Hunt for Regular Season Crown Begins in Men's Soccer

Horizon League Men's Soccer Schedule

The first weekend of Horizon League play kicks off on Saturday, with four conference clashes beginning to sort out what at the moment is a crowded field at the top.

The lone Horizon League team not involved in a conference match this weekend is the one that presently sits at the top of the points ladder, UIC (4-1-2). After two thrilling 3-2 double overtime wins, the Flames find themselves back in the NSCAA regional rankings, occupying the No. 7 spot in the Great Lakes region. While the team is being recognized, Ivan Stanisavljevic picked up national honors after a 10-point weekend. The Horizon League Player of the Week, Stanisavljevic earned TopDrawerSoccer.com  and SoccerSvaings.com/Soccer News National Player of the Week accolades.

With a single match this weekend, UIC will become the second Horizon League team to play the University of Dayton in as many matches. Green Bay knocked off the Flyers, 2-1, in overtime of the Green Bay Soccer Classic.

Green Bay (3-2-1) remains at Santaga Stadium this weekend, hosting Loyola (1-5-1) at 8 p.m. ET in a rematch of last year's League semifinals, where a first-half penalty kick helped the Phoenix on to its second straight League championship match. For first-year head coach Kris Kelderman, returning to Green Bay has provided him an opportunity to return to his roots; Kelderman's father has helped build up soccer in the state of Wisconsin over a 30-year high school coaching career.

On the field, the Phoenix have been led by senior Tony Walls, who has netted two goals while assisting on three others so far. The challenge for Green Bay will be in beating Loyola keeper Peter McGowan, who has made 18 saves in five starts this season. The Ramblers are still waiting for their attack to find its rhythm, but after going 0-7-1 in non-conference play and earning the League's No. 3 seed with a 4-3-1 conference mark, Loyola is confident as it heads into the weekend. In their last match, the Ramblers went toe-to-toe with No. 18 Bradley, knotting the match at 1 before a goal in later stages sent the Braves to the 2-1 home victory. Green Bay tied Bradley, 1-1, earlier in the year.

In the first League match on Saturday, Wright State (4-2-1) looks to build on an impressive start to the season, while Detroit (3-4-0) is attempting to stop a three-match losing skid. The Raiders are one of four teams receiving votes in the Great Lakes region, and the play of freshman keeper Craig Feehan has been a major reason why WSU has already equaled its wins total from 2010.

Feehan leads the Horizon League with a .848 save percentage and 0.69 goals against average through the year's first seven matches. Offensively, a balanced attack has three players - Justin Laird, Bryce Rockwell-Ashton, Derek Zuniga - with five or more points.

Over the last three matches, Detroit has allowed an average of 3.33 goals per contest, surrendering four apiece in identical 4-1 home losses to Michigan and Bowling Green. Injuries have been the main culprit for the Titans' struggles, as five starters - Ya Ya Toure, Nate Robinson, Jeremy Stoychoff, Mike Chiandussi and Kevin Pinkos - all missed Wednesday's clash with BGSU.

At the Butler Bowl, Butler (4-2-1) will open defense of its back-to-back regular season crowns when a hard-luck Milwaukee (3-4-0) squad visits Indianapolis for a 5 p.m. ET match on Saturday.  The Bulldogs were tabbed the League's preseason favorite, while the Panthers collected a first-place vote in finishing third in the preseason poll. After a 4-0 setback to No. 7 Louisville, Butler bounced back with a midweek victory over host IPFW. After a stretch of six straight matches away from the Butler Bowl, the Bulldogs are excited to be back and potentially be breaking in the new lights at the Bowl.

The Panthers will be looking to rid itself of some scar tissue from two difficult defeats at the UAB Soccer for a Cure Classic last weekend. Milwaukee suffered a pair of heartbreaking 2-1 losses to Gardner-Webb and UAB, dropping both matches despite holding leads of 1-0 in the 86th minute of each game. For Milwaukee, the objective seems simple: score two goals. The Panthers are 3-0 on the year when doing so.

Two of the League's top keepers will be on display at 7 p.m. ET from Krenzler Field when Valparaiso (3-3-1) heads to Cleveland State (2-5-0) on Saturday. Kyle Zobeck inherited the job from two-time League Goalkeeper of the Year Ryan Schwarz at Valpo and has not missed a beat, turning in a 0.83 GAA and recording 19 saves on the year.

Across the field from Zobeck will be the defending League Keeper of the Year, Brad Stuver. After allowing five goals in his first match of the year, Stuver has gotten sharper with each match, allowing two or fewer goals in each match before getting a night off in Wednesday's 2-1 setback to Robert Morris.

Fans can watch both the Milwaukee-Butler and Valpo-Cleveland State matches live and free on the Horizon League Network.