Men's Soccer Hosts Penn on Friday

MILWAUKEE -- The Golden Eagles will try to bounce back from their first loss of the season at Saint Louis on Tuesday as they return home to face Penn at Valley Fields on Friday. Marquette sports a 2-0 record at home with seven combined goals scored. Meanwhile, Penn makes its first road trip of the season and first trip to Milwaukee since 2008.

Junior Luka Prpa scored the team's lone goal, his first of the season and 12th of his career, on Tuesday and his five points (1 goal, 3 assists) currently sits one point behind freshman Lukas Sunesson (3 goals) for the team-lead. Prpa extended his points streak to three games to open the season, which falls just one shy of his career-high from his freshman season.

Penn returns to action after battling Drexel to a 0-0 draw at home on Monday, following a 3-2 overtime victory over Monmouth in the season opener on Aug. 31.

OPPONENT FORM

PENN (4-12-1, 2-4-1 IVY in 2017)
The Quakers are 1-0-1 following a pair of overtime matches on opening weekend. Penn defeated Monmouth 3-2 in extra time during their season opener before settling for a 0-0 draw against their University City Derby rival Drexel on Monday despite recording an 18-12 shots advantage and a 12-5 edge in corners.

Penn is led by first-year head coach Brian Gill, who spent last season as an assistant on staff following seven years as an assistant at Georgetown. In his first coaching victory, the Quakers featured three different goal scorers, including returning Second Team All-Ivy League selection Alex Touche.

Penn makes its second-ever trip to Milwaukee and first since 2008. It was 2-6-0 on the road in 2017 with wins at Delaware and Harvard.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

• Bennett on the flurry of Saint Louis goals on Tuesday: "It was probably the worst 35 minutes we've had (this season). We couldn't get a foothold in the game. It was a physical encounter and I think they won that physical encounter. We struggled to get on track with our game plan."

• Bennett on the key takeaways from Tuesday: "After halftime, I thought that we settled in. They did a good job of thwarting our many attacks even though we did get around the outside and started to show ourselves. We'll tend to our wounds and get back on the training field, and by Friday, we'll be back to compete again."

#MARQUETTESOCCER PROJECTED STARTING XI

(4-3-3): Cedrik Stern, Zak Wegner, Leo Villa, Josh Hancock, Patrick Seagrist, Ruben Sanchez, Martin Alba, Luka Prpa, Connor Alba, Josh Coan, Lukas Sunesson
* Based on previous game

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

• All-Time Series: Friday marks the second meeting all-time between the Golden Eagles and Quakers and just the third meeting all-time against Ivy League institutions. Nearly 10 years ago to the day, the two teams met at Valley Fields and played to a 0-0 draw on Sept. 5, 2008. Two days later, the Golden Eagles also battled their only other Ivy League opponent, Columbia, to a 0-0 draw. Then-junior goalkeeper Matt Pyzdrowski combined for five saves for two of his 11 career shutouts in a Marquette uniform.

• Home Sweet Home: The Golden Eagles are trying to win their first three home matches for the first time since 2014 when they defeated Gonzaga, Oregon State and Drake in succession on the way to six-consecutive home wins to start the year. It was also in the midst of the same streak that saw Marquette win eight-straight and compile a program record shutout streak of 804:58. MU finished that year 7-1-2 on home soil. A win on Friday would match last season's win total and surpass their two home victories.

• Prpa Power: The junior midfielder and the Premier Development League's Young Player of the Year winner, Luka Prpa, is riding a three-game point streak after tallying a goal and three assists to open the year. Prpa is now up to 38 career points on 12 goals and 14 assists. Most of that production came in his sensational freshman campaign in which he totaled 26 points on 10 goals and six assists on the way to BIG EAST Freshman of the Year status.

• Climbing the Ranks: The Golden Eagles picked up their first national ranking since 2014 when they debuted at No. 22 in the Top Drawer Soccer Top-25 rankings last week. Marquette rose 10 spots to No. 12 after Thursday's win and is MU receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches' Poll for the second-straight week. They are one of five BIG EAST teams either ranked or receiving votes in the USC Poll: Villanova (No. 15), Georgetown (No. 20), Butler (rv), Creighton (rv).

• Marquette United: Head coach Louis Bennett and his staff continue to attract talent from all over the world as evidenced by the host of international representation on the roster. This year's roster features players from England, Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden, as well as eight different states.

Keep up with the Marquette men's soccer program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteSoccer) and Instagram (@MarquetteSoccer) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteSoccer).