DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Hosts Cincinnati in BIG EAST Quarter's
11/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S SOCCER
2007 BIG EAST Championship Quarterfinal
DePaul vs. Cincinnati
Saturday, Nov. 10 | 1 p.m.
Wish Field | Chicago, Ill.
CHICAGO - The DePaul Blue Demons host the Cincinnati Bearcats in a BIG EAST Quarterfinals on Saturday at Wish Field. DePaul enters the match as the Red Division’s top seed following the regular-season championship.
The Blue Demons won the Red Division with a 1-0 victory over Syracuse on Nov. 3. DePaul finished with 21 points ahead of second-place finishers Louisville and St. John’s at 20 points each. Cincinnati was the Red Division fifth seed and knocked off Blue Division No. 4 Providence, 2-0, in the first round on Wednesday, Nov. 7.
DePaul is 11-6-0 overall and ranked fifth in the NSCAA/adidas Great Lakes Region rankings while posting a 7-4-0 record in league play. The Bearcats are 9-9-1 overall and finished with a 5-5-1 mark in BIG EAST play.
The winner of Saturday’s match advances to next Friday’s semifinals in Storrs, Conn., and plays the winner of the Notre Dame-St. John’s quarterfinal.
A Season of Firsts: The 2007 campaign has seen a number of program firsts for the DePaul men’s soccer team:
- First regular-season championship for the DePaul men’s soccer program.
- The BIG EAST Regular-Season title was the first BIG EAST Championship for a men’s program at DePaul.
- The 4-0-0 start was the first time the Blue Demons won each of their first four matches.
- The No. 5 slot held for three weeks in the Great Lakes Region NSCAA/adidas poll is the highest in program history.
- The No. 17 ranking in the Sept. 24 Soccer America top 25 is the first national ranking in program history.
- Brian Visser became the first goalkeeper in school history with four consecutive shutouts in a season with four blank sheets to begin the 2007 schedule.
- Visser also holds the DePaul career record with 13 shutouts. He has totaled the 13 shutouts in 42 matches.
- Visser set the season shutout record with his seventh shutout on Oct. 13 against Rutgers. Brett Rosenberger previously held the record with six shutouts in 1994.
- The win over Louisville on Oct. 24 set a new Wish Field season record as DePaul improved to 7-1-0 at home this season.
- DePaul’s 11 victories are the most since the 1994 season. The 1994 squad set a school record with 12 wins while the 2007 team is just the third in school history to reach double-digits in victories.
Walking the Line: The Blue Demons have had a knack for scoring late in matches to lead to victories this season. In six of the 11 victories in 2007, DePaul has won either in overtime or in the last 10 minutes of regulation. On the flip side, the 2-1 loss at then-No. 6 Northwestern on Oct. 10 occurred as time expired in regulation.
Visser Named BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week: Following wins over Louisville and St. John’s, the BIG EAST named Brian Visser BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week. Connecticut’s O’Brian White also led UConn to two wins, as he was selected BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week. The BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week honor was awarded to West Virginia’s Andrew Halsell, while Providence’s Nick Cianci was picked as BIG EAST Rookie of the Week.
Visser led DePaul to its two league wins over previous BIG EAST Red Division leaders Louisville and St. John’s. The junior keeper made two saves against Louisville, a 2-1 win on Oct. 24. Visser then made five saves at St. John’s in a 2-0 victory. He faced 13 overall attempts at the net, posting his eighth shutout of the season.
Patrick Hopkins was named to the honor roll after scoring both goals against Louisville and anchoring the DePaul defense in the shutout of St. John’s.
Noting the Blue Demons: DePaul’s 8-1-0 record at Wish Field is the program’s best home record... the Blue Demons are 4-0-0 in overtime matches this season... the 1-0 overtime victory at Pittsburgh on Sept. 30 was the first overtime win since a 2-1 victory against Marquette on Oct. 20, 2004... since the win over the Golden Eagles, the Blue Demons were 0-4-4 in matches with extra play... DePaul’s 1-0 win over No. 2/2 Connecticut on Sept. 23 marked the second straight win over a ranked team at Wish Field... DePaul defeated No. 16/11 USF last season by a 2-1 score... the Blue Demons opened the season at 4-0-0 for the first time in program history... DePaul returns 21 players from last season’s team that qualified for the 2006 BIG EAST Championship... the 2006 tournament appearance was the first for DePaul since the 1998 Conference USA Tournament... DePaul looks to continue the program’s improvement in BIG EAST play as the 2005 squad totaled seven points on a 2-8-1 record before last season’s team finished sixth in the Red Division with 12 points on a 4-7-0 record... after playing in 18 of 19 games last season with nine of the 11 starters as freshmen and sophomores, the Blue Demons return 10 starters this year... Alex Mangan has scored 12 goals in 32 career matches... five of his seven goals this season have been game-winners... his goal against Syracuse on Nov. 3 moved him into a tie for 19th all-time with 25 points... Brian Visser tallied his 11th career shutout against Valparaiso on Sept. 14 to set a new career mark... he broke the previous record of 10 held by Terry Paulus (1983-84)... in 52 career matches, he has played in 4,746 of a possible 4,961 minutes in the net... his totals account for just under 96 percent of the minutes played in goal in the last two-plus seasons... Visser’s four straight shutouts to start the 2007 season is also a new single-season record for consecutive shutouts... Julian Chill moved into fifth all-time in career assists against Louisville on Oct. 24... he has totaled 16 assists in his career... DePaul is now 27-17-5 in the last five-plus seasons at Wish Field.
