Men's Soccer Weekly Release #10

Oct. 23, 2006

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Pavle Dundjer, UIC
Junior * Midfielder * Belgrade, Serbia
Dundjer paced the UIC attack scoring three goals in two critical League matches to propel the Flames to their first regular-season League championship since 2000. The junior midfielder hit the net in UIC's 1-1 tie versus cross-town rival Loyola on Friday, and struck twice to guide UIC past UW-Green Bay 2-0 in a showdown for the top spot on Sunday.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending October 22

Matt Soldato, Butler
Sr. * M * Darien, Ill.
Soldato scored one goal and assisted on another in Butler's 3-1 victory over cross-town rival IUPUI on Wednesday. His marker in the 11th minute tied the match and he set up an insurance tally early in the second half.

George Kephart, Cleveland State
Fr. * F * Parma, Ohio
Kephart netted the match-winner in overtime at Wright State on Friday, giving CSU the fifth seed for the League Championship. He also registered an insurance goal in Wednesday's 2-0 victory over Detroit.

Mark Djurovski, Detroit
Jr. * F * Shelby Township, Mich.
Djurovski scored a pair of goals in Sunday's 2-2 tie versus local rival Oakland. In the process, he took over the team lead with seven goals this season, and is tied for team honors with 16 points.

Matt Marek, Loyola
Sr. * F * Fox River Grove, Ill.
Marek tallied his fifth goal of the season midway through the first half to give Loyola a 1-1 tie versus UIC on Friday night. Marek now leads the Ramblers with 13 points (five goals plus three assists) this season.

Ryan Germann, UW-Milwaukee
So. * GK * Madison, Wis.
Germann posted back-to-back 1-0 shutouts versus UW-Green Bay and Loyola, stopping 11 shots to remain perfect in four starts. He has yet to allow a goal in 359 minutes of play, leading the Panthers to a four-match winning streak.

Josh Grossman, Wright State
So. * F * Westlake, Ohio
Grossman registered two goals and an assist in two matches last week. He had the lone Raider goal in a 2-1 loss to Cleveland State on Friday, then set up the tying goal and scored the match-winner versus Eastern Illinois on Sunday.

Previous Players of the Week:
Aug. 28 -- Tonci Skroce, UIC
Sept. 4 -- Grant Fernstrum, UW-Milwaukee
Sept. 11 -- Eric Cervantes, UIC
Sept. 18 -- Jason Massoglia, Detroit
Sept. 25 -- Eric Cervantes, UIC
Oct. 2 -- Joshua Okoampa, UW-Green Bay
Oct. 9 -- Alex Jones, Loyola
Oct. 16 -- Braden Fleak, Wright State

Horizon League Announces Brackets for Men's Soccer Championship

INDIANAPOLIS -- An automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament is on the line as eight teams compete for the 2006 Horizon League Men's Soccer Championship, which begins with quarterfinal-round action at campus sites Saturday (Oct. 28).

The University of Illinois at Chicago earned the top seed after clinching its first regular-season League title since 2000. The Flames' 2-0 victory over the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay in Sunday's (Oct. 22) regular-season finale lifted UIC to the top of the standings with a 5-1-1 League record as part of a 12-2-3 overall ledger. UIC has been ranked among the nation's top 25 teams for nearly the entire season, including a No. 13 status in this week's Soccer America poll.

The Flames, who rank among the nation's top defensive teams after allowing only seven goals in 17 matches this year, will host No. 8 seed Wright State University (8-9-0, 1-6-0) at 8 p.m. (EDT / 7 p.m. CDT) in Saturday's quarterfinal round. The Raiders took UIC to overtime before falling 2-1 in Dayton, Ohio, on Oct. 13.

UW-Green Bay (11-5-0, 5-2-0) owns the tournament's No. 2 seed and will defend their home turf against seventh-seeded University of Detroit Mercy (6-8-3, 2-5-0) at 2 p.m. (EDT / 1 p.m. CDT). The Phoenix, which boasts the League's most prolific offense (36 goals), had won six consecutive matches before closing the regular season with shutout losses against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (1-0 on Wednesday) and UIC. Detroit is 1-6-3 in its last ten outings, including a 3-0 setback to the Phoenix at UDM's Titan Field on Sept. 29.

