UTICA CITY KICKS OFF SAVE OF THE DAY WEEK AGAINST HARRISBURG

Today’s Game: Utica City hosts the Harrisburg Heat for the third time this season. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.

Last Game: Utica City fought back from three one-goal deficits but fell 5-4 in overtime to the Baltimore Blast Sunday afternoon at the Adirondack Bank Center. Moises Gonzalez scored twice, while Ricardo Diegues and Cristhian Segura chipped in with a goal apiece. Andrew Coughlin made four saves in the loss.

Head to Head: This is the third of five meetings between Utica and Harrisburg this season. City has won the first two matchups, most recently taking a 10-5 decision back on December 28. Utica has outscored the Heat 14-8 through two games.

Scouting the Heat: Harrisburg comes in with a record of 5-2 and sits in fourth place in the Eastern Division. They most recently topped the Rochester Lancers 7-3 last Saturday. Dominic Francis leads the way offensively with 16 points, followed by Daniel Villela with 11 points. Jesus Molina is the leading goalkeeper with a record of 3-2, a 4.89 goals-against average, and a .645 save percentage.

Goal Scoring Machine: Ricardo Diegues is scoring goals at a break-neck pace. Diegues has scored at least one goal in every game he’s played in this season, including three multi-goal games. The forward has 12 points (11-1-12) in six games this season. 

On Fire: Jake Schindler is on a roll offensively. Schindler has recorded a point in three straight games, including a three-point night against the Heat on December 28. He is also one goal and two assists back of matching his totals from last season. The defender has eight points (4-4-8) in seven games this year.

Career Year: Cristhian Segura is on his way to a career season. Through seven games, Segura is already halfway to his career-high in goals (22) and points (31). His shooting percentage so far is also a career best of 52.9%. Overall, the midfielder has 16 points (10-6-16) in seven games.

Mr. Stretch: Andrew Coughlin has been a stalwart in goal for Utica this season. Coughlin ranks in the top 10 save percentage and top five in wins and goals-against average. The keeper holds a 5-2 record with a 4.23 goals-against average and a .685 save percentage. 

Next Game: Utica City is back in action Friday, January 17 on the road against the St. Louis Ambush. Kickoff at The Family Arena is at 8:35 p.m. The game can be viewed on MASL.tv.