Nov. 1, 2006
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Up Next: The 11th-ranked University of New Mexico men’s soccer team returns home for the final two games of the 2006 regular season this weekend. The Lobos (10-3-3, 5-1-1 MPSF) take on Air Force (4-11-1, 3-5-0 MPSF) on Friday, Nov. 3, at 7:00 p.m. (M.S.T.) at the UNM Soccer Complex. Senior Day is set for Sunday, Nov. 5, at 1:00 p.m. when New Mexico hosts league-leading and 21st-ranked Denver. Seniors Andrew Boyens and Lars Loeseth will both be honored before the game with the Pioneers.
Air Force is currently in fifth place in conference action with a 3-5-0 mark and will be looking for its first win in Albuquerque since the 2001 season. The Falcons are led by freshman Josh Rhynard’s nine points on four goals and one assist. He leads all freshmen in the MPSF in scoring and goals. Junior Andy Nigro leads the team with three assists, while junior Brian Guyette is second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation with 66 saves between the pipes. The Lobos defeated Air Force 3-1 on Oct. 1 behind goals from Bryan Sajjadi, Joey Vitagliano and P.J. Wilson.
Denver is having an excellent season and leads the league with a 6-0-1 mark. DU downed New Mexico 1-0 on Sept. 29 off a strike from Joey Mathot in the 23rd minute. Pioneer senior Ben Mendozza currently leads the league in scoring against NCAA competition with 12 points on five goals and two assists. Mathot’s five assits is also tops in the league. Denver’s defense is second in the MPSF with a 0.66 goals-against-average, posting a federation-high 10 shutouts on the season.
The MPSF race is down to just two teams with Denver holding a strong lead over New Mexico going into the final weekend. The Lobos have to win both games this weekend to force a tie with the Pioneers. If the Lobos win both games, assuming Denver beats winless UNLV on Friday, the MPSF tie-breakers go into effect. The first tie breaker is head-to-head competition, which would be split with one win each. The second tie breaker is goal differential in conference play. Denver holds a big lead over UNM in this category, +15 to +10. The five-goal difference between the two teams is a lot of ground for New Mexico to make up to have a chance to win its third consecutive MPSF Championship. The third tie breaker is goals scored in conference play, which the Pioneers lead 17-15. The final tie breaker is a coin toss.
Air Force Falcons (4-11-1, 3-5-0 MPSF)
Location: Colorado Springs, Colo.
Conference: Mountain Pacific Sports Federation
Head Coach: Luis Sagastume (San Francisco `68)
Record at Air Force: 281-187-43 (28th year)
Career Record: 302-194-43 (30th year)
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Starters Returning/Lost: 5/6
2005 Record: 8-9-2
2005 Conference Record: 6-3-1 (3rd)
UNM vs. Air Force: 10-16-1
Last Time: UNM won 3-1 (10-1-06) at Air Force
Top Goal Scorer: Josh Rhynard (4)
Top Assists: Andy Nigro (3)
Top Goalie: Brian Guyette (1.88 gaa)
Notes: For years, Air Force owned the series with UNM, winning 15 of the first 20 matches against the Lobos. However, since the 2002 season New Mexico has turned the tables, posting a 5-1-1 record against the Academy. UNM has only allowed one goal in the last five matches against Air Force.
Web Site: www.GoAirForceFalcons.com
Denver Pioneers (11-3-2, 6-0-1 MPSF)
Location: Denver, Colo.
Conference: Mountain Pacific Sports Federation
Head Coach: Chad Ashton (North Carolina `90)
Record at Denver: 85-83-14 (10th year)
Career Record: same
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Starters Returning/Lost: 7/4
2005 Record: 7-10-1
2005 Conference Record: 3-7-0 (5th)
UNM vs. Denver: 10-10-1
Last Time: Denver won 1-0 (9-29-06) at home
Top Goal Scorer: Ben Mendozza (5)
Top Assists: Joey Mathot (5)
Top Goalie: Matt Bredehoft (0.71)
Notes: After 21 matches between these two teams the series record is even with 10 wins each and one tie. The Lobos have won six of the last eight and three-straight at the UNM Soccer Complex. The Pioners did hand UNM a 1-0 loss earlier in the year in Denver, Colo.
Web Site: www.DenverPioneers.com
Lobos Score a Win and Tie on California Trip: The University of New Mexico men’s soccer tied Sacramento State 1-1 on Friday. Sophomore Brandon Barkalge convereted a penalty kick set up by freshman P.J. Wilson just before halftime. UNM gave up the equalizer just after the break and could not get the go ahead score. New Mexico bounced back to score a 3-1 thumping of San Jose State on Sunday. An own goal and scores from junior Joey Vitagliano and sophomore Jack Smithson provided the offense for UNM.