UW-Milwaukee claimed the No. 3 seed, posting a 1-0 victory over Loyola University Chicago on Sunday to finish the regular season at 4-2-1 in League play. The Panthers carry a four-match winning streak into the tournament, improving to 8-8-2 overall including a six-match (5-0-1) unbeaten run since Oct. 6. UWM puts that streak on the line Saturday versus sixth-seeded Butler University (6-9-2, 2-4-1) in a re-match of the teams' 2-2 tie in Milwaukee on Oct. 8. That match is scheduled for 8 p.m. (EDT / 7 p.m. CDT) at Engelmann Field.

The final quarterfinal pairing pits fourth seed Loyola against No. 5 seed Cleveland State University at 2 p.m. (EDT / 1 p.m. CDT). The Ramblers matched UW-Milwaukee's 4-2-1 loop ledger (as part of the Ramblers' 9-7-1 overall mark) but lost the head-to-head tie-breaker, dropping LU into Saturday's meeting against the Vikings (6-9-2, 3-4-0), who started at least seven freshmen in every match this year while rebounding from last fall's 0-17-1 campaign. Loyola boasts a pair of highly-touted freshmen as well, as the Ramblers look to reach the ten-victory plateau for only the second time since 1996. Loyola posted a 1-0 victory over CSU in Cleveland on Sept. 24.

The highest seed remaining after the quarterfinal round earns the right to host the remainder of the tournament the following weekend. Semifinals are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 3, with the League champion crowned on Sunday, Nov. 5. That team receives the League's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament, which begins Nov. 10 at campus sites. The 2006 NCAA Men's College Cup is slated for Dec. 1 and 3 at Robert R. Hermann Stadium in St. Louis, Mo.

UW-Milwaukee has won the last four League Championships, defeating regular-season champion Detroit 1-0 in the final match last year when the Panthers entered the League summit as the second seed. The top seed has won six of the last eight League Championships.

For more information regarding the Horizon League Men's Soccer Championship, log on to the Horizon League web site at www.horizonleague.org.

News From Around the League

Flames claim regular-season title, top seed
UIC won the Horizon League regular-season championship for the first time since 2000, defeating UW-Green Bay 2-0 in Sunday's finale to improve to 5-1-1 in the League. The Flames carry the top seed and a 12-2-3 overall record into the League Championship quarterfinals versus Wright State on Saturday.

The 12 victories match the most by a Flame team since that 2000 campaign, when UIC won 18 matches. With their tenth shutout of the year, the Flames matched a single-season school record set by that same team. Freshman Jovan Bubonja extended his individual record with his eighth solo whitewash of the year, lowering his season goals-against average to a League-low 0.41.

Junior Pavle Dundjer scored all three Flame goals last week (including one in Friday's 1-1 tie versus Loyola), giving him seven for the season. He is tied with senior Tonci Skroce for the team lead in that category, with Skroce adding seven assists for a club-high 20 points. Senior Eric Cervantes adds six goals and 13 points for the year.

Two of Skroce's helpers were critical last week as the senior set up the lone Flame strike versus Loyola and the insurance marker against UW-Green Bay.

UIC has out-scored its opponents 27-7 this year, including 18-2 after intermission.

Phoenix sees hopes fade
UW-Green Bay owns the second seed for the League Championship, despite losing a pair of matches last week. After entering the week as one of the nation's most prolific offenses, the Phoenix suffered back-to-back shutout losses to UW-Milwaukee (1-0 on Wednesday) and at UIC (2-0 on Sunday). UW-Green Bay (11-5-0 overall, 5-2-0 in the League) wraps up the regular season Wednesday, taking on in-state rival Wisconsin at Madison.

UWGB had not been shut out twice in a row since the last week of the 2005 campaign, when IUPUI and Wisconsin accomplished the feat.

