NEW YORK — The Columbia men's soccer team (1-3-2) plays its second of three straight matches at home on Saturday, hosting the Iona Gaels (2-3-1) under the lights of Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET.
 
Fans unable to attend the match can watch live on ESPN+. Live stats will be available through GoColumbiaLions.com.
 
Fans attending games at the Baker Athletics Complex must adhere to Columbia Athletics and the University's venue protocols. Please find Columbia's venue policies here.
 
Here are five things to know heading into the matchup.
 
 
#1 COLLODI CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Junior goalkeeper Michael Collodi is among the national leaders in goals against average (0.424) and save percentage (.917). Heading into Friday, he ranked No. 3 in save percentage in the NCAA, as well as No. 14 in GAA. Those numbers top the Ivy League by a wide margin – the closest to Collodi in GAA is Jack Roberts from Princeton (0.889), while the closest in save percentage is Harvard's Oskar Nilsson (.867). Collodi has played and started five matches this season, totaling 424:18 minutes. He has two shutouts to his credit along with 22 total saves.  

As a team, the Lions rank No. 32 in the NCAA with a goals against average of 0.776, No. 16 in save percentage (.848) and No. 31 in saves per game (4.67). Columbia has held its last three opponents to a total of just two goals. #2 | TRACKING ALL OF THE FIRSTS
Due in part to the 2020 season being cancelled from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lions have had a lot of firsts for the players on their roster this season. Many of them are tracked below:
 
First Collegiate Starts:
- #4 Matthew Leong vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #5 Jake Novoshelski vs. Stony Brook (Sept. 6)
- #7 Adrien Wheaton-Schopp vs. LIU (Sept. 18)
- #9 Paolo Primavera vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #11 Ryan Kipness vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #13 Jack Muoio vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #16 David Walley vs. St. John's (Sept. 13)
- #19 Will DeNight vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #23 Hugo Hamilton vs. Stony Brook (Sept. 6)
- #24 Ryan Wallace vs. Manhattan (Sept. 10)
- #25 Bryan Cosman vs. Stony Brook (Sept. 6)
 
First Collegiate Goals:
- #11 Ryan Kipness vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #5 Jake Novoshelski vs George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #27 Will Todd vs. Manhattan (Sept. 10)
- #25 Bryan Cosman vs. Manhattan (Sept. 10)
 
First Collegiate Assists:
- #5 Jake Novoshelski vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #11 Ryan Kipness vs. George Washington (Sept. 3)
- #9 Paolo Primavera vs. Manhattan (Sept. 10)
 
 
#3 | NEW YORK STATE OF MIND
Including their home opener against George Washington on Sept. 3, the Lions play their first 10 matches of the season in New York state. Columbia doesn't travel out of state for a contest until Oct. 16 when it heads to Princeton. In total, only two matches this season (Princeton, Dartmouth) take place outside of the New York state.
 
 
#4 | LOOKING FOR A BREAKTHROUGH
Columbia has allowed just two goals in its last three games combined, but carry a record of 0-2-1 in those contests after not being able to find a goal of its own. The Lions are in search of their first goal since September 10 in a 2-2 draw with Manhattan, which was scored by Bryan Cosman in the game's 79th minute. The goalless drought currently stands at 321:25.
 
 
#5 | THE OPPONENT
Iona (2-3-1) is coming off back-to-back wins and is 2-0-1 in its last three matches. The Gaels most recently defeated Sacred Heart, 2-0, on Wednesday securing their first clean sheet of the season with goals coming from Camil Azzam Ruiz and Lenworth Lopez. Azzam Ruiz leads the team with four goals on the season and a total of nine points. Lopez is second in points with three goals and two assists.
 
The Iona attack averages 1.67 goals per game, which is good enough to rank second in the MAAC. The team's 10 goals on the season have come from just four different scorers – Edu Calvo-salinas (2) and Andre Shelton (1) round out the quartet. The team's biggest goal-scoring threat, Azzam Ruiz, certainly isn't afraid to shoot, having taken 30 shots so far this season, 13 on goal, leading the nation in shots per game (5.00) and ranking No. 8 in shots on goal per game (2.17).
 
Defensively, the Gaels will more than likely be putting Zachary Nelson in goal. The graduate student out of Oregon has played every minute between the posts this season (567:26) with a 1.43 GAA.

The Lions and Gaels will be renewing the series for the first time since 2014. Columbia leads the series 3-2-0 and has defeated the Gaels in each of the two prior matchups at Commisso Soccer Stadium.


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