Men's Soccer Weekly Release #5

Sept. 18, 2006

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Jason Massoglia, Detroit
Senior * Defender * Troy, Mich.
Massoglia scored three goals in UDM's two matches last weekend, including once in the Titans' 2-1 victory over defending League champion UW-Milwaukee on Friday and twice in a 4-0 triumph over Centenary on Sunday. He also recorded the first two assists of his career--- including the match-winner versus UWM---playing a role in five of Detroit's six goals during a 2-0-0 week.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending September 17

Frank Patano, Butler
So. * F * Franklin Park, Ill.
Patano scored one goal and assisted on another in Butler's 3-2 loss at Xavier on Wednesday. He leads the Bulldogs with five goals and 11 points for the season. The point total is more than twice as many as any other Bulldog.

David Stewart, Cleveland State
Sr. * F * Ingleside, Texas
Stewart scored a pair of goals---including the match-winner--- to lead CSU past Valparaiso 2-1. He also had a goal in the first half of the Vikings' 4-3 loss to Niagara. Those three markers put him at the top of the team charts for the season.

Brodey Simkins, UIC
Sr. * F * Bozeman, Mont.
Simkins scored two goals and set the stage for another as UIC remained unbeaten with two victories last week. He was fouled in the box to set up the PK which lifted the Flames past Florida International 1-0 and scored twice in a four-minute span to propel UIC past Florida Atlantic, 5-0.

Sean Bond, Loyola
Sr. * GK * Dallas, Texas
Bond posted a pair of shutouts in victories at Xavier (1-0 in overtime) and versus Western Michigan (2-0). He is now 5-1-0 this season with four shutouts, and has not allowed a goal in 295 minutes of action since Sept. 6.

Joshua Okoampa, UW-Green Bay
Sr. * F * Brooklyn Park, Minn.
Okoampa tied a Horizon League record with four goals in UW-Green Bay's 9-2 rout of IPFW on Monday. He scored twice in each half to become the 11th player in loop history to hit the net four times in one contest. He now leads the League with eight goals and 18 points this season.

Craig Mallace, UW-Milwaukee
Sr. * D * Torphichen, Scotland
Mallace started the Panthers' rally in a 3-2 victory over cross-town rival Marquette, netting UWM's first goal and setting up the equalizer. He added another assist in Friday's match at Detroit, giving him four points for the week.

Braden Fleak, Wright State
Fr. * F * Sunbury, Ohio
Fleak continued his torrid scoring pace, scoring the match-winner and adding an assist in a 4-1 victory at Bowling Green on Sunday. He leads the team with seven goals in seven outings this fall, including one in each of his last three contests.

News From Around the League

Titans shake off rust quickly, down UWM
Detroit posted a pair of victories, climbing to 4-2-0 overall and into a share of the League lead at 1-0-0. Senior defender Jason Massoglia had a goal and an assist in Friday's 2-1 victory over UW-Milwaukee---a re-match of last year's League Championship match---and added two goals plus a helper in Sunday's 4-0 rout of Centenary.

The two helpers were the first of Massoglia's career, adding to a stat line which also includes 20 goals in a Titan uniform. He shares the team scoring lead with junior forward Mark Djurovski (four goals, ten points apiece).

Senior midfielder Kyle Gianotti became an instant hero with his match-winning goal versus UW-Milwaukee. He came off the bench midway through the second half and needed only 33 seconds to hit the deciding tally, the first goal of his career.

Junior goalkeeper Sasha Boskovic registered his 16th career shutout versus Centenary. That puts him second on the all-time Titan list, trailing only Kal Kaliszewski (20 from 1994-97) in Detroit history.

Detroit had been idle for 12 days prior to the UW-Milwaukee match, which was the team's first action since Sept. 3. UDM's four-goal outburst Sunday was the team's highest production since scoring four goals versus Oakland on Oct. 31, 2004.

Phoenix testing Santaga scoreboard's limits
UW-Green Bay won two of three matches in its three-date homestand, improving to 5-3-0 on the season. The Phoenix routed IPFW 9-2 on Monday and edged Sacred Heart 2-1 in overtime Saturday before falling 3-0 to Eastern Illinois in Sunday's finale of the Nike Classic.

