DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Travels to Rutgers for Red Division Opener
10/3/2008 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S SOCCER
CHICAGO - The Blue Demons hit the road and open Red Division play at Rutgers on Saturday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET at Yurcak Field. DePaul is looking to put back-to-back conference victories together after knocking off Pittsburgh, 1-0, at Wish Field on Sunday.
DePaul stands at 2-2-0 in league play and is the defending BIG EAST Red Division champions. The two BIG EAST victories give the Blue Demons six points in the division standings and put them in a tie for fourth with Syracuse. Rutgers is 1-2-1 in league play and 4-3-2 overall. The Scarlet Knights sit in seventh place in the Red Division with four points.
DePaul stands at 3-4-2 overall and host USF on Tuesday after playing at Rutgers this weekend. The Bulls lead the Red Division with a 4-0-0 record for 12 points and host Syracuse on Friday.
Noting the Blue Demons: DePaul is now 4-0-2 in the last six overtime matches dating back to last season... the Blue Demons entered the 2008 season with a five-match win streak at Wish Field... the loss 1-0 loss to Valparaiso on Aug. 31 ended the win streak... Alex Mangan has scored 12 goals in 36 career matches... eight of his 12 career goals have been game-winners... he is tied for 19th all-time with 25 points (12G/1A)... in 63 career matches, Brian Visser has played in 5,773 of a possible 5,991 minutes in the net... his totals account for just over 96 percent of the minutes played in goal in the last three-plus seasons... the 0-0 tie against Butler marked the 20th career shutout for Visser... DePaul is 28-17-6 in the last six-plus seasons at Wish Field.
Reporting on Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights are 4-3-2 overall and 1-2-1 in BIG EAST action... they knocked off Seton Hall, 2-1, on Sept. 28... Dilly Duka leads Rutgers with 12 points on six goals... Kevin McFadden has tallied six assists while six others have scored a goal this season... head coach Bob Reasso is in his 28th season at Rutgers.
BIG EAST Improvement: DePaul has improved in each of its three BIG EAST campaigns. The 2005 squad totaled seven points on a 2-8-1 record before the 2006 team finished sixth in the Red Division with 12 points on a 4-7-0 record. A year ago, the Blue Demons were picked to finish eighth in the preseason coaches poll and surprised the entire BIG EAST by winning the Red Division with 21 points and a 7-4-0 league record.
Through four games in 2008, the fourth year with BIG EAST membership, DePaul is 2-2-0 for six points and a tie for fourth in the Red Division standings.
Marquette Invitational Recap: The Blue Demons finished second in the four-team Marquette Invitational with three players earning All-Tournament Team recognition. DePaul’s 1-1-0 record for three points was second to Penn with four points (1-0-1). Willy Lara, John Kornfeld and Steffen Vroom were named to the All-Tournament Team.
Steffen Vroom scored in the 23rd minute against Columbia to lead DePaul past the Lions, 1-0. The Blue Demons outshot Columbia, 13-5, while Brian Visser was credited with one save in the shutouts. DePaul followed the win with a 2-0 loss to Penn. The Blue Demons had chances as Penn was able to thwart a penalty kick opportunity in the 63rd minute and a DePaul shot hit the crossbar in the 78th minute. DePaul outshot the Quakers, 12-7, and held a 7-4 advantage in corner kicks.
Preseason Picks: The Blue Demons were picked to finish fourth, and picked up two first-place votes, in the Red Division by the league’s 16 coaches. Connecticut was selected to win the Blue Division while USF was picked as the Red Division preseason favorite. O’Brian White from Connecticut was named the preseason Offensive Player of the Year while USF’s Yohance Marshall received the Defensive Player of the Year nod and DePaul’s Brian Visser was the pick for preseason Goalkeeper of the Year. Visser is the first DePaul player to be named a conference player of the year honoree.
Blazer In Eighth Season: Head coach Craig Blazer is in his eighth season with DePaul. He holds a career record of 45-81-13 in his seven-plus seasons. In the last six-plus years under Blazer, the Blue Demons have posted a 28-17-6 record at Wish Field. Last season the Blue Demons went a program-best 9-1-0 at Wish Field with wins over No. 2 Connecticut and No. 21 Louisville.
2008 BIG EAST Championship: The semifinals and championship of the 2007 BIG EAST Men’s Soccer Championship will take place in Tampa, Fla., on the campus of the University of South Florida on Nov. 14 and 16. The first round and quarterfinal matches will be hosted by the higher-seeded team on Nov. 5 and Nov. 8. The champion receives the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship.
Wish Field Openers: DePaul’s season-opening match at home against Valparaiso marked the second straight year beginning the season at Wish Field, but just the second time overall since the 2004 campaign. Since 2000, Sunday’s match was just the third 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 2-0 victory against Jacksonville at Wish Field.
DePaul hosts nine matches at Wish Field this season after posting a school-record 9-1-0 mark last year. The Blue Demons defended the home turf in dominating fashion as they allowed just three goals in the 10 home matches and scored a total of 13 times. A 1-0 win over No. 2 Connecticut highlighted the home-field slate in 2007 while DePaul also dispatched No. 21 Louisville in Lincoln Park.