Nov. 11, 2003
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UPCOMING GAMES: The Lobos head to Sacramento, Calif., where they will try to defend their MPSF Conference title from a year ago. The Lobos are the No. 2 seed and receive a first-round bye. UNM faces the winner of No. 3 UNLV and No. 6 Air Force on Friday, November 15 at 4:30 p.m. UNLV (6-11-0, 3-3-0 MPSF) defeated UNM earlier in the season, 2-0, on October 18, giving the Lobos their first home loss in almost two years. Air Force took down the Lobos in Colorado Springs, 2-0, on October 24. UNM has won their last five MPSF tournament games, including the last two MPSF Championships. The winner of the MPSF Tournament will receive an automatic bid to the 2003 NCAA Tournament.
2001 MPSF Tournament: This was the start of the Lobos’ remarkable run over the last two years. UNM entered the Tournament with a 3-11-2 record and the eighth seed. The Lobos defeated No. 1 Sacramento State, 3-2 (OT); No. 5 UNLV, 3-0; and No. 7 host Fresno State 1-0 (OT) on their way to winning their first ever MPSF Tournament and their first trip to the NCAA Tournament. Lobo senior Ty Hibbert was named the MVP of the 2001 championships.
2002 MPSF Tournament: The Lobos went from the hunters to the hunted in just one season, boasting an 15-3-0 record going into the tournament. The Lobos hosted the event in 2002 and capped off a perfect season at home with a, 3-2, win over Denver and a, 2-1 (OT), win over San Jose State in the finals. Lobo freshman Ben Ashwill earned tournament MVP honors for the Lobos.
2003 MPSF Men’s Soccer Tournament Schedule
November 13-16 at Sacramento State UniversityTournament Seeding = Conference Finish
First Round – Thursday, November 13
Game 1: 4:30 p.m. #3 UNLV vs. #6 Air ForceGame 2: 7:00 p.m. #4 San Diego State vs. No. 5 Sacramento State
Semifinals – Friday, November 15
Game 3: 4:30 p.m. #2 New Mexico vs. Game 1 WinnerGame 4: 7:00 p.m. #1 San Jose State vs. Game 2 Winner
Finals – Sunday, November 16
Game 5: 1:00 p.m. Championship Match
MPSF Rankings: Sophomore Jeff Rowland is tenth in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation scoring with 15 and tied for ninth in goals with sophomore Lance Watson goals with six.
UNM’s Record Book: Junior goalkeeper Andrew Weber’s 16 career shutouts is the all-time mark for shutouts at UNM. He also sits in second place in all-time saves at UNM with 267 and needs 71 to tie Nate Busek (’93) for the top spot at 338. Senior Stian Eriksen has taken 123 shots in his career and ranks 5th all-time at UNM. He also has 10 career assists, which is 10th on the Lobos’ all-time list.
Rowland MPSF Player-of-the-Week: Sophomore forward Jeff Rowland had a strong week with two goals against San Diego State. His game-winner against the Aztecs earned him his first MPSF Brine Player of the Week award. Rowland leads the Lobo attack with 15 points on six goals and three assists.
Tough Draw: Despite getting a bye in the first round, the Lobos have a tough road ahead to defend their MPSF Championship. The Lobos will face either Air Force or UNLV in the semifinals, and both teams shutout New Mexico, 2-0, in the regular season. Air Force has the 8th ranked offense in the nation, scoring 2.38 goals-per-game, and UNLV is the only team to win at New Mexico in two years.
Academic All-District: The Lobos placed an amazing six players on the District VI All-Academic team this week. Lance Watson, Brandon Moss, Ben Ashwill, Jeff Rowland, Eric Carlson, and Matt Wootton were all named to the team and are all nominated for Academic All-American status.
Overtime: The Lobos have played five overtime games in 2003, the most since going 3-1-1 in OT games in the 1992 season. So far, the Lobos are 2-0-3 in overtime this season. The school-record for overtime games in a season is seven. New Mexico went 3-1-3 in OT in the 1990 season.