2007 Horizon League Men's Soccer Prospectus
Aug. 7, 2007
2007 Horizon League Prospectus in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
UIC and defending League champion Loyola lead a group of nine teams chasing the 2007 Horizon League Men's Soccer Championship.
Both Chicago entries earned berths in the 2006 NCAA Championship, with UIC advancing to the second round of the national summit. The Flames finished 13-3-5 overall and boasted the nation's stingiest defense, allowing only eight goals for a 0.36 goals-against average that was the sixth-best in NCAA history.
Flames coach John Trask brings back the leader of that defense in sophomore goalkeeper Jovan Bubonja---along with three-time First-Team All-League choice Pavle Dundjer in the midfield---but must replace Second-Team All-America pick and League Player of the Year Tonci Skroce. Dundjer scored eight goals for the Flames, who have seven starters returning from last year's NCAA Championship squad. Senior midfielder Cesar Zambrano gained Second-Team All-League notice for his five goals and 11 points in 2006 after a First-Team All-League campaign the previous fall. Dundjer and Zambrano both landed on the NSCAA's Second-Team All-Great Lakes Region squad, while Bubonja was a First-Team All-Region choice.
Bubonja anchored a goalkeeping group that recorded 13 shutouts and never allowed more than one goal in a contest. All three of the Flames' losses were by 1-0 decisions---at Wisconsin and at Butler during the regular season, and at Notre Dame in the second round of the national tournament. UIC's regular-season performance---which included victories at Saint Louis, at Bradley and at eventual national champion UC Santa Barbara--- earned an at-large berth in the NCAA tournament, the first for a League team since 2001. The Flames took advantage of that opportunity, opening the NCAA Championship with a 3-0 triumph over Western Illinois to extend the League's run to five consecutive years with a victory in the tournament.
UIC reached the top ten in the national polls and won its first regular-season League crown since 2000 with a 5-1-1 mark in circuit play. But cross-town rival Loyola rode a wave of momentum late in the season, outlasting UIC in a penalty-kick shootout and defeating Green Bay (1-0) in the League Championship to reach the national summit for the first time in program history. The Ramblers ended the year at 11-8-2 overall after a 1-0, overtime loss at Northern Illinois in the first round of the NCAA Championship (a match in which Loyola played shorthanded for nearly 70 minutes after a first-half red card). The 11 victories marked the program's best showing since 2000.
The Ramblers bring back three of their top four scorers from last fall, including sophomore forwards Alex Jones and Michael Ferguson. That tandem combined for 11 of the team's 23 goals last season, with Jones hitting the net six times and Ferguson providing five goals and one assist. Senior midfielder Keum Sung Kim scored only one goal last fall, although it came at the perfect time as the only goal in the League Championship match versus Green Bay---but tied for the League lead with eight assists in 2006.
Senior Iradj Farahmand and Kim both gained Second-Team All-Great Lakes acclaim from the NSCAA and bolster the Rambler defense which registered a 0.88 goals-against average and ten shutouts last fall. Veteran starter Sean Bond has graduated, however, leaving junior Brad Sommer and sophomore Andrew Biggs to compete for the starting goalkeeper role in 2007.
Green Bay finished second in the regular-season League standings with a 5-2-0 loop ledger as part of a 14-6-0 overall mark. Junior forward Tosaint Ricketts takes the spotlight for the Phoenix, who must replace the League-leading production of Third-Team NSCAA All-America selection Joshua Okoampa (14 goals, 34 points as a senior last fall). Ricketts hit the net eight times last fall as part of the League's highest-scoring team (43 goals), while senior midfielder Dan O'Brien provided four goals and six assists as a freshman in 2006. Junior forward Mike McCormack also recorded four goals in support of the veteran goalkeeping tandem of senior Joshua Loyd and junior Adam Stikl, That duo posted a 1.32 goals-against average with three shutouts.
Milwaukee tied Loyola for third place in the League standings, posting a 4-2-1 loop record as part of an 8-9-2 overall slate. The Panthers, who had won the previous four League titles before being ousted in the quarterfinals last fall, return eight starters in hopes of returning to the top of the circuit. Senior Steve Bode anchors the UWM defense in front of junior netminder Grant Fernstrum, who led the nation in goals-against average in 2005. Junior forward Colin Baker (four goals in 2006) and senior midfielder Martin Castro (three markers last fall) lead the attack for second-year coach Jon Coleman, who also introduces a highly-heralded incoming class.
Cleveland State was the nation's most-improved team last year, climbing from 0-17-1 to 6-10-2 under first-year mentor Ali Kazemaini. The Vikings, 3-4-0 in the League during the regular season, will rely on the continued production of sophomores George Kephart and Marco DiFranco, two members of the League's All-Newcomer Team in 2006. Kephart shared the team scoring lead with five goals and 12 points, with DiFranco collecting two goals and three assists in his debut campaign. Junior forward Nenad Stojkovic---one of seven other returning starters for CSU---notched three goals and four helpers a year ago.
Butler must replace six starters from last fall's7-11-2 squad. Junior forward Frank Patano finished fifth on the loop scoring charts with 17 points (seven goals and three assists) in 2006, recording three match-winning tallies. Patano and junior forward Eduardo Garcia (three goals, two assists) are the only returnees among the Bulldogs' top six scorers last season, although junior midfielder David Giarratana (two goals and one assist) and sophomore defender Austin Evans made significant contributions in 2006, as each started 17 of the team's 20 contests.
Detroit, which won the regular-season League title in 2005, also tries to return to the top half of the League standings after a 6-9-3 campaign that included a 2-5-0 loop mark. Junior forward Mark Djurovski likely will have to shoulder much of the scoring burden as the only returning Titan to score more than two points in 2006. Djurovski's 16-point total (sixth-best in the League) included seven goals and a pair of assists, but Detroit lost the firepower of midfielder Jason Massoglia (seven goals, four assists) as well as veteran goalkeeper Sasha Boskovic (five shutouts last fall). Sophomore Bryan Kloss is the heir apparent for that position in 2007.
Wright State won six of its first eight matches last season but a string of adversity relegated the Raiders to an 8-9-1 mark at the end of the year. Braden Fleak provided several highlights for the Raiders, however, garnering the circuit's Newcomer-of-the-Year award for his efforts. Fleak finished second in the nation among freshmen in scoring (13 goals and three assists for 29 points), a total which ranked behind only Okoampa on the League charts. Senior midfielder Tony Labudovski (nine goals in 2005) returns after sitting out most of 2006 as a medical redshirt, joining a cast that also includes junior Josh Grossman (four goals, six assists).
League newcomer Valparaiso endured a similar situation in 2006, starting the year at 5-2-0 before dropping eight of its final ten outings. The Crusaders enter their new conference with a new leader as former Notre Dame and Louisville assistant Mike Avery takes the reins of a program that features junior midfielder Paul Leitelt (four goals and three assists) and sophomore goalkeeper Ryan Schwartz, who set a Valpo freshman record with four shutouts in 2006.
This year's League Championship features a new format. The loop summit begins Friday, Nov. 9, when the fourth through sixth seeds host seeds 7-9. Play continues with second-round action on Nov. 11, with the No. 3 seed hosting the 6/7 winner and the higher-seeded team hosting a battle between the other first-round winners. The top two teams receive byes through the opening weekend, with the top seed hosting the semifinals (Friday, Nov. 16) and championship match (Sunday, Nov. 18), with the survivor earning an automatic ticket to the NCAA Championship.