Senior forward Joshua Okoampa matched the Horizon League single-match record with four goals versus IPFW, hitting the net twice in each half. The two-time First-Team All-League pick now tops the League scoring charts with eight goals and 18 points on the season after registering the program's first four-goal effort since 1983.

The team's nine goals against IPFW represent the highest single-game total in Division I this year. Nine different players had at least one point in the contest, and the Phoenix now has 22 goals for the year, the most in the Horizon League. Sophomore forward Tosaint Ricketts has four of those markers.

Eleven different players have scored at least one goal for UWGB this year, including sophomore forward Ray Hibbler's OT strike to defeat Sacred Heart.

UW-Green Bay has only one match this week, a Friday night contest at Ohio State. That outing provides a reunion of sorts, with former Phoenix goalkeeper Jon Lowery (1995) now serving as an assistant coach for the Buckeyes.

Flames slip through Florida with two wins
UIC begins the week at 6-0-2 after defeating Florida International 1-0 on Friday and posting a 5-0 triumph at Florida Atlantic on Sunday. The Flames---ranked 18th last week by the NSCAA and 11th by Soccer America---continued the best start in school history with the eight-match unbeaten run.

UIC is also one of only 11 remaining unbeaten teams in Division I. The Flames put that mark and the highest national ranking in school history on the line Sunday when they visit Detroit.

Senior forward Tonci Skroce's game-winning PK conversion against FIU was his third match-winner of the year and his eighth in the last two seasons. Skroce and junior midfielder Cesar Zambrano share the team scoring lead with four goals and nine points apiece. Zambrano is already approaching his previous career-high of 12 points in a season.

Freshman goalkeeper Jovan Bubonja lowered his season goals-against average to 0.39 with 135 minutes of scoreless play. He has not allowed a goal in his last 199 minutes of action as the Flames have out-scored opponents by a total of 15-3 on the season. UIC holds an 11-1 scoring cushion after halftime, including a 9-0 tally after the 60th minute. UIC has been tied at halftime five times and trailed once at the break but remains undefeated in 2006.

Fleak flying high for Raiders
Wright State won its third consecutive match, defeating in-state rival Bowling Green 4-1 to move to 5-2-0 overall. Wright State has now posted two or more goals in five consecutive outings, and out-scored its opponents 10-5 in the current three-match run.

Freshman forward Braden Fleak leads the high-flying Raider attack, scoring his seventh goal of the year at BGSU. Fleak has seven markers and 16 points in seven outings this season, and has been held off the scoresheet only once so far. Only UW-Green Bay's Joshua Okoampa (eight goals, 18 points) has been more productive among Horizon League players so far this season.

Four of Fleak's teammates have added to the scoring pace, with fellow freshman Adam Harp hitting the net three times and sophomore forward Josh Grossman, sophomore Michael Conley and senior Jonah Baskin each providing two goals. That scoring punch has made work a lot easier for junior goalkeeper Tebias Mason, who owns a 1.43 GAA and two shutouts.

The Bowling Green match was the sixth stop on a seven-match swing away from home---a run which ends Friday versus cross-town rival Dayton. The Raiders opened the season by splitting two contests at its own adidas Cup, but won't return home until Sunday's match-up with Butler to begin the Horizon League schedule.

Ramblers race to two more wins
Loyola begins the week riding a four-match winning streak following shutout victories over Xavier (1-0 in overtime Friday) and Western Michigan (2-0 Sunday). The Ramblers are now 5-3-0 overall after an 0-2-0 start to the year.

Defense has been the key for Loyola, which has not allowed a goal in the last 294:59 of play. LUC has recorded three consecutive shutouts (including 3-0 versus Eastern Illinois on Sept. 10) and has not allowed a goal since the second half versus Buffalo on Sept. 8.

Senior goalkeeper Sean Bond is 5-1-0 with four shutouts and a stellar 0.66 goals-against average since taking over the starting role. Bond had one shutout in his first three seasons at Loyola but has anchored a defensive group which has yielded only eight goals in eight matches this year.

Freshman forward Michael Ferguson netted his second match-winner of the year with the overtime strike at Xavier, while senior Matt Marek hit the eventual match-winner versus Western Michigan. Ferguson and Marek share the team scoring lead with three goals apiece, matching the total of freshman Alex Jones.

Bulldogs' slide continues
Butler is at the opposite end of the spectrum, losing its fourth in a row by a 3-2 count at Xavier on Wednesday. The Bulldogs currently stand at 2-4-1 overall entering Wednesday night's match versus Ohio State at the Butler Bowl.

Freshman forward Dorshon Deans scored the first goal of his collegiate career against XU, hitting the net in the final minute off a pass from sophomore forward Frank Patano to provide the final score.

Patano leads the team with five goals and that one assist for 11 points, more than twice as many as any other Bulldog. Sophomores Eduardo Garcia and Danny Akl are next in line with two goals and one assist apiece.

The Bulldogs have been outscored 10-4 during the current four-match skid despite the efforts of senior goalkeeper Frank Peabody. The veteran netminder has played every minute in goal thus far in 2006, stopping 21 shots in compiling a 1.41 goals-against average with two shutouts.

Butler's eight matches have featured a total of 24 goals, with eight of those coming after the 75th minute.

Vikings end drought
Cleveland State snapped a four-match losing streak with Sunday's come-from-behind, 2-1 victory at Valparaiso. Senior forward David Stewart scored both Viking goals following his first marker of the year in Wednesday's 4-3 loss to Niagara. CSU had managed only one goal in the previous four matches before that contest.

Stewart's big week puts him atop the team charts with those three goals, while freshman Andrew Gutting has a CSU-best eight points (one goals plus a League-leading six assists).

Sophomore netminder Kasey Gray posted a season-high seven saves against Valparaiso, keeping his season goals-aainst average at 1.00. Gray's predecessor Anthony DeMarco was called on to make 10 or more stops in three separate contests last year, another sign of the improvement in Ali Kazemaini's first season as Viking coach.

Eight freshman drew starting nods Sunday at Valparaiso. The Viking roster features a total of 11 freshman, with at least seven opening each contest so far in 2006.

CSU has now outscored opponents 7-3 in the second half of matches this year.

Panthers drop League opener
UW-Milwaukee slipped to 3-5-0 overall following a 2-1 loss at Detroit on Friday, a re-match of last year's League Championship showdown. The margin was UWM's fourth one-goal defeat of the season.

Senior defender Craig Mallace was scoreless in the first six matches of the year but had a goal and two assists in two contests last week. He scored once and set up another goal in a 3-2 victory over Marquette on Wednesday, as the Panthers rallied from a 2-0 deficit to the team led by defeat former coach Louis Bennett. That was also the first official night match at Engelmann Field, with a facility-record 3,256 fans on hand to watch UWM retain the Milwaukee Cup.

UW-Milwaukee has allowed 11 goals this year, with ten of them coming on opponent corner kicks or free kicks. Both of Detroit's goals Friday were scored on set pieces.

Senior defender Billy Meier's goal against the Titans was the first of his career which encompasses 56 appearances over the past four years. Meier became the ninth Panther to score a goal in 2006 and the 14th to record a point.

Valpo beats current loop foe, falls to future one
Valparaiso, which officially joins the Horizon League in 2007, split two matches to move to 5-3-0 on the season. The Crusaders opened Mid-Continent Conference play with a 2-0 victory over Oral Roberts on Friday before suffering a 2-1 loss to Cleveland State on Sunday.

Freshman goalkeeper Ryan Schwarz posted his third shutout of the year with seven saves versus ORU. He has played every minute for Valpo, compiling a 1.96 goals-against mark.

Senior midfielder Jeremy Stacy scored his first goal in two years against Oral Roberts, and set up the lone Valpo strike against CSU. Senior D.J. Catrow added two assists versus ORU, taking over the team with 11 points (four goals, three helpers) this season.

Valpo is 3-0-0 on Fridays and 1-0-0 on Saturday this year but 1-2-0 on Sundays and 0-1-0 on Monday in 2006.