BOSTON -- The Northeastern men's soccer team will look to pick up its first victory of the season on Saturday night when the Huskies return home to host Fairfield at 6 p.m. on Parsons Field. Admission to the match, and all games at Parsons Field, is free of charge.

Raising banners
Prior to Saturday's match against the Stags, Northeastern will honor the 2012 Huskies after their record-breaking season that saw NU capture its first-ever CAA tournament championship and secure a spot in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2002.

Northeastern set program records for most wins (14), fewest losses (three) and longest unbeaten streak (12) in 2012, while tying the team mark for longest winning streak (six).

Last time out
The Huskies faced two tough tests on opening weekend in North Carolina, squaring off against Elon and Duke at the Nike / John Rennie Invitational. On Friday, Donovan Fayd'Herbe de Maudave netted a goal in the 10th minute from Dante Marini and Nikko Lara, but a goal from the Phoenix in the 79th minute forced overtime and an eventual draw.

Two days later, Duke netted two goals in a span of 90 seconds late in the match to walk away with a 2-0 victory over the Huskies. For their efforts, Fayd'Herbe de Maudave and Marini were named to the All-Tournament Team.

Home sweet home
The Huskies will put their 16-match home unbeaten streak on the line Saturday night against the Stags. NU secured its second straight unbeaten season at Parsons Field in 2012 thanks to an 8-0-1 mark, and has not lost at home since Nov. 6, 2010 (15-0-1).

Picked to repeat
After capturing the 2012 conference championship, NU was picked to finish first in the 2013 CAA preseason poll, according to a vote of the league's coaches on Aug. 9.

The Huskies claimed the top spot in the poll after receiving three first-place votes and 44 total points, edging Drexel by three points. This marks the first time that the Huskies have been slotted for the top spot since Northeastern joined the CAA in 2005, and only the second time that any NU sport was picked as the favorite, joining volleyball in 2012.

O Captain, My Captain
Northeastern has chosen its leaders for the 2013 season. Senior Dante Marini, along with juniors Simon Cox and Donovan Fayd'Herbe de Maudave will be looked upon to lead a group of Huskies who return 17 letterwinners, including eight starters, from last season's squad.

Cox enters his first season as a tri-captain, while Fayd'Herbe de Maudave and Marini also served as captains last season.

Holding the back line
Northeastern's strongest asset in 2013 should be the performance of its defense, which returns all five of its starters from last season. Simon Cox, who potted four goals en route to CAA Co-Defensive Player of the Year accolades, helped anchor a defense that held its opponents to 0.76 goals per game and 10 shutouts.

Aided by the play of Conner Alexander, Jonathan Eckford, Nikko Lara and Ambry Moss, NU allowed just 16 goals in 21 matches, the lowest total in team history.

Scouting Fairfield
Fairfield enters action Saturday with a record of 0-0-1 after a 1-1 tie against Hartwick on Aug. 30. Last season, the Stags had a record of 7-8-1 and finished fifth in the MAAC. The Huskies are 9-5-2 all-time against the Stags, including a 1-0 double overtime win last season.

Head coach Carl Ross sees his top five scorers from a year ago return to the field in 2013. Last year's leading scorer was forward Reco McLaren, who scored seven goals and added an assist for 15 points. Junior Jordan Ayris (4-2-10) and senior Jon Clements (1-1-3) were second and fourth on the team in scoring from the forward position. Fairfield's lone goal of the 2013 season came from junior midfielder Jake Zuniga.

In Fairfield's first game of 2013, freshman goalkeeper Joe Martin filled the void in goal left by the graduation of Michael O'Keeffe, who played all 16 games for the Stags last season. Martin recorded three saves and allowed one goal in 110 minutes of Fairfield's 1-1 draw against Hartwick.

Faber gets the call
Sophomore Dylan Faber got the start in goal last weekend for the Huskies, ending the weekend with a 1.35 goals against average and a .800 save percentage.

Faber appeared in four matches as a rookie last season for the Huskies, going 1-1-0 with a 1.38 GAA and .714 save percentage.

Fresh faces
The Huskies welcome 10 new faces to the 2013 squad, the most of any team in the conference. The group of three forwards, three midfielders and four defenders are expected to push to returning players for playing time throughout the season.

NU unveils 2013 digital media guide
The Northeastern athletic department introduces the official 2013 digital media guide for men's soccer. In an upgrade from previous media guides, this year's digital guides provide a user-friendly, easy-to-navigate format to access information for all 18 teams at Northeastern.

This season's digital media guides provide a glance into the student-athletes, coaches and history of each NU team, as well as a multitude of information on the University and the City of Boston. The guide also allows fans to learn more about a specific topic with a simple click of the mouse. Visit GoNU.com/DMG to view all four fall media guides.

The road ahead
Northeastern will remain at home when the Huskies welcome Fordham to Parsons Field on Tuesday, Sept. 10 for a 4 p.m. match. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two squads.

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