Men's Soccer Release #12 - Semifinal/Final Preview
Nov. 13, 2007
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Seeds Hold in First Weekend, Setting Up Wide-Open Field for Horizon League Championship
The top four teams in the regular-season converge this weekend on Loyola Soccer Park for the 2007 Horizon League Men's Soccer Championship, presented by the U.S. Army.
Action begins Friday afternoon as top seed Loyola faces fourth seed Green Bay at 5 p.m. (Central time / 6 p.m. Eastern time), followed by the showdown between second seed Milwaukee and third seed UIC. That contest is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (Central time / 8:30 Eastern).
The four teams remaining give the League a wide-open race in pursuit of the automatic NCAA Championship entry that goes to the winner of Sunday's championship match, set for 1:30 p.m. (Central / 2:30 Eastern time).
Loyola comes in as the top seed after winning the regular-season championship (5-1-2 in loop play), but wary that the top seed has fallen in each of the last two years. UIC was the top seed in 2006 but came up short in a penalty-kick shootout against fourth seed Loyola in the semifinals. The Ramblers then defeated Green Bay 1-0 in the title tilt to win the League crown for the first time in program history. In 2005, second seed Milwaukee defeated Detroit on UDM's home turf to win its fourth consecutive circuit championship.
This year's event could follow suit, based on the regular-season results among the four competing teams. Four of the six matches featured 1-0 scores, with one 2-0 verdict and a 3-0 decision. Each of those six contests has been played since Oct. 18, so the players should be familiar with their opponents.
Loyola and UIC each posted 2-1-0 records within the four-team group that remains. Loyola edged Milwaukee 1-0 (Oct. 19) and handed Green Bay a 3-0 setback (Oct. 21) before the Flames outlasted their cross-town foes 1-0 in overtime on the final day of the regular season (Nov. 3) to capture the third seed.
UIC split its two dates against the Wisconsin schools, winning 2-0 against Milwaukee on Oct. 21 but dropping a 1-0 decision at Green Bay three days earlier. UWM defeated Green Bay 1-0 on Oct. 27 to secure the Chancellor's Cup as well as the second seed in the League tournament.
In statistical terms, Loyola has outscored the other three teams 4-1 in head-to-head competition, with UIC owning a 3-1 advantage.
Green Bay is in the semifinals for the third year in a row, looking for its first Horizon League title. Loyola gained its initial crown last year after reaching the semifinals for the first time since 2000. UIC's semifinal appearance last fall was the Flames' first since 2002, but no school can compare to Milwaukee's run of success in the Horizon League.
The Panthers won four consecutive titles from 2002-05 but were eliminated in the semifinals last season. Only Evansville (five---1987, 1989-92) can claim more Midwestern Collegiate Conference/Horizon League championships.
News From Around the League
Ramblers ready to defend League title
Loyola brings a 10-4-4 overall record into the weekend, having won the regular-season League championship outright for the first time ever with a 5-1-2 loop ledger. Loyola shared the regular-season title with UIC in 2000. The Ramblers are 6-1-2 since a 1-0 loss to then-third-ranked Northwestern on Sept. 26.
Loyola has been idle since a 1-0 overtime loss to UIC on Nov. 3.
Junior goalkeeper Brian Byrne set a school single-season record with his tenth shutout of the year. He is tied with Green Bay's Adam Stikl for the League lead in that category, while his current goals-against average of 0.68 also would set a Rambler one-year record in that department.
For the first time this season, sophomore forward Michael Ferguson does not sit atop the League scoring charts. With Loyola idle, he stands at 15 goals and 32 points for the season, ranking one point behind Butler forward Frank Patano in the latter category. Ferguson stands fourth on the school's all-time single-season lists in points and third in goals.
Senior midfielder Keum Sung Kim ranks second among this year's Ramblers with four goals and eight points, while sophomore midfielder Eric Gehrig---one of three First-Team All-League picks for Loyola---has two goals and two helpers for six points.
Panthers rested and ready
Milwaukee also has had an extended break, coming into the tournament with a 5-2-1 loop ledger.
The Panthers dropped a non-League contest last Tuesday, falling 1-0 at Northern Illinois to slip to 5-11-3 overall. Milwaukee outshot NIU 10-9 but fell victim to an own goal in the 78th minute.
UWM comes into this weekend attempting to win its fifth League championship in the past six years. The Panthers claimed the tournament trophy from 2002-2005 before falling in the quarterfinals last year. Milwaukee is also chasing a sixth NCAA Championship apparearance in the last seven years.
Senior midfielder Zeke Dombrowski leads the Panthers with four goals this year, tying for ninth place on the League charts. Dombrowski's three assists give him 11 points for the year, good for a share of eighth place on that loop chart.
Junior forward Colin Baker and freshman forward Robert Refai provide support in the Panther attack with six points apiece. Baker has three goals in 2006, while Refai's total comes from two goals and two assists.
The goalkeeping tandem of Ryan Germann and Grant Fernstrum has played a key role in UWM's turnaround from an 0-8-0 start. Germann owns a 1.21 goals-against average, while Fernstrum carries a 1.09 rate in six starts.
Flames rolling up shutouts
UIC climbed to 9-5-5 overall after ousting Wright State, 4-0, in the second round on Sunday. The Flames have won three matches in a row, all by shutout. UIC now has ten shutouts for the year.
Senior midfielder Pavle Dundjer scored the final two goals against WSU, giving him four for the season, including three in his last three outings.
Dundjer is one of six Flames with at least three markers in 2007, with senior forward Cesar Zambrano (six goals) and freshman striker Matt Spiess (five markers) leading the way. Zambrano had the match-winner Sunday and now ranks fifth in the League with 17 points this season. Spiess is seventh with 12 points.
UIC's high-powered attack also features four goals from freshman Charlie Trout and three apiece by sophomore midfielder Baggio Husidic and junior forward Dan Simek.
Freshman forward Kevin Stoll opened the scoring Sunday, playing his first match in three weeks after suffering a hamstring injury.
Sophomore goalkeeper Jovan Bubonja already owns the school's career record with 18 shutouts (including eight this season) and leads the League with a 0.58 goals-against average that is tenth-best in the nation. Bubonja has not allowed a goal in the last 294 minutes of action since Oct. 28.
Phoenix working overtime ... and then some
Green Bay comes to Chicago with a 10-4-6 overall mark. The Phoenix saw the most extensive action last week, needing penalty kicks to eliminate Cleveland State aftera scoreless draw on Friday and going into overtime to defeat Butler 1-0 on Sunday.
Freshman David Prochazka anchored the Phoenix defense in the two shutouts, leading a group that allowed only three shots on goal. Prochazka and his teammates notched their 11th shutout of the year, setting a school single-season record in the process. He also converted his attempt in penalty kicks against CSU.
Freshman midfielder JC Banks headed home the match-winner against Butler nine minutes into overtime on Sunday. Banks ranks fourth in the League with six markers and is sixth at 13 points this year. Junior forward Tosaint Ricketts adds five goals and 11 points to rank among the League's top scorers, as well.
Junior goalkeeper Adam Stikl shares the League lead with ten shutouts (matching Loyola's Brian Byrne). Stikl owns a 0.74 goals-against average for the season and has yielded more than one goal only once---the loss to Loyola---since Sept. 16.
Green Bay meets Loyola in the tournament for the second year in a row, trying to avenge a 1-0 setback in the 2006 final and a 3-0 regular-season loss to the Ramblers.
Seeds hold so far, but it's still early
To the casual observer, it's probably not a surprise that the top four seeds remain alive in the pursuit of the Horizon League men's soccer crown. But it's been an exception to the rule, based on the Championship's history.
The Horizon League has never had a tournament play out entirely by seed. Last year, fourth-seeded Loyola pulled off a pair of upsets
---ousting top seed UIC and No. 2 seed Green Bay---on the way to its first-ever Horizon League title after sixth seed Butler defeated third seed Milwaukee in the quarterfinals.
In 2005, Green Bay was the sixth seed when the Phoenix defeated third seed UIC 3-0 in the quarterfinals. Second-seeded Milwaukee provided the other "upset" by edging Detroit 1-0 in the title match.
The 2004 tournament came closest with only one upset. Third-seeded Detroit edged No. 2 seed Butler 1-0 in the semifinals before falling short against UWM in the final.
Top Performances in the Opening Rounds
Frank Patano, Butler
Jr. * F * Franklin Park, Ill.
Patano recorded a goal and two assists in the Bulldogs' 4-3 overtime victory over Detroit on Friday. Patano tied the match with his goal in the 38th minute and set up Dustin Mares' winning strike 9:35 into overtime. He now leads the League with 33 points (15 goals, three assists).
Adam Stikl, Green Bay
Jr. * GK * Milwaukee, Wis.
Stikl logged a pair of shutouts in the League Championship, stopping five shots in regular play and two more in PKs as the Phoenix eliminated Cleveland State on Friday. He posted his tenth clean sheet (tying for the League lead) in Sunday's 1-0 overtime triumph over Butler.
JC Banks, Green Bay
Fr. * M * Milwaukee, Wis.
Banks headed home the match-winner nine minutes into overtime to give Green Bay a 1-0 victory over Butler on Sunday and put the Phoenix into the semifinals. The goal was Banks' sixth of the season, tying him for fourth place on the League charts.
Pavle Dundjer, UIC
Sr. * M * Belgrade, Serbia
Dundjer scored a pair of goals in the Flames' 4-0 victory over Wright State on Sunday night. Dundjer, the first player in League history to win four First-Team All-League honors, hit the net twice in the second half to seal the victory and put UIC into the semifinals.
Tony Labudovski, Wright State
Sr. * M * Reynoldsburg, Ohio
Labudovski opened the scoring in Wright State's 2-1 victory over Valparaiso on Friday, hitting the net from 16 yards out 3:15 into the contest and setting the tone for the Raiders. It was Labudovski's third goal of the year, and his first since Sept. 7.
Player-of-the-Week Honorees in 2006-07:
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
Oct. 15 -- Michael Ferguson, Loyola
Oct. 22 -- Brian Byrne, Loyola
Oct. 29 -- Tebias Mason, Wright State
Nov. 5 -- Frank Patano, Butler
