Sept. 2, 2009
New Mexico Shuts Out No. 21 Saint Louis
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The No. 37 University of New Mexico men’s soccer team kicks off the 2009 home season at the UNM Soccer Complex against No. 22 San Francisco at 7 p.m. MT on Saturday, Sept. 5. A live video feed and audio broadcast will be available on GoLobos.com along with GameTracker.
A pair of UNM season football tickets will be given away during the match, and the first 200 Lobo fans entering the stadium will receive a free meal coupon from Sweet Tomatoes. The home opener is sponsored by Sweet Tomatoes.
The Lobos are coming off a commanding performance at Robert R. Hermann Stadium on Tuesday night, where they shut out No. 21 Saint Louis 3-0 on the road. Seniors Simon Ejdemyr, Justin Davis, and P.J. Wilson notched a goal apiece for New Mexico, setting the tone for the 2009 season with a huge win in the season opener. UNM outshot SLU 15-9, padding their 1-0 halftime lead with two convincing second-halfstrikes. The Lobos are currently 1-0-0 on the season.
No. 37 New Mexico wrapped up a 11-6-2 season in 2008, finishing second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) with a mark of 7-3-0. The Lobos return senior forward Justin Davis, who led the Lobos and the MPSF in scoring last season with seven goals and six assists for 20 points. He’ll anchor the offensive attack with his speed and ability to find the back of the net from almost anywhere in the offensive half of the field. Davis racked up first-team all-MPSF honors in addition to a third-team all-Far West Region nod.
The Lobo backline will also be one of the team’s strongest assets of the ’09 season, anchored by senior central defender Simon Ejdemyr. His intimidating size at 6-foot-5 and soccer intelligence will be a huge obstacle for opposing teams. Ejdemyr is also a threat to score on set pieces, evidenced by his five goals and single assist last season. Ejdemyr was also a first-team all-MPSF and third-team all-Far West Region selection.
The University of San Francisco is coming off a 4-1 home-field victory over the University of Missouri-Kansas City on Tuesday night at Negoesco Stadium in the season opener for both teams. USF recorded a pair of goals in each half and improved to 2-0 against UMKC, the defending Summit League Tournament Champions. San Francisco held a 13-6 shot advantage and the Dons defense limited UKMC to just two shots after the intermission.
The University of San Francisco has been selected as the favorite in the 2009 West Coast Conference preseason coaches’ poll. The Dons wrapped up last season 9-10-2 overall, posting a 7-4-1 mark in conference play and advancing to the program’s 31st NCAA Tournament in 2008.
USF will be returning eight starters and 15 lettermen from last season, highlighted by senior forward Conor Chinn. Chinn was the WCC Player of the Year in 2008, notching 17 goals and one assist for 35 points. Both Chinn and teammate Bryan Burke (Jr., F) were named to the preseason all-conference team this year. New Mexico has beaten the Dons in the teams’ last two meetings, dropping USF 2-0 and 1-0 on the road in 2007 and 2006, respectively. The Lobos lead the all-time series 3-2-0.
SAN FRANCISCO DONS
Location: San Francisco, Calif.
Conference: West Coast
Head Coach: Erik Visser
Record at San Francisco: 80-65-10 (8)
Career Record: same
Starters Returning/Lost: 8/3
Lettermen Returning/Lost: 15/9
2008 Record: 9-10-1
2008 Conference Record: 7-4-1 (1st)
NM vs. Saint Louis: 3-2-0
Last Time: UNM won 2-0 (9-22-07) in San Francisco, Calif.
Web Site: www.USFDons.com
LAST TIME:The Lobos are coming off a commanding performance at Robert R. Hermann Stadium on Tuesday night, where they shut out No. 21 Saint Louis 3-0 on the road. Seniors Simon Ejdemyr, Justin Davis, and P.J. Wilson notched a goal apiece for New Mexico, setting the tone for the 2009 season with a huge win in the season opener. UNM outshot SLU 15-9, padding their 1-0 halftime lead with two convincing second-halfstrikes. The Lobos are currently 1-0-0 on the season.
EJDEMYR ON PENALTY KICKS:Strong-footed Lobo senior Simon Ejdemyr is currently 7-7 on career penalty kicks. Ejdemyr scored the Lobos’ first goal of the 2009 season on a penalty kick at Robert R. Hermann Stadium against No. 21 Saint Louis. Ejdemyr also scored the Lobos’ last goal of the 2008 season on a penalty kick, the lone strike in New Mexico’s 1-0 win over No. 25 Denver at home on Nov. 16. The Lobos’ home-field win over Denver was the last time the Lobos beat a ranked team.
EXHIBITION PLAY:New Mexico looked tough in exhibition play, posting a mark of 3-0 in the 2009 preseason. The Lobos defeated No. 12 Tulsa 3-2 on the road in the exhibition opener and shutout Oral Roberts 2-0 in Tulsa, Okla. New Mexico posted a 4-0 win over CSU-Pueblo in the final exhibition match at the UNM Soccer Complex. Senior Stephen Brown scored two of the Lobos three goals against Tulsa and senior P.J. Wilson scored both goals in the 2-0 win over Oral Roberts. Senior Justin Davis notched two goals of the Lobos’ four goals at home against CSUP.
UNM HAS WON SIX LEAGUE TITLES IN EIGHT YEARS:The Lobos have dominated Mountain Pacific Sports Federation standings in recent years, winning six league titles out of the last eight. All of UNM’s league trophies have come since the 2001 season. The Lobos are 48-10-6 in MPSF action in seven seasons under current head coach Jeremy Fishbein.
