CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The La Salle men's soccer squad opens Atlantic 10 Tournament play on Thursday morning when the seventh-seeded Explorers take on second-seeded Saint Louis in the quarterfinal round at Charlotte's Transamerica Field. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m., and is the first match of the newly expanded eight-team tournament.

La Salle is 2-2-1 all-time against Saint Louis. The two teams did not meet in the 2012 regular season, last meeting on Oct. 23, 2011, in Philadelphia. The Explorers won 3-2 in double overtime as current senior Kameron Teel scored two goals in a 30-second span to erase a 2-0 deficit and last year's graduate Dan Korenyi netted the double OT game winner.

The two teams met in the 2010 Atlantic 10 Tournament semifinal, with the Explorers taking the 2-0 decision.

No. 7 La Salle Explorers (10-6-3, 4-4-1 Atlantic 10) vs. No. 2 Saint Louis (13-4-0, 7-2-0 Atlantic 10)
Quarterfinal Round | Atlantic 10 Championship
Transamerica Field | Charlotte, N.C.
Thursday, November 8 | 11 a.m.

Gametracker | Live Video | In-Game Twitter Updates (@ExplorerGameDay) | Atlantic 10 Championship Central

Scouting the Explorers

La Salle enters Thursday's quarterfinal round game on a two-game win streak that closed out the regular season and snagged the Explorers their third straight berth in the Atlantic 10 Tournament, the first time the squad has made it three consecutive years since joining the Atlantic 10.

The Explorers upended St. Bonaventure 1-0 last Friday behind an early goal from Rob Friskey. The defense held strong the rest of the way, with keeper John McCarthy turning away all five shots on goal in 19 attempts taken. Three different Explorers scored on Sunday as the team cruised past Duquesne 3-0 in the regular season finale. Jason Plumhoff opened scoring with his sixth goal of the season - and third game winner - before Tom Kalpokas and Joe Farrell added to the tally.

The Explorers look to extend their regained momentum into the tournament. Earlier this season, they were on a roll as they posted the best nonconference record in decades and won the first two league games of the season. They opened A-10 play with a 1-0 overtime win over Fordham before rolling past George Washington 4-0 in Head Coach Pat Farrell's 200th career win.

The squad also looks to continue a trend of winning their first tournament games. This year's junior class has now made the tournament each year of their college careers, helping the squad win its semifinal game over the Billikens in 2010 to advance to the league's title game. The Explorers also topped Temple 2-0 last year in the first round before dropping a 2-1 double overtime heartbreaker to GW in the semifinal.

Jason Plumhoff concluded the regular season with a team-best 16 points on six goals and four assists, while Atlantic 10 All-Rookie pick Joe Farrell added 14 points on five goals and four assists.

McCarthy, who was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference Second Team, currently ranks fifth nationally in save percentage (.858) and third nationally in total saves (109). He concluded the regular season tied with Charlotte's Klay Davis with a league-best nine shutouts, which is also a La Salle single-season record.

Scouting the Billikens

Saint Louis looks to exact revenge for its tournament loss to the Explorers two years ago. The Billikens are 13-4 overall and finished with a 7-2 conference record. They are currently ranked No. 15 by Soccer America, No. 23 in the Soccer Times coaches poll and the College Soccer News coaches poll, and are No. 25 in the NSCAA/Continental Tire rankings.

The Billikens are coming off of a 4-0 win over Butler in the regular season finale. They have three wins over ranked teams, and their two A-10 losses were to then-No. 17 Xavier and then-No. 22 Charlotte.

The squad placed six on the All-Conference team and Head Coach Mike McGinty was recognized as the Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year. The Billikens are led by leading scorer Robbie Kristo, who has 22 points on nine goals and four assists. Adnan Gabeljic has added 16 points on six goals and four assists, and three other players have at least 10 points.

Nick Shackelford sports a 0.88 goals against average and .797 save percentage in goal for Saint Louis.

Atlantic 10 Championship Media

All games of the A-10 tournament will be streamed live on Atlantic 10 All-Access. Click on the link above for video coverage of La Salle's quarterfinal round game.