DAYTON - The No. 6 seed University of Dayton men's soccer team will head to No. 1 seed VCU with the 2023 Atlantic 10 Championship title and automatic bid in the NCAA Tournament on the line. Kick-off is Sunday at 12 p.m. at Sports Backers Stadium in Richmond, Va.

SCOUTING THE FLYERS
Dayton will compete in its first A-10 title game since 2019 and sits at 7-6-6 on the season. The Flyers are coming off their first true road victory going 1-4-3 in away games this season. UD is currently on a 10-game unbeaten streak.

Head coach Dennis Currier, now in his 19th season of leading the Flyers; coaching them to only one loss at home.

The Flyers are averaging 1.79 goals per game and holding opponents to 1.37 goals per outing. Dayton is one of the most dangerous attacks in the country with 18.5 shots per game compared to 10.6 for opponents.

Leading the Flyers is senior Kenji Mboma Dem, who is coming off a brace and an assist game in the A-10 semifinals. He leads UD with seven goals and has three assists as well in 13 games. Sophomore Sidike Jabateh has chipped in six goals while graduate student Manny Day has contributed a team-leading six assists. Senior goalkeeper Dario Caetano has 60 saves and four shutouts this year.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
VCU
VCU earned the No. 1 seed in the A-10 tournament after going 5-1-2 in league play during the regular season and boasts a 7-5-5 record overall for the year. The Rams have won five in a row, but are just 3-3-3 at home this season.

Head coach Dave Giffard is in his 14th season in charge of VCU and is a previous A-10 Coach of the Year honoree.

The Rams are matching opposing squads this season with 1.19 goals per game. VCU is being outshot 15.6 to 10.0, but holding opponents to a .076 percentage.

VCU is led by Jonathan Kanagwa's 10 points on three goals and four assists while Damian Gallegos has a team-high four goals. Goalkeeper John Ermini has 54 saves and four shutouts in 16 starts.

LAST OUTING
Dayton went on the road to take on No. 4 seed Davidson and picked up a convincing 3-1 win over the Wildcats. Manny Day scored in the 11th minute on the assist from Kenji Mboma Dem, who went on to score two second-half goals to seal the victory.

VCU earned a 3-1 victory over No. 7 seed UMass on Wednesday, clinching their spot in the title game. The Rams trailed just 11 minutes into the game, but answered with two goals before halftime and never looked back.

SERIES HISTORY
Dayton and VCU have met 12 times previously with the Flyers holding a narrow 6-5-1 series advantage. Earlier this season in Richmond, UD and VCU battled to a 1-1 draw on Oct. 4. The Flyers' last A-10 Tournament Championship came back in 2015 against VCU in the title game.

SETTING THE STANDARD
Dayton heads into the weekend ranked No. 3 in the nation in shots per game and is 15th in shots on goal and 17th in corner kicks per game. The Flyers are also Top 35 in assists, goals, and points.

DAYTON IN POSTSEASON PLAY
The Flyers are in their 12th straight Atlantic 10 Championship tournament. The last time the Flyers missed out was back in 2011. Dayton also won the tournament title and NCAA tournament automatic bid in 2015. This will be their first trip to the title game since 2019.

FLYERS PICKED 2ND IN PRESEASON POLL
Dayton was picked to finish second this upcoming season in the Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll. The Flyers received 161 points behind reigning A-10 Champs Saint Louis, who earned 13 of the 14 first-place votes, Loyola Chicago earning one.

DAYTON PAIR RECEIVES A-10 PRESEASON HONORS
Dayton had a pair of student-athletes named to the A-10 Preseason All-Conference Team. Sophomore midfielder Basit Umar and senior goalkeeper Dario Caetano both were recognized after earning All-Rookie Team honors last season. (It was Caetano's first year of American collegiate soccer so he was eligible as a rookie.)

INTERNATIONAL FLAIR
Dayton historically has had a diverse team with players hailing from all over the globe. This season is no different with the Flyers having 18 international student-athletes.

WELCOME TO DAYTON
The Flyers brought in the most newcomers they have had in recent history with 21 new players joining the program including 16 freshmen.

UP NEXT
If victorious, the Flyers will clinch their spot in the NCAA Tournament.