Even with the scoring drought, the Phoenix still leads the League with a total of 36 goals---a rate of 2.25 per outing.

Senior forward Joshua Okoampa remains atop the League statistical charts with 13 goals and 32 points, while sophomore forward Tosaint Ricketts is tied for sixth with a total of 15 points. Junior midfielder Dan O'Brien adds two goals and four helpers for eight points, while senior goalkeeper Josh Loyd boasts a 1.26 goals-against average and three shutouts.

The No. 2 seed is UWGB's best since winning the League's regular-season crown in 1994. The Phoenix claimed the third seed in 2000, only to lose to UIC (3-1) in the title match of that year's League summit, and had been fifth or lower in every year since.

Panthers rolling into League Championship
UW-Milwaukee comes into the tournament on a roll, riding a League-leading four-match winning streak which includes 1-0 shutouts over UW-Green Bay (Wednesday) and Loyola (Sunday) last week. With the recent run of success, the Ramblers are back to .500 overall (8-8-2) for the first time since Sept. 3, when the team was 2-2-0. The Panthers are also 5-0-1 since losing 1-0 at UIC on Oct. 3.

The defense has led the way for UWM, posting four clean sheets in that six-match stretch. Sophomore goalkeeper Ryan Germann boasts a 4-0-0 record and has not allowed a goal since taking over the starting role, posting a scoreless streak of 358:39 with 18 saves and three shutouts.

UWM has played eight 1-0 matches this year, going 3-5 in those contests.

The victories last week earned the Panthers a first-round home date for the League Championship, where UWM hosts Butler at Engelmann Field. UW-Milwaukee owns a 7-1-1 record at the facility this year, and had not won a match away from home until Sunday's regular-season finale at Loyola.

Senior midfielder Craig Mallace remains atop the team scoring charts with three goals and five assists for 11 points, with sophomore Colin Baker adding four goals and one assists for nine points.

Ramblers come up short at the end
Loyola slipped to the fourth seed for the League Championship, wrapping up the regular season at 9-7-1 overall and 4-2-1 with a 1-1 tie versus UIC on Friday and a 1-0 loss to UW-Milwaukee on Sunday.

The Ramblers are 0-3-1 in their last four outings but still earned a first-round home match for the first time in the three years of the current tournament format. The Ramblers were the second seed that year, finishing that season at 11-8-1---the school's only double-digit win victory total since 1996, although LU can reach the 10-win plateau by defeating Cleveland State on Saturday.

Sunday's shutout loss was Loyola's first to a League foe this season and only the third time Loyola has failed to hit the net this year. The Ramblers have eight shutouts of their own.

Junior midfielder Keum Sung Kim registered his team-high sixth assist of the year in Friday's tie. He is tied for second in the League in that category, while senior forward Matt Marek moved into a tie for ninth place with his 13 points (five goals and three assists). Freshman forward Alex Jones has five goals and two helpers for 12 points.

Senior goalkeeper Sean Bond ranks second in the League with a 0.78 goals-against average and ranks second in the circuit with seven shutouts this season.

Vikings continue to measure progress
Cleveland State claimed the fifth seed for the League Championship, defeating Detroit (2-0 on Wednesday) and Wright State (2-1 in overtime on Friday) to finish 3-4-0 in the circuit and 6-9-2 overall. The three loop victories are more than the last three years combined (2-18-1), while the six-win total is the school's best since posting a 6-13-1 ledger in 2003. If the Vikings defeat Loyola on Saturday, it would give CSU its best showing since a 10-11-0 mark in 2002.

The Vikings have scored 23 goals while allowing 28 this season, a dramatic improvement from the 2005 campaign when CSU yielding 65 goals and managed only 17. This year's group has actually out-scored its opponents 13-11 after halftime, compared to a 36-5 disadvantage last season.

Senior David Stewart leads the team with six goals and 12 points, but a group of newcomers has fueled the resurgeance. Freshman George Kephart owns five goals and 11 points, with fellow freshman Andrew Gutting at two goals and six assists, tying for second in the League in the latter category.

