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COSMOS TO TRAVEL TO UNDEFEATED ARMADA

Jimmy Maurer named to NASL Team of the Month

Published May 5, 2017

The New York Cosmos are on the road to play against Jacksonville Armada FC tomorrow night in their second meeting of the season. The two teams played to a 1-1 draw on April 22, with goals from Javi Márquez and J.C Banks, as the two teams are expected to put on a show in Florida.

The Cosmos have won four of their seven matches against Jacksonville and have outscored the Armada 14-7, as they look to move ahead in the overall standings. New York is unbeaten in their last seven away contests (5W-2D) and have kept clean sheets in their last four road games.

Separated by only one point, both teams have earned two victories in their opening five matches, tallying four goals and three assists each. Danny Szetela, Ayoze, Márquez and Emmanuel Ledesma, have each scored for the Cosmos this season, while Banks leads Armada with two goals, followed by Jonathan Glenn and Zach Steinberger with a goal each.

Banks will need to be tightly marked by the Cosmos' defense as well as English-born midfielder, Jack Blake, who has created six chances from set pieces this season and is tied for most assists this year, setting up two goals.

New York signed strong defenders in the offseason, including Darrius Barnes who leads the team with 15 total clearances, followed by Dejan Jaković with 11. Ryan Richter has also been a strong defensive asset, playing in each game this season and recording nine clearances. Kenyan international, David Ochieng, leads the team with five blocks.

The two teams have shown excellent goalkeeping, as Jimmy Maurer and Caleb Patterson-Sewell are tied for most clean sheets in the NASL, both recording three so far this season. Maurer was named to the NASL Team of the Month, as he leads the league with a save percentage of 84% and tied with North Carolina’s Brian Sylvestre in the league with 21 saves. As for Jacksonville, they have conceded the fewest goals in the NASL, one which came at the feet of Cosmos midfielder Márquez in their previous meeting.

Both teams had two players highlighted in the NASL Week 6 Team of the Week. Ledesma’s goal and Márquez’s assist against San Francisco were rewarded with honors, while Blake and Glenn were named for their efforts last weekend against Indy Eleven.

The match kicks off at 7:00 pm at Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. Tune into MSG Networks and ESPN3 for all the live action.