Marquette University Athletics
Men's Soccer to Host Marquette Invitational
9/18/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 18, 2003
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
The Marquette Invitational Presented by Howard Johnson:
Friday, Sept. 19
Washington vs. Michigan, 5:30 p.m.
USF at Marquette, 8 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 21
Michigan vs. USF, 11:30 a.m.
Marquette vs. Washington, 2 p.m.
Playing in its second tournament of the season, Marquette hosts the Marquette Invitational, presented by Howard Johnson. The strong field has USF (formerly South Florida), Washington and Michigan visiting for action. The tourney starts off with Washington taking on Michigan (the home team) at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 19. MU plays USF in an important Conference USA match at 8 p.m. Then on Sunday, Sept. 21. Michigan battles USF (the home side for that match) at 11:30 a.m. while MU plays Washington (wearing their home whites) at 2 p.m.
Washington returns to Marquette after the Golden Eagles paid a visit to the Huskies tourney last season.
Scouting USF
A nationally ranked team in the preseason, USF comes into its meeting with Marquette owning a 3-2-1 record. This is the second straight week that the Bulls will play a C-USA foe in a tournament, having lost to Charlotte last week. The Bulls, picked third in the preseason, are looking to not start the league 0-2.
Hunter West has already provided the Bulls with a strong start. He has seven of the team's 10 goals this year. Drew Helm has also been active, having a two goal, four assist start to his year.
Series History
USF leads, 7-3
Marquette lost at home, 1-0, to the Bulls last year.
Scouting Washington
Washington comes into the Marquette Invitational undefeated. The Huskies sport a 2-0-1 record. While young - eight freshmen and sophmores start - the Huskies have proven successful in the short run.
Junior Casey Armstrong was named Pac-10 Player of the Week for scoring the game-winner in Washington's contest with Portland. Sophomore Leo Totev has jumped out to an early team lead with two goals and one assist. Washington is receiving some national attention. The Huskies are ranked 17th by the College Soccer News.
Series History
Washington leads, 3-2.
The Huskies defeated MU, 3-2, last season.
In The Polls
Maryland holds the top spot in both national polls. The Golden Eagles are still awaiting their first mention in any regional ranking this season. Marquette's next opponent against a ranked foe comes on Sept. 27 when it takes on UAB, ranked 11th by the NSCAA and 14th by Soccer America.
Golden Eagles Open Up Offensive Floodgates
After struggling to find the goal in the first four matches, Marquette found its offense against DePaul. Marquette tallied four strikes, including a pair by sophomore midfielder Blair Kohlmeyer (Newburgh, Ind.). Marquette scored four twice last season, with the last being on Oct. 5 against TCU.
Defense Finds its Ways As Well
Like the offense, the Marquette defense has seen a 180-degree turnaround after the season's beginning. After giving up 14 goals in a three match span, a shuffle on the back line garnered some positive results. Led by junior Danny Mullin (Brookfield, Wis.) at sweeper, Marquette earned a pair of shutouts, blanking DePaul, 4-0, and Evansville, 1-0. MU's last multiple shutout string cmae at the end of last year when it blaned East Carolina, DePaul and Wisconsin to finish the regular season.
Ubert Named Player-of-the-Week
Senior goalkeeper Adam Ubert (Heartland, Wis.) was named Conference USA Co-Defensive-Player-of-the-Week, for the week ending September 14. Ubert was crucial in Marquette's return to .500. Ubert blanked DePaul, 4-0, and Evansville, 1-0, during the week to help the Golden Eagles improve to 3-3 on the year. For the week, Ubert made four saves against DePaul and followed that performance with seven stops against the Purple aces. Ubert is second in C-USA with 26 saves this season.
Flynn Finds First Goal
Freshman forward Sean Flynn (Springfield, Ill.) scored his first career goal on Sept. 7 against Oakland. Flynn struck late in the match for his first tally. He became the second Marquette player to score this season.
Kohlmeyer Starts Big
Sophomore midfielder Blair Kohlmeyer (Newburgh, Ind.) became an instant threat in MU's opening match against Denver. Kohlmeyer hadn't scored a goal in his short MU career, but he struck twice against the Pioneers after MU was behind, 1-0. Kohlmeyer scored his first two collegiate goals and became the teams' leading scorer with that match. He owns four goals on the year.
McCallum's Return
Senior midfielder Zach McCallum (Madison, Wis.) made his way back to the Marquette roster on Sept. 7 against Oakland. McCallum earned a start. He had left the team with one year of eligibility remaining to pursue dental school. However, injuries brought him back to the pitch.
Defending Champs
Marquette and Saint Louis tied for the regular season Conference USA men's soccer championship last year. The Golden Eagles were tough at home winning six of eight on the year, losing just once at home in C-USA play. Marquette opens its home schedule on Sept. 10 against DePaul.
Marquette at Home
Last season, Marquette won its last four matches at home, continuing on its dominance at Valley Fields. For the year, MU was 6-2 at home in 2002. The last time Marquette won fewer than five matches at home in a year was the 2000 season. This year, Marquette has 10 matches at home and has already claimed the first two, extending its home winning streak to six.
