward Jamil Roberts and redshirt senior keeper Paulo Pita swept the Conference USA weekly awards, the league office announced Monday. Marshall has taken both offensive and defensive awards in back-to-back weeks and for the third time this season.
It is the first weekly honor this season for Roberts and the third for Pita including back-to-back weeks. The season tally of C-USA weekly awards for Marshall caps off at eight after the final week of the regular season. Senior defender Illal Osmanu was honored twice (Oct. 7 & 14), redshirt freshman Milo Yosef twice (Oct. 21 & Nov. 4), three times for Pita (Oct. 21, Nov. 4 & 11) and once for Roberts (Nov. 11).
"I'm really happy for Jamil and Paulo," Herd head coach Chris Grassie said. "Jamil in particular has had a really tough couple of weeks emotionally, so his response on the pitch and the professionalism of his attitude was tremendous. Two goals to win us a championship is a great way to answer back. Paulo was tremendous against FIU. He needed to make one huge save at the beginning of that match. When he did, I got the feeling that the day would be ours. He was solid and composed throughout the match. The bigger the match the better he is.
"Also, after the win at FIU I forgot to thank (team travel agent) Leissa Engel for helping with our travel schedule. We had such a tough road swing, that we wouldn't have been able to manage it as well without her help in finding us extra hours of recovery time here and there."
After missing two matches, Roberts came back strong scoring both of the Herd's goals in the 2-1 win at No. 19 FIU on Friday. The victory secured the number one overall seed in the upcoming C-USA Tournament and gave Marshall its first regular season title since back in the Mid-American Conference in 2000. The Langport, England native tapped in the first goal in the 18th minute that got the Herd on the board first. After FIU tied things up, Roberts again found the back of the net in the 23rd minute. The goal proved to be the game-winner as Marshall held on for the remaining 77 minutes and 15 seconds. The junior striker finished the day with six total shots and four on goal. He leads the team and Conference USA in assists with nine. He has also been among the nation's leaders in assists as well. Roberts is tied for seventh all-time in Marshall history with 14 career assists and tied for fourth in single-season annals.
Pita has continued to be a brick wall in net that the Herd has been able to lean on. The redshirt senior has played every minute, 1,637, in goal this year and has allowed just 15 goals in 18 matches. Against the 19th-ranked Panthers, Pita was at his best when the team needed it the most. He tied his season-high with six saves in the win. He made back-to-back saves in the seventh minute from close range to keep FIU from getting on the scoreboard first. He blocked the initial shot and then bounced back to stop the rebound attempt immediately after. Once the Herd took the lead, he tallied three more saves including two in the second half as the Marshall defense clamped down to preserve the win. Pita carries a 0.80 goals against average and a .792 save percentage with 13 wins this season and six shutouts. So far in his Herd career he has 20 victories, 9.5 shutouts, and 128 saves.
Marshall with receiving the first round bye, awaits the winner of No. 4 seed Kentucky and No. 5 seed Florida Atlantic in the semi-final round. The match is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 15. The conference tournament is hosted by Old Dominion.
For all of the latest information on the Marshall men's soccer team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdMSoccer, Facebook at Marshall University Soccer and on www.herdzone.com.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!
It is the first weekly honor this season for Roberts and the third for Pita including back-to-back weeks. The season tally of C-USA weekly awards for Marshall caps off at eight after the final week of the regular season. Senior defender Illal Osmanu was honored twice (Oct. 7 & 14), redshirt freshman Milo Yosef twice (Oct. 21 & Nov. 4), three times for Pita (Oct. 21, Nov. 4 & 11) and once for Roberts (Nov. 11).
"I'm really happy for Jamil and Paulo," Herd head coach Chris Grassie said. "Jamil in particular has had a really tough couple of weeks emotionally, so his response on the pitch and the professionalism of his attitude was tremendous. Two goals to win us a championship is a great way to answer back. Paulo was tremendous against FIU. He needed to make one huge save at the beginning of that match. When he did, I got the feeling that the day would be ours. He was solid and composed throughout the match. The bigger the match the better he is.
"Also, after the win at FIU I forgot to thank (team travel agent) Leissa Engel for helping with our travel schedule. We had such a tough road swing, that we wouldn't have been able to manage it as well without her help in finding us extra hours of recovery time here and there."
After missing two matches, Roberts came back strong scoring both of the Herd's goals in the 2-1 win at No. 19 FIU on Friday. The victory secured the number one overall seed in the upcoming C-USA Tournament and gave Marshall its first regular season title since back in the Mid-American Conference in 2000. The Langport, England native tapped in the first goal in the 18th minute that got the Herd on the board first. After FIU tied things up, Roberts again found the back of the net in the 23rd minute. The goal proved to be the game-winner as Marshall held on for the remaining 77 minutes and 15 seconds. The junior striker finished the day with six total shots and four on goal. He leads the team and Conference USA in assists with nine. He has also been among the nation's leaders in assists as well. Roberts is tied for seventh all-time in Marshall history with 14 career assists and tied for fourth in single-season annals.
Pita has continued to be a brick wall in net that the Herd has been able to lean on. The redshirt senior has played every minute, 1,637, in goal this year and has allowed just 15 goals in 18 matches. Against the 19th-ranked Panthers, Pita was at his best when the team needed it the most. He tied his season-high with six saves in the win. He made back-to-back saves in the seventh minute from close range to keep FIU from getting on the scoreboard first. He blocked the initial shot and then bounced back to stop the rebound attempt immediately after. Once the Herd took the lead, he tallied three more saves including two in the second half as the Marshall defense clamped down to preserve the win. Pita carries a 0.80 goals against average and a .792 save percentage with 13 wins this season and six shutouts. So far in his Herd career he has 20 victories, 9.5 shutouts, and 128 saves.
Marshall with receiving the first round bye, awaits the winner of No. 4 seed Kentucky and No. 5 seed Florida Atlantic in the semi-final round. The match is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 15. The conference tournament is hosted by Old Dominion.
For all of the latest information on the Marshall men's soccer team, follow the Herd on Twitter @HerdMSoccer, Facebook at Marshall University Soccer and on www.herdzone.com.
To follow all Thundering Herd sports and get live stats, schedules, and free live audio, download the Marshall Athletics App for iOS or Android!
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Players Mentioned
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