Men's Soccer Weekly Release #8

Oct. 15, 2007

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Michael Ferguson, Loyola
Sophomore * Forward * Overland Park, Kan.
Ferguson won the award for the second time this season after scoring all four Rambler goals in a pair of victories. He recorded his second hat trick of the year in Friday's 3-0 triumph over Wright State and netted the match-winner as Loyola edged Butler 1-0 on Sunday. Ferguson leads the League with 12 goals and 25 points this season.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending October 14

Fabian Knopfler, Butler
So. * GK * Reutlingen, Germany
Knopfler posted five saves and allowed only one goal in two matches over the weekend. He helped the Bulldogs claim a scoreless tie versus UIC on Friday for his second shutout of the season.

George Kephart, Cleveland State
So. * F * Parma, Ohio
Kephart posted the lone Viking goal in a 2-1 loss at Milwaukee on Sunday. His second goal of the year snapped a 207-minute scoreless streak for the Vikings and put Kephart atop the team goal charts for the season.

Adam Stikl, Green Bay
Jr. * GK * Milwaukee, Wis.
Stikl extended his scoreless streak to 310 minutes with his sixth and seventh shutouts of the year. He had two saves in a 1-0 victory over Cleveland State on Friday and turned away three shots in Sunday's scoreless draw with Detroit.

Ryan Germann, Milwaukee
Jr. * GK * Madison, Wis.
Germann posted his third shutout of the year to give the Panthers a 1-0 victory over Detroit on Friday. He then registered seven saves---including one in the 90th minute---in Sunday's 2-1 triumph over Cleveland State.

Cesar Zambrano, UIC
Sr. * F * Chicago, Ill.
Zambrano scored two goals and set up another in the Flames' 4-1 victory over Wright State on Sunday. Both goals came in a six-minute span of the second half as the Flames pulled away from a scoreless tie at halftime.

Clifton Brown, Valparaiso
Jr. * M * Chillicothe, Ohio
Brown scored the tying goal in the 66th minute against Western Michigan on Tuesday in the Crusaders' only match of the week. The goal was his first in the last two years after Brown hit the net four times as a freshman.

Brian Decker, Wright State
Sr. * F * Wadsworth, Ohio
Decker scored his first goal of the season Sunday, hitting the net in the 87th minute of a 4-1 loss at UIC. The goal was his first in three seasons and the second of his career.

Previous Player-of-the-Week Honorees:
Sept. 3 -- Frank Patano, Butler
Sept. 10 -- Nick Harpel, Cleveland State
Sept. 17 -- Dan O'Brien, Green Bay
Sept. 24 -- Michael Ferguson, Loyola
Oct. 1 -- JC Banks, Green Bay
Oct. 8 -- Ryan Germann, Milwaukee

News From Around the League

Panthers keep riding streak
Two weeks ago, Milwaukee entered October without a victory. Now, the Panthers stand atop the League standings at 4-0-1 after a 1-0 victory over Detroit on Friday and a 2-1 triumph over Cleveland State on Sunday. UWM is 4-8-2 overall and riding a six-match unbeaten streak that also includes a 1-1 tie versus Wisconsin on Wednesday.

Senior midfielder Zeke Dombrowski set up the Panther goals versus Wisconsin and Detroit, giving him 11 points (four goals and three helpers) this season to rank fourth on the League scoring charts. Junior forward Colin Baker notched his first career match-winner versus the Titans, with senior midfielder Martin Castro providing the difference on Sunday. Baker ranks second on the team with three goals and six points, while Castro's goal was his first of the season.

Sophomore goalkeeper Grant Fernstrum saw his first action since Sept. 7 when he drew the start against Wisconsin. Fernstrum responded with 11 saves, the most by a Horizon League netminder this year.

Junior goalkeeper Ryan Germann notched his third shutout of the year versus UDM, lowering his season goals-against average to 1.15.

The Panthers put their unbeaten streak on the line Thursday when Loyola comes to Engelmann Field. Milwaukee travels south to face UIC on Sunday.

Phoenix doing everything but losing
Green Bay pushed its undefeated streak to 11 matches with a 1-0 victory over Cleveland State on Friday and a scoreless draw with Detroit on Sunday. Green Bay's 7-0-4 run is the second-longest in program history, trailing only a 14-match streak that included ten consecutive shutouts in 1992.

The Phoenix stands at 8-2-4 overall (3-0-2 in League play) and has not lost a match since falling 2-0 to DePaul on Sept. 7. Green Bay is 7-0-0 when scoring first and 6-0 in one-goal matches this year.

Junior goalkeeper Adam Stikl has not allowed a goal in his last 310 minutes of action. Stikl posted his sixth and seventh of the season with five saves. He leads the League with those seven clean sheets and his 0.73 goals-against average would be the fourth-best mark in program history. Only UIC's Jovan Bubonja (0.63) carries a betther mark among League netminders this year.

Junior forward Mike McCormack netted the match-winner Friday, hitting the net for the first time this season.

Fellow junior Tosaint Ricketts ranks fourth on the League charts with four goals and eighth with nine points this season.

Green Bay closes a three-match homestand against UIC in a Thursday-night showdown before traveling to Loyola on Sunday.

Ramblers continue stingy ways
Loyola improved to 7-3-3 overall and 3-0-2 in League play with two victories last week, blanking Wright State 3-0 on Friday and Butler 1-0 on Sunday. The Ramblers have lost only once in their last ten outings and have not allowed a goal in their last 463:56 of play.

Junior goalkeeper Brian Byrne shares the League lead with seven shutouts after back-to-back clean sheets over the weekend. Byrne is now tied for second place on the school's single-season charts, with six of those clean sheets coming in the team's last seven outings. His efforts last week lowered his season goals-against average to 0.79 (third-best in the League).

Sophomore forward Michael Ferguson scored all four of Loyola's goals last week, posting his second hat trick of the year against Wright State. Ferguson is running away with the League scoring title, boasting 12 goals and 25 points for the season. The goal count is twice as many as any other player in the circuit, while his 25 points are 12 more than his nearest competitor. Ferguson is also the only League player to net a hat trick this year, accomplishing that feat twice.

Ferguson already ranks third on the Ramblers' all-time single-season charts.

Loyola attempts to remain undefeated in League play when the Ramblers visit Milwaukee on Thursday, prior to a home-field showdown Sunday against Green Bay.

Flames find the net, path to victory column
UIC remains unbeaten (1-0-3) in League play, climbing to 5-3-5 overall with a 4-1 victory over Wright State on Sunday following a scoreless draw with Butler on Friday.

The Flames broke a 358-minute scoring drought when freshman midfielder Charlie Trout hit the net in the first minute of the second half Sunday. Senior forward Cesar Zambrano scored two goals and set up another in the second-half barrage, giving UIC its second-highest output of the season. The Flames had scored only three goals in their previous six outings before Sunday.

Zambrano's five-point performance give him 13 points for the year, tying him for second place on the League scoring charts. He is also tied for third place with five goals.

Sophomore goalkeeper Jovan Bubonja tops the circuit with a 0.63 goals-against average. He notched his fifth shutout of the year against the Bulldogs.

The Flames have outshot their opponents 200-96 this season, including 66-25 in League play. UIC owned a 13-1 advantage in shots Friday but could not dent the net.

UIC is now undefeated in its last 14 home matches since the start of the 2006 campaign, and puts that mark on the line versus Milwaukee on Sunday. The Flames open the week Thursday at Green Bay.

Bulldogs still searching for goals
Butler carries a 4-6-4 overall record into the week, moving to 1-2-2 in the League following a scoreless draw at UIC on Sunday and a 1-0 loss at Loyola on Sunday.

The Bulldogs have been shut out in five of their last six matches, being outscored 9-2 and posting a 0-4-2 record during that span. Butler had scored 18 goals in its first eight matches.

Junior forward Frank Patano continues to lead the team with six goals and 13 points, ranking second in the League in both categories. However, only two of those goals have come in Butler's last 11 matches after he hit the net four times in the first three.

Sophomore forward Boris Gatzky is tied for the League lead with five assists, adding three goals for a total of 11 points to rank fourth on that League list.

The lack of scoring has placed added pressure on sophomore goalkeeper Fabian Knopfler and the Butler defense. Knopfler posted his second shutout of the year at UIC and lowered his season goals-against average to 1.44. He ranks fourth in the League with 51 saves this fall.

Butler travels to Cleveland State on Friday before returning home to face Detroit on Sunday. The Bulldogs have not won a home match in 2007, standing 0-3-1 as the home side this year.

Crusaders enjoying time off
Valparaiso slipped to 3-8-2 overall with a 2-1 loss at Western Michigan on Tuesday. That was the only match of the week for the Crusaders, who are in the middle of a 12-day break---the school's longest in-season idle period since 2001.

Junior midfielder Clifton Brown evened the match midway through the second half, hitting the net for the first time since 2005. Brown posted four goals as a freshman but did not score another one until the 66th minute at Kalamazoo.

Sophomore netminder Ryan Schwarz stopped four shots in a losing effort against WMU. Schwarz ranks third on the League charts with 60 saves this season while compiling a 1.89 goals-against average.

Nine different Crusaders have found the back of the net this year, but sophomore defender Steve Shively (three) is the only player with more than one goal for Valpo. Freshman midfielder Adrian Ortiz remains tied atop the League charts with five assists in 2007. As a team, Valpo has been outscored 23-11 this year.

Valpo returns to action Sunday, hosting Michigan State in its final non-League tuneup. The Crusaders close the regular season with three consecutive loop matches. Valpo's Oct. 28 contest at Wright State will mark the team's first League competition since Oct. 3.

Titans' scoring drought continues
Detroit stands at 4-6-5 on the year after battling Green Bay to a scoreless standoff Sunday. The Titans' 0-2-3 League ledger also includes a 1-0 loss at Milwaukee on Friday.

Sunday's draw was Detroit's fifth of the year, tying a League single-season record set by Milwaukee in 2005 and matched by UIC in 2006 and 2007. The Titans and Flames already have set a League standard with three loop ties in one year.

The Titans played Sunday's match with only one reserve after having four players suspended by cards in Friday's contest. Junior Brandon Powell, sophomore Brett Windeker and freshman Chris Mulcahy each drew their first start of the year.

Sophomore goalkeeper Bryan Kloss lowered his season goals-against average to 0.95 and recorded his League-high seventh shutout of the year against the Phoenix. Kloss stopped six shots in a losing effort agaisnt Milwaukee and leads the League with 69 saves this fall.

Kloss' play has been important because Detroit has not hit the net in the last 636:11 since a goal early in the second half against Xavier on Sept. 28.

Detroit hosts Wright State on Friday in the team's first match on the newly-constructed Titan Field. UDM then travels to Butler for a Sunday matinee.

Vikings come up short in Wisconsin
Cleveland State dropped two matches on its swing through Wisconsin, falling to 3-8-2 overall and 0-3-1 in League play. The Vikings suffered a 1-0 loss at Green Bay on Friday before a 2-1 setback at Milwaukee on Sunday.

Sophomore forward George Kephart provided the lone Viking goal, hitting the net for the second time this year against the Panthers. He became the first CSU player with more than one goal this season when he snapped the Vikings' 207-minute scoring drought. Cleveland State has scored more than one goal only once this year, a 2-0 victory over Niagara on Sept. 2.

Sophomore defender Mitch Boyer remains atop the team scoring charts with six points off one goal and four assists, standing in a three-way tie for fourth place in the circuit with those four helpers.

Sophomore goalkeeper Dan Duric made his first start since Sept. 19 at Green Bay, recording six saves. Freshman Nick Harpel returned to action Sunday with four stops as the Vikings outshot the Panthers 16-12. Harpel owns a 1.24 goals-against average for the season folowing his four-save effort in Milwaukee.

Cleveland State hosts Butler on Friday, looking for its first home-field victory of the season.CSU is 0-3-1 at home and 3-5-1 on the road, attempting to improve the latter mark Sunday at Wright State.

Raiders' slide reaches double digits
Wright State has lost ten consecutive matches, sliding to 2-11-0 on the year (0-4-0 in the League) with a 3-0 loss at Loyola on Friday and 4-1 defeat at UIC on Sunday. The Raiders have been outscored 22-3 during their losing streak, which is the longest in program history.

Senior forward Brian Decker notched his first goal of the season Sunday, hitting the net in the 87th minute at UIC. The goal was his first since 2004. Decker also became the fifth Raider to hit the net this fall.

Senior midfielder Tony Labudovski has two of WSU's six goals and recorded his first assist of the season on Decker's strike. Labudovski is still two goals away from cracking the top ten list in Wright State's career charts, boasting 19 in his tenure.

Wright State has managed only two goals in its last eight outings and has yet to score a first-half goal this season. The Raiders have been outscored 11-0 before intermission in 2007.

Freshman goalkeeper Matt Koewler drew the start Friday before senior Tebias Mason returned to action in Sunday's contest. Mason stopped four shots at UIC as the Raiders held the Flames to a scoreless draw in the first half before UIC rallied for four second-half tallies.

Wright State attempts to snap its skid Friday at Detroit before returning home for a Sunday matinee at home against Cleveland State.