Game 25 ? #21 Bradley at #17 Maryland
Saturday, Dec. 1 ? 6 p.m. (EST)
Ludwig Field ? College Park, Md.
Series: First Meeting
Free Audio Stream: http://www.wmucsports.com/
Live Stats: http://www.umterps.com
Tickets: $10 adults, $5 students/children/seniors
Coaches
Bradley: Jim DeRose -- 12th year overall and at Bradley, 142-84-25 (.616)
Maryland: Sasho Cirovski -- 15th year at Maryland, 213-98-20 (.674), and 17th year overall, 239-110-26 (.672)
Bradley Advances to 3rd Round
? After three previous winless trips to the NCAA Tournament, Bradley has advanced to the third round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship for the first time in school history by knocking off a pair of regular-season conference champions -- DePaul (Big East Red) and Indiana (Big Ten co-champs).
? Saturday's game at Maryland will be the first in the all-time series between the two programs.
? Saturday's winner will advance to a quarterfinal game versus the winner of Saturday's third-round game between Ohio State and defending national champion UC Santa Barbara Dec. 7,8 or 9.
About the Braves
? The program suffered a tragic blow Aug. 12 with the death of redshirt freshman Danny Dahlquist in a house fire, as well as subsequent felony arson charges against three team members who shared the off-campus residence with Dahlquist.
? Despite missing as many as 16 preseason training sessions as a result of the tragedy, the Braves have responded by tying the program record for wins in a season (15-5-4), sweeping the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and postseason tournament titles and earning the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament victory.
? Bradley's primary strength is its veteran defense, led by fifth-year senior goalkeeper Mike Haynes (2nd-Team All-MVC), and a back four that includes three more fifth-year seniors: sweeper Joe Donoho (MVC Player of the Year), marking back Teddy Anderson (honorable mention All-MVC) and left back Stephen Brust (2nd-Team All-MVC).
? Senior midfielder Drew DeGurian (1st-Team All-MVC) has stepped up as the team's scoring leader with seven goals and seven assists.
About Maryland
? Maryland won the 2005 national championship and the Terrapins have advanced to the third round of the NCAA Men's Soccer championship for the sixth consecutive year.
? After receiving a first-round bye as the tournament's No. 13 seed, Maryland advanced to Saturday's third round by outlasting Loyola (Md.) in a shootout, 4-2, after a scoreless draw Wednesday night at Ludwig Field.
? Despite going scoreless Wednesday, the Terrapins have scored 34 goals in 20 games this year and have scored at least three goals in a game six times this year.
? The Terrapins are led by senior midfielder Stephen King, who has dished out 12 assists this year, while sophomore striker Drew Yates leads the squad with eight goals.
? Maryland has utilized a pair freshmen keepers this year, splitting time between Will Swaim (6-3-3, 0.73 GAA, 4 ShO) and Thorne Holder (4-2-2, 1.19 GAA, 2 ShO).
? Swaim played the the traditional 110 minutes Wednesday, making two saves for his fourth shutout, but Holder came in for the penalty kick shootout.
Bradley-Maryland Series
? Saturday's third-round NCAA Tournament game at Maryland will be the first-ever meeting between the Braves and Terrapins.
? Prior to this season, Bradley had played only one game in its history versus an ACC opponent, losing 3-1 to North Carolina in Creighton's tournament in 1999.
? Saturday's game at Maryland, however, will be Bradley's third against an ACC opponent this season.
? Participating in Wake Forest's Tournament the second weekend of the season, the Braves got a second half goal from Chris Cutshaw to earn a 1-1 tie versus North Carolina Sept. 7, before falling to then No. 1 Wake Forest, 3-0, in the tournament's final game Sept. 9.
Bradley's Results vs. the ACC
9-04-99 vs. North Carolina (at Creighton) L 1-3
9-07-07 vs. North Carolina (at WFU, 2ot) T 1-1
9-09-07 at #1 Wake Forest L 0-3
Common Opponents
? Bradley and Maryland have three common opponents in 2007: Indiana, North Carolina and Wake Forest.
? While Bradley is 0-1-2 against the three teams, Maryland split (1-1-1) against the three common opponents, most recently pulling out a 2-1 overtime decision versus North Carolina.
Opponent Bradley Maryland
Indiana N 28 at IU, 1-1 A 31 at IU, 1-1
UNC S 7 at WFU, 1-1 N 9 at UNC, 2-1 ot
Wake Forest S 9 at WFU, 0-3 S 29 at WFU, 0-2
To The Victor
? The winner of the Bradley-Maryland game will advance to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship for a quarterfinal game Dec. 7, 8, or 9 against the winner of Saturday's third-round game between Big Ten Conference Tournament champion Ohio State and the defending national champion UC Santa Barbara.
? If Bradley and UCSB both advance, it would mean the Braves would have faced the last four national champions during this NCAA Tournament: Indiana (2003, 2004), Maryland (2005) and UCSB (2006).
Contrast In Styles
? Bradley has leaned heavily on its defense en route to the third round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship by allowing just six goals in its last 12 games.
? The defensive effort has allowed Bradley to enter Saturday's game with a 9-1-2 record in its last 12 games.
? Conversely, Maryland scored 25 goals during a 10-game unbeaten streak (7-0-3) to end the regular season.
Regular-Season Three-Peat
? By overcoming an early deficit en route to a 4-1 victory Nov. 10 against Western Kentucky, Bradley completed an undefeated Missouri Valley Conference regular season to claim a share of its third straight league title.
? Bradley joins Creighton (1992-96) and SMU (2000-02) as the only teams to win at least a share of three straight Valley regular-season championships.
? With wins against Drake and Evansville the primary factors in the tie-breaker against Creighton, Bradley was the No. 1 seed for the State Farm MVC Tournament.
First Unbeaten Title
? While Bradley earned its fourth Valley regular-season title overall, Bradley's 4-0-2 conference record this season marks the first time the Braves have ever gone unbeaten in league play.
? Bradley won the 1998 title outright with a 6-1-0 Valley record, the 2005 championship outright with a 5-1-1 mark and claimed a share of the 2006 crown with a 4-1-1 record.
? Bradley also extended its school-record Valley unbeaten streak to nine games (7-0-2).
Automatic Entry
? Bradley backed up its regular-season league title by earning its first-ever Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championship at Creighton's Morrison Stadium.
? Bradley has played in seven of the last nine MVC Tournament championship games, but the 1-0 victory Nov. 18 at #7 Creighton gave the Braves their first-ever postseason championship.
Strength of the Valley
? The Missouri Valley Conference has received tremendous amounts of national publicity the last two years based on the success of its men's basketball teams.
? On the men's soccer side, Bradley is joined in the third round of the 2007 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship by perennial tournament participant Creighton.
? The Valley is one of three leagues with at least two teams still alive in the 2007 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship.
Big East (4): Connecticut, Notre Dame, South Florida, West Virginia
ACC (3): Maryland, Virginia Tech, West Virginia
MVC (2): Bradley, Creighton
Senior Leadership
? Bradley has turned the most difficult season in program history into the most successful, thanks in large part to the leadership of its eight-man senior class.
? Among the team's eight seniors, six are in at least their fifth year of college and five of the eight are 23 years old.
Bradley's Senior Class
Teddy Anderson Fifth-year senior 23 years old
Stephen Brust Fifth-year senior 23
Drew DeGurian Fourth-year senior 21
Joe Donoho Fifth-year senior 22
Mike Haynes Fifth-year senior 23
Ken Hickman Sixth-year senior 23
Todd Reedy Fifth-year senior 23
Cody Russell Fourth-year senior 21
Familiar Name
? Soccer fans in the Washington D.C. area should be familiar with at least one former Bradley soccer player: D.C. United veteran defender Bryan Namoff.
? Namoff starred at Bradley from 1997 to 2000, earning honorable mention All-American honors as a senior while leading the Braves to their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance as a high-scoring midfielder.
? Namoff became Bradley's first-ever MLS SuperDraft selection when he was taken in the second round in 2001 by D.C. and he has been a fixture in United's backline for most of his seven-year career.
? Although he lives in the D.C. area year-round, Namoff will not be able to attend Saturday's game at Maryland, however, as Saturday also is his wedding day.
One Win For Outright Record
? Bradley's 15 wins to date this season ties the single-season school record, equalling the 15 wins achieved in 2000 (15-7-2) and 2005 (15-6-1).
Most Games in a Season
? Saturday's game at Maryland will be the 25th of the season for Bradley, which will set the single-season school record.
? Nine team members have played in the first 24 games and are in position to claim the individual school record for games played in a season: Teddy Anderson, Justin Bigelow, Grant Campbell, Chris Cutshaw, Joe Donoho, Travis English, Rudy Garcia, Mike Haynes and Paul Tracy.
Quarter of a Thousand
? Bradley's first-round NCAA Tournament game versus DePaul was the 250th in the head coaching career of Bradley's Jim DeRose.
? Completing his 12th year in his Bradley and overall head coaching career, DeRose enters Saturday's game with a 142-84-25 (.616) career record.
? The winningest coach in Bradley Soccer history, DeRose's 142 victories represent 73.6 percent of the program's all-time 193 wins.
Brust Is On Fire
? Senior Stephen Brust earned second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors this season for his stellar play on Bradley's backline, but his offensive contributions the last three weeks of the season have been heroic.
? Brust has scored either the game-tying or game-winning goal in four of Bradley's last five games, including three of the most significant games in Bradley Soccer history.
? Began the stretch by scoring the game-tying goal in Bradley's regular