Bulldogs win city bragging rights, face IU
Butler won its only match of the week, claiming a 3-1 victory over cross-town rival IUPUI to move to 6-9-2 on the season prior to Tuesday's home match versus #9/6 Indiana. The Bulldogs are the sixth seed in the League Championship, based on a 2-4-1 loop ledger, and travel to UW-Milwaukee in a re-match of their earlier 2-2 tie.

Senior Matt Soldato netted his first goal of the season against IUPUI, hitting the net with a free kick into the top corner of the net to tie the match at 1-1. Soldato entered the match with only two points---both on assists---for the year, but also set up the insurance goal to finish with three points on the day.

Sophomore Frank Patano leads the Bulldogs with 15 points (seven goals, one assist) for the season. Senior John DeVae is next on the BU charts with 11 points, off five goals along with one assist.

Senior Frank Peabody is the only League goalkeeper to play every minute of the season. Peabody has logged 1605 minutes in the Bulldog nets, stopping 52 shots while compiling a 1.35 goals-against average with four shutouts in 2006.

Titans hoping to repeat history
Detroit won the regular-season League title in 2005 but enters the 2006 summit as the No. 7 seed at 2-5-0 in loop play and 6-8-3 overall after losing 2-0 to Cleveland State on Wednesday and tying Oakland 2-2 in non-conference action on Sunday.

The Titans have won only one of their past ten matches since Sept. 20 (including a 3-0 loss to first-round opponent UW-Green Bay on Sept. 29), but Detroit has ousted the Phoenix in both prior League Championship meetings.

Junior Mark Djurovski scored both UDM goals versus Oakland, taking over the team lead with seven this season. Djurovski also has two assists, and is tied with Jason Massoglia (six goals, four helpers) with 16 points to pace the Titans in scoring. If Djurovski finishes as the team's goal-scoring leader, he would be the first newcomer to do so since George Kithas in 2001.

Junior Sasha Boskovic was forced to leave Sunday's match after a collision in front of the Titan goal. Boskovic has started all 57 games played by UDM in the last three years and owns a 1.52 GAA with five shutouts in 2006.

Raiders rally for victory in season finale
Wright State stands at 9-8-0 overall (1-6-0 in the League), drawing the eighth seed for the loop summit. The Raiders gained some momentum heading into its match at top-seeded UIC, however, overcoming a 1-0 deficit to defeat Eastern Illinois 2-1 on Sunday. That victory followed a 2-1 overtime loss to Cleveland State on Friday.

Sophomore Josh Grossman and freshman Braden Fleak combined to lead the Raiders past EIU, as Grossman netted the match-winner to cap a week which featured two goals and an assist. Fleak also hit the net Sunday, giving him 13 markers for the season. Fleak is tied with UW-Green Bay's Joshua Okoampa for the League lead in that category, and ranks second with his 29 points (including three assists). Fleak's 13 goals are the most by a WSU freshman since the school moved to Division I prior to the 1987 campaign, and tie him for ninth place on WSU's single-season charts.

Junior goalkeeper Tebias Mason leads the League with 97 saves this season, the fifth-best one-year total in school history. Dan Cwiklik is next on that list with 107 stops in 1996. Mason has compiled a 1.80 goals-against average with two shutouts.

Valpo on verge of school history
Valparaiso, which officially joins the Horizon League next season, remains stuck on seven victories, losing to Michigan State (2-0) and UMKC (2-1) last week to fall to 7-8-0 on the season.

The seven victories are Valpo's most since 1998 when the team finished at 8-12-1. The Crusaders, who have dropped three matches in a row, still need two more wins to tie the school single-season record of nine, set in 1987.

Senior forward D.J. Catrow remains the team's top scorer with five goals and 13 poitns. Sophomore midfielder Paul Leitelt has four goals and three helpers for 11 points, with senior midfielder Jeremy Stacy contributing ten points off three goals and four set-ups.