TWO ALL-REGION, FOUR ALL-MPSF AND SEVEN STARTERS RETURN IN 2009:The Lobos return seven starters and 14 lettermen for the 2009 campaign. Highlighting this list is senior forward Justin Davis and senior defender Simon Ejdemyr, who were first-team All-MPSF selections in 2008. Both Davis and Ejdemyr were also members of the All-Far West Region second and third teams, respectively. Davis led the Lobos and the MPSF in scoring last season with seven goals and six assists for 20 points, while Ejdemyr scored five goals and notched one assist as a defender. Juniors Ryan Farquharson and and Michael Reed return from the All-MPSF squad, while seniors Stephen Brown and P.J. Wilson and sophomore Michael Green are all returning starters.
FIREPOWER RETURNS:The Lobos will have 78 percent of their goals scored returning from last season, including MPSF leading scorer Justin Davis and sharp-shooting Simon Ejdemyr, who went 4-4 on penalty kicks last season. Senior P.J. Wilson had three goals on the season in 2008, while senior Stephen Brown and sophomore Michael Green scored two apiece.
DAVIS CLIMBS THE ALL-TIME LISTS:Senior forward Justin Davis is within striking distance of several Lobo All-Time lists as he enters the 2009 season. His 13 career goals put him six away from cracking the top ten, while he only needs two more in the assist column. Davis is also ten points and nine shots away from the top ten lists in the respective categories.
ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN STREAK CONTINUES:Senior Simon Ejdemyr was named an ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American selection in 2008, earning first-team honors. New Mexico is the only team in the country to have at least one Academic All-American award-winner every year since 2003.
LOBOS DOMINANT IN CLASSROOM:The Lobos were just as aggressive in the classroom as they were on the field in 2008. As a team, New Mexico earned its sixth straight National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic Award. The award is given to teams who achieve a 3.0 grade point average for the academic year. The Lobos return three student-athletes from last year’s Academic All-MPSF list in senior Simon Ejdemyr and juniors Michael Reed and James Urbany. This marks the second Academic All-MPSF award for Ejdemyr and Reed, and the first for Urbany. Ejdemyr was also selected to the Academic Far West All-Region team.
LOBOS TOUGH AT HOME UNDER FISHBEIN:The Lobo men’s soccer team has posted a 29-2-1 mark in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation action at the UNM Soccer Complex under head coach Jeremy Fishbein. The only two MPSF losses at home under Fishbein came against UNLV (2-0 on Oct. 18, 2003) and San Jose State (3-2 (OT) on Oct. 16, 2005. New Mexico carries a 54-7-5 mark overall in seven years under Fishbein at the UNM Soccer Complex. The Lobos capped off the 2008 season with a 1-0 win over No. 25 Denver at home.
NEW MEXICO IS STRONG WITH A LEAD:The Lobos are tough to beat when scoring first or leading at the half. In head coach Jeremy Fishbein’s tenure, New Mexico is 83-5-9 when finding the back of the net first and 54-2-4 when holding a halftime led. The last time the Lobos surrendered a lead and lost the match was at Washington on Sept. 21, 2008 in a 3-2 OT loss to the Huskies.
NEW MEXICO 12TH IN THE NCAA IN HOME ATTENDANCE:UNM averaged 1,632 fans per game at the UNM Soccer Complex in the 2008 season. A total of 16,322 spun the turnstiles in ten home games last year, ranking 12th in average attendance in the NCAA. The Lobos were 8-2-0 in the 10 home games in 2008. UNM has ranked in the Top-15 in attendance each year since the 2001 season. The Lobos 3,629 average in 2005 is still a single-season NCAA record for average per game in a season.
FARMING LOCAL TALENT:Three New Mexico freshmen join the Lobo ranks this season, raising the number of local players on the 2009 UNM roster to six. Midfielder Patrick Pacheco of Taos HS was the school record holder for most goals in a season (32) and most assists (16) in a season, in addition to being the all-time leading goal scorer at THS with 67 goals and 36 assists in a four-year span. Pacheco was named second team all-state in 2007 and 2008. Midfielder Julian Roberts of Rio Rancho HS played on two district championship teams in 2007 and 2008, and was named first-team all-district in 2007. Forward/midfielder Lawrence Robledo of La Cueva HS was a member of the 2008 state championship team, was named second team all-state as a senior, and was an all-state honorable mention his junior year. Robledo was also the fifth-leading scorer in district 5A with 19 goals and 17 assists, totaling 55 points his senior year. Pacheco, Roberts, and Robledo team up with fellow New Mexicans Michael Reed (MF, Sandia HS), Dominique Romero (MF, La Cueva HS), and Victor Rodriguez (GK, Las Cruces HS) on this year’s squad.
2009 SPRING SEASON:The Lobos played five matches in the 2009 Spring season, posting a mark of 3-0-2.April 4 – 2-1 win over Fort Lewis College (Wilson, Ejdemyr)April 4 – 1-0 over Colorado State Pueblo (Davis)April 11 – 0-0 tie at UC-Santa BarbaraApril 12 – 0-0 tie at Cal-Poly
UNM SOCCER COMPLEX:2009 marks the 14th year the Lobos will take the pitch at the UNM Soccer Complex. The home field for the Lobos seats 6,200 fans and is equipped with endline bleachers, a new press box and a Daktronics video scoreboard. The Lobo men’s soccer locker room boasts state-of-the-art video equipment, personalized lockers, and a spacious area for use solely by the men’s soccer program.