Fishbein’s 100th Game as a Lobo: UNM head coach Jeremy Fishbein coached his 100th game at the University of New Mexico in the 1-0 win over UNLV last weekend. He has posted a 72-19-11 (.760) mark in over four years at UNM. Fishbein has a career record of 167-79-21 (.665) in over 13 years as a head coach.
Barklage/Wright Second in the MPSF in Points: Sophomores Brandon Barklage and Chris Wright have 10 points on the year and are currently tied for second in scoring against NCAA competition in the MPSF. Barklage has three goals and four assists while Wright leads the team with four goals to go along with a pair of assists.
Graczyk Leads a Stingy Defense: Seventeen games into the 2006 season, the Lobos have posted eight shutouts. The Lobo defense not only leads the league with its 0.61 goals-against-averaged, but it is also ranked 10th in the nation in goals allowed and 25th in the country in shutouts. Junior keeper Mike Graczyk also leads the MPSF and is 13th in the NCAA with his 0.61 g.a.a., having played every minute in goal for New Mexico. He also leads the league with eight shutouts on the year. Graczyk is the only Lobo to be on the field every minute of every game for UNM this season.
Injury Bug Hitting Hard: The Lobos have suffered through some untimely injuries over the last two weekes. Freshman defender Zach Tierney, the team leader with five assists, missed both games last wekend after suffereing a concussion against UNLV on Oct. 21. He is expected to be ready for this weekend’s games. Senior defender missed four game, having to return to his home in Norway to attend to a family illness. Freshman defender Simon Ejdemyr suffered a broken nose in the ninth minute against San Jose State on Sunday. Sophomore Brandon Barklage was also limited in his time on the field against the Spartans, suffereing from a pulled groin. Both are expected to play this weekend.
Tierney Helping Out: Freshman defender Zach Tierney leads the team and is third in the MPSF with five assists on the year. The former high school All American has started 14 of 15 games in the backline and leads all of the field players in minutes played.
Lobos in the Rankings: UNM is currently No. 11 in this week’s CollegeSoccerNews.com’s Top-30, No. 15 in the Soccer America Top-25, No. 17 in the Soccer Times top-25 and 24th in the NSCAA Top-25. The Lobos have been ranked for 37 consecutive weeks, dating back to the start of the 2004 season.
Ejdemyr Getting Noticed: Freshman defender Simon Ejdemyr has made a big impact on the Lobo backline early in his career. His strong play has helped New Mexico record eight shutouts on the year and a 0.61 g.a.a., ranking 10th in the NCAA. He was named the MPSF Player of the Week and was on Soccer America’s National Team of the Week for his efforts against SMU and Tulsa in Week 4. Ejdemyr’s emergence as a dependable stopper has allowed senior defender Andrew Boyens to periodically join the attack in the Lobo midfield.
UNM Against NO. 1: The Lobos scored a 1-1 tie against SMU at the UNM Soccer Complex on Sept. 15 in the TLC Plumbing & Utility Invitational. UNM faced a top-ranked team for the fourth straight season after facing the Mustangs in a hard fought draw. Here is a look at UNM’s games against No. 1 ranked foes:
SMU L, 0-2 Nov. 25, 2001 NCAA Tournament 2nd Round Dallas, Texas
UCLA L, 0-1 Oct. 9, 2003 Los Angeles, Calif.
Indiana W, 1-0 (2OT) Sept. 19, 2004 Albuquerque, N.M.
Maryland L, 0-1 Dec. 11, 2005 NCAA College Cup Finals Cary, N.C.
SMU T, 1-1 Sept. 15, 2006 Albuquerque, N.M.
Boyens Named to Hermann Watch List: Senior All-American Andrew Boyens is one of 25 players named to the 2006 MAC Hermann trophy Watch List. The Hermann trophy is the top honor for Division I college soccer. Boyens is just the second Lobo to be nominated for the Hermann. Jeff Rowland was a finalist in 2005. Boyens was also named 1st Team Preseason All-American by CollegeSoccerNews.com and a preseason All-American by Soccer America magazine. So far this season he has two goals and three assists from the backline.
Non-Conference Home Unbeaten Streak Snapped: UNM’s 2-0 loss to No. 10 UCLA last week marked the first time the Lobos lost a non-conference home game under head coach Jeremy Fishbein, posting an 12-1-2 record over the last four years at home. The previous non-conference loss at home was a 2-1 setback against Air Force in a non-MPSF match on October 7, 2001, in Klaus Weber’s final year as head coach.