Last Defense Standing: Through the early portion of the 2007 schedule, the DePaul men’s soccer team stood as the only program in the nation to not allow a goal. The Blue Demons posted four straight shutouts to start the season over Jacksonville, UW-Green Bay, Xavier and Valparaiso. Providence ended the streak the with a 2-0 decision over the Blue Demons on Sept. 21. Shutouts is the theme of 2007 as each of DePaul’s nine games have been decided by a shutout.
Finishing the Tough Stretch: The Northwestern match marked the end of a five-game stretch that saw DePaul play three teams ranked in the top eight nationally. The 1-0 win over then-No. 2/2 Connecticut on Sept. 23 started the stretch followed by a 1-0 loss at then-No. 8/14 West Virginia. This week’s NSCAA/adidas poll sees Connecticut at No. 1, Northwestern at No. 12 and West Virginia at No. 20. The Soccer America top 25 has Connecticut at No. 3 followed by the Wildcats at No. 16 and the Mountaineers at No. 19. The Oct. 24th match win over Louisville marked the fifth ranked opponent in nine matches as the Cardinals were ranked No. 21 in the Soccer America poll. The Blue Demons also dropped a 2-0 match to USF on Oct. 16. The Bulls were ranked 22nd in the NSCAA/adidas poll.
Deuces Wild: DePaul opened the season by posting three consecutive wins by a score of 2-0. The Blue Demons blanked Jacksonville, UW-Green Bay and Xavier while scoring twice in each match. Additionally, DePaul also won a pair of exhibition matches over Northern Illinois and Western Michigan by the score of 2-0 in each match. Overall, four of the 11 regular-season matches have been decided by a 2-0 score. Providence defeated the Blue Demons by the two-goal margin of 2-0 on Sept. 21.
Vroom, Hopkins and Visser Named to BIG EAST Honor Roll: Five times this season a DePaul player has been named to the BIG EAST Honor Roll. Steffen Vroom was named list following the win over Jacksonville while Patrick Hopkins on two occasions this season. He picked up his first honor after wins over UW-Green Bay and Xavier and most recently after wins against Louisville and St. John’s. Brian Visser was named to the honor roll after leading the Blue Demons to a shutout of Valparaiso and also picked up honor roll honors after setting the season shutout record against Rutgers.
Wish Field Openers a Rarity: DePaul’s season-opening match at home against Jacksonville was just the second time the Blue Demons have started the season on Wish Field since the 2004 campaign. Since 2000, the match was just the second home game to begin a season. The Blue Demons started the 2004 season with a 2-0 win over Loyola-Chicago at Wish Field. A year ago, DePaul opened the season with a 2-1 defeat at Valparaiso.
Blazer In Seventh Season: Head coach Craig Blazer is in his seventh season with DePaul. In the last five-plus years under Blazer, the Blue Demons have posted a 27-17-5 record at Wish Field. Last season the Blue Demons went 3-6-0 at Wish Field with wins over No. 11 USF and St. John’s.
Checking on Cincinnati: The Bearcats are 9-9-1 overall after defeating Providence, 2-0, in the first round on Wednesday... Cincinnati has posted four straight shutouts after dropping four consecutive games... Kenny Anaba leads the squad with 23 points on 10 goals and three assists... head coach Hylton Dayes is in his seventh season at Cincinnati. The Series: Saturday is the 24th all-time meeting between the two programs... the Bearcats hold a 14-6-3 advantage and are 4-0-1 against the Blue Demons in the last five matches... earlier this season, Cincinnati posted a 1-0 win at home over DePaul... each of the last three matches have been decided by one goal.
Preseason Picks: The Blue Demons were picked to finish eighth in the Red Division by the league’s 16 coaches. DePaul was picked to finish eighth in 2006 before placing sixth and advancing to the BIG EAST Championship. Connecticut was selected to win the Blue Division while St. John’s was picked as the Red Division preseason favorite.
2007 BIG EAST Championship: The semifinals and championship of the 2007 BIG EAST Men’s Soccer Championship will take place in Storrs, Conn., on the campus of the University of Connecticut. The first round and quarterfinal matches will be hosted by the higher-seeded team on Nov. 7 and Nov. 10. The champion receives the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship.