Men's Soccer Continues Home Stand Saturday Against West Virginia
10/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Game Notes (PDF) 
| | Live Audio (WMUR Marquette Radio)
MILWAUKEE -- Marquette welcomes divisional opponent West Virginia to Valley Fields this Saturday (7:05 p.m.) as the Golden Eagles continue BIG EAST Conference men's soccer action against the Mountaineers.
MU opened its current four-game home stand by picking up four points in league play last weekend, including a 1-0 double-overtime win over Cincinnati and a 2-2 draw against Louisville, in which the Golden Eagles rallied from two goals down versus the ninth-ranked Cardinals.
West Virginia (4-2-2, 3-1-0 BIG EAST) comes into Saturday's contest tied atop the BIG EAST Blue Division standings, four points ahead of the Golden Eagles (2-4-2, 1-1-2 BIG EAST) who sit in fifth play in the division.
Mountaineers goalkeeper Zach Johnson has posted four shutouts on the season, including a 1-0 win against No. 3 USF on Sept. 25. Most recently, WVU defeated DePaul, 2-1, in overtime on Sept. 27.
GAME CAPSULE
Marquette vs. West Virginia
Saturday, Oct. 3 (7:05 p.m. CT)
Valley Fields: Milwaukee, Wis.
Series Information:
West Virginia?leads all-time series, 3-0-1
Marquette Television/Radio:
Audio: marquetteradio.mu.edu
Television:?not available
Live Stats:
www.GoMarquette.com ()
KEY STORYLINES
While Saturday's match will be the fifth conference game of the season for the Golden Eagles, West Virginia will be the first divisional opponent for head coach Louis Bennett's Marquette squad. MU is winless against the Mountaineers in four previous matches. West Virginia (4-2-2, 3-1-0 BIG EAST) is currently in a three-way tie for first place in the Blue Division. Marquette (2-4-2, 1-1-2 BIG EAST) enters the contest in fifth place with five points in league play.?MU will complete its current four-game home stand against Notre Dame on Oct. 7.
SEEING DOUBLE
Marquette's last four matches have gone into double overtime, beginning with a 1-1 draw at USF to open BIG EAST Conference play on Sept. 18. The Golden Eagles have gone 1-1-2 in those league matches, all which were played within a span of nine days. MU has since had some time to recuperate as its been nearly a week (T, 2-2 vs. Louisville on Sept. 27) since its last contest.
SERIES HISTORY
West Virginia owns a 3-0-1 all-time record against Marquette, including a 2-0 shutout over the Golden Eagles last year in Morgantown, W.Va. It's a series that only dates back to 2005 -- the year Marquette joined the BIG EAST. MU's lone result versus the Mountaineers was a 0-0 draw at Valley Fields in 2007.
LAST TIME OUT
Marquette came from two goals down to draw with No. 9/7 Louisville, 2-2, this past Sunday at Valley Fields. The Cardinals scored their first goal off of a penalty kick in the fourth minute and tacked on another score by Mark Knight at 22:42. Billy Von Rueden got MU on the scoreboard with a free kick in the 57 minute and Amilcar Herrera tallied the equalizer with less than three minutes remaining in regulation off a cross from Andrew Krynski. MU goalkeeper Matt Pyzdrowski made five saves, while each team attempted 15 shots.
ABOUT THE OPPONENT
Zach Johnson is regarded as one of the top goalkeepers in the country. The preseason Second Team All-American (CollegeSoccer.com) selection comes into Saturday's contest with four shutouts and a 0.69 goals against average. Offensively, the Mountaineers are led by Alex Silva and Abel Sebele. Silva has scored two goals with one assist. Sebele, a freshman, has three assists on the season with one goal scored. Head coach Marlon LeBlanc is 38-20-12 in four seasons at WVU.
BIG EAST HONOR ROLL
Marquette goalkeeper Matt Pyzdrowski earned BIG EAST Conference weekly Honor Roll distinction league officials announced on Monday, Sept. 28. The senior helped the Golden Eagles pick up four points in conference action that previous weekend, posting a 1-0 double overtime shutout against Cincinnati (Sept. 25) and a 2-2 draw against No. 9/7 Louisville (Sept. 27). In the two matches, Pyzdrowski faced 29 shots in 219:55 minutes in goal, making seven saves.
WELCOME TO THE CLUB
Marquette had gone three consecutive matches without scoring a goal after Calum Mallace netted the game-winner in the Golden Eagles 1-0 season-opening win over Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Freshman Adam Lysak ended the scoreless stretch with a masterful goal at USF on Sept. 18, the first goal of his collegiate career. Since then, MU has scored in its last four matches with three Golden Eagles netting their first career goal -- Chris Madsen (Sept. 20 vs. DePaul) and Amilcar Herrera and Billy Von Rueden (Sept. 27 vs. Louisville).
MARQUETTE AGAINST TOP-RANKED TEAMS
Three of Marquette's last five games have come against teams ranked in the top 10 nationally in the NSCAA/adidas top 25 poll. MU fell to No. 9 UC?Irvine, 1-0, in the final match of the Marquette Invitational on Sept. 13. The Golden Eagles also traveled to Tampa, Fla., on Sept. 18, where they escaped USF?with a 1-1 draw against the fifth-ranked Bulls. MU then came from two goals down to settle for the same result, 2-2, versus No. 9 Louisville at Valley Fields on Sept. 27.