New Mexico Picked to Win MPSF Title…Again: For the fourth consecutive year, the 2005 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Champion University of New Mexico Lobos sit atop the MPSF Men’s Soccer Preseason Coaches’ Poll, capturing five of the six first-place votes to outpace Sacramento State and San Jose State who tied for second with 19 points each as the Hornets garnered the remaining first-place vote. Denver finished fourth in the poll, followed by Air Force in fifth-place and UNLV taking the sixth-spot. The MPSF will determine the Federation champion and NCAA automatic qualifier after a 10-match double-round robin league schedule with the MPSF champion being the team with the best conference record after the final conference matches on Sunday, November 5.
Undefeated Non-Conference Streak Broken: With a 1-0 loss at Michigan State in week 2, the Lobos snapped their 15-match non-conference undefeated streak. UNM posted an 8-0-0 record in regular season non-conference action in 2005. It was the second straight year the Lobos went undefeated and untied in out-of-conference play. In 2004, New Mexico recorded a 6-0-0 record before the start of MSPF action. Over the last two years, UNM has defeated the likes of No. 1 Indiana (1-0 on 9/19/04), at No. 13 VCU (2-1 on 9/5/04), at No. 18 Ohio State (1-0 on 9/4/05), and No. 23 Penn State (2-0 on 9/2/05). The last time UNM had lost a non-conference game prior to this weekend was at No. 20 UC-Santa Barbara on October 12, 2003.
Reed Out for The Season: Freshman All-American and 2005 New Mexico Player of the Year Michael Reed suffered a knee injury during practice prior to the Lobos’ season opener against Portland and will be out for the rest of the season. Reed was expected to be an impact player, starting the Fort Lewis exhibition game in the midfield.
Senior Lars Loeseth will also play his final regular season home game at the UNM Soccer Complex on Sunday. |
Home Field Advantage: New Mexico finished the 2005 season with an 8-1-1 record at the UNM Soccer Complex and a 6-1-1 at home in 2006. The Lobos are now 37-3-4 at home in the last five years under head coach Jeremy Fishbein. The 3-2, overtime loss to San Jose State on Oct. 16 snapped a 14-match home winning streak, the longest in school history.
New NCAA Attendance Mark Set: Fans packed the UNM Soccer Complex for three rounds of the 2005 NCAA Tournament, setting record attendance marks in each game. Against Wisconsin-Milwaukee 4,552 fans spun the turnstiles, while a UNM Soccer Complex record 4,849 attended the Lobos’ 1-0, overtime win over Cal-State Northridge. That record lasted less than a week after a sellout crowd of 5,600 attended the Lobos’ 1-0 win over Cal in the quarterfinals. UNM’s record for attendance in a single home game is still 7,449 for a 2-0 loss to No. 4 UCLA on Sept. 23, 1989, however, that game was played in University Stadium. The Lobos drew over 4,000 fans five times in 2005, averaging an NCAA record 3,629 fans per game.
Fishbein Adds Two More Honors to His Resume: Lobo head coach Jeremy Fishbein added to his list of accomplishments with the 2005 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation co-Coach of the Year and the Far West Region Coach of the year honors. Fishbein was also the 2002 MPSF Coach of the Year and the 2004 Soccer America National Coach of the Year.
Fishbein Inducted Into the FLC Athletic Hall of Fame: University of New Mexico men’s soccer coach Jeremy Fishbein was inducted into the Fort Lewis College Athletic Hall of Fame on Aug. 19, in Durango, Colo. In seven seasons at Fort Lewis (1992-98), Fishbein’s teams posted a 74-47-7 record (.605) and won four league championships — two in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (1997, 1998) and two in the Colorado Athletic Conference (1993, 1995). He also guided the Skyhawks to their first two NCAA Division II playoff trips (1997, 1998).
Two other Lobo coaches are already in the Fort Lewis College Athletic Hall of Fame. UNM assistant men’s soccer coach Luc Cisna was a two-time All-American at FLC and a 2005 inductee. Lobo women’s basketball head coach in a Fort Lewis alum and a 2003 inductee.
Loeseth Making a Mark on Lobo Athletics: Senior midfielder Lars Loeseth accomplished a rare feat in 2005, two NCAA runner-up trophies in two different sports in the same year. Not only was he a part of the Lobo soccer team’s amazing run in 2005, he also was an All-American member of the second place UNM ski team in 2006. The Olso, Norway, native came to UNM in 2004 as a member of the Lobo Ski Team. He led New Mexico to the 2004 NCAA Skiing Championship, the school’s only NCAA title in any sport, behind All-American performances in the Slalom and Giant Slalom events. Loeseth trained with the soccer squad in the 2005 spring semester. He was so impressive that he was put on a soccer scholarship for the 2005-06 school year. The three-time All-American has been a part of three of the four most successful teams in school history.