Grant Fernstrum wins NCAA men's soccer goals-against national championship
Dec. 20, 2005
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INDIANAPOLIS -- In terms of the Horizon League, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee finished the 2005 men's soccer season in a familiar spot, at the top of the League ladder as champion of the circuit. Freshman goalkeeper Grant Fernstrum took that position to a new level, though, by claiming the national statistical championship for goals-against average.
Fernstrum posted a 10-2-4 ledger, allowing only eight goals in 1544:33 of action for a 0.466 goals-against mark which topped the final statistical standings released by the NCAA on Monday (Dec. 19). His line included two of the longest scoreless streaks in UW-Milwaukee's storied history as he held opponents off the scoresheet for 584:48 with five consecutive shutouts in one stretch and 468:35 featuring five more clean sheets in another run. The latter included three consecutive 1-0 victories in the Horizon League Championship as he was named the tournament Most Valuable Player, plus a 2-0 decision at Bradley University in the opening round of the NCAA Championships.
The Panther freshman took over the starting role near the midway point of the regular season and paced the UW-Milwaukee defense's run to the Horizon League championship. The Panthers finished 14-4-5 overall and won their fourth consecutive League title. UWM then advanced to the second round of the NCAA Championship for the fifth year in a row before being eliminated in a penalty-kick shootout at the University of New Mexico.
Fernstrum is the first Horizon League men's soccer player to win a national statististical category since the NCAA began compiling weekly and yearly national leaders. He tied a school-record with ten shutouts in 16 appearances, anchoring the Panther defense which matched the school standard of 12 whitewashes this fall.
As a team, UW-Milwaukee ranked 18th with a 0.74 goals-against average as senior Eric Mickschl added two shutouts in his stint in the Panther goal. UW-Milwaukee tied the University of North Carolina-Greensboro (16-6-1) and Creighton University (15-5-3) for the 15th-best winning percentage in Division I, posting a .717 rate.
On an individual basis, Butler University senior Frank Peabody finished 19th in the final GAA rankings with a 0.727 rate, while Cleveland State University freshman netminder Anthony DeMarco ranked eighth with an average of 6.18 saves per contest.
DeMarco's total of 105 stops helped garner Second-Team All-League honors.Campbell University sophomore Willy Guadarrama topped the nation in both goals per game (1.05) and points per contest (2.30), hitting the net 21 times with four assists for 46 points. Central Connecticut State University senior Jorden Holder slipped into the top spot on the assist charts with a rate of 0.76 per game (13 in 17 appearances). Among goalkeepers, Centenary University sophomore Donnie Henderson posted a nation-leading 7.19 saves per outing with San Diego State University junior Tally Hall compiling the top save percentage in Division I at .889 (80 saves with 10 goals allowed). Fernstrum matched that percentage with 64 saves and eight goals allowed but did not meet the NCAA's minimum requirement of 75 percent of the team's minutes played.
The University of Akron led the nation at both ends of the field, averaging 2.96 goals per match while posting a 0.50 goals-against average. The Zips were ranked No. 1 in the naion for much of the regular season before falling to eventual champion University of Maryland in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship. Akron finished with an 18-1-4 ledger for an .870 winning percentage, with Hall's work helping SDSU register Division I's top save percentage at .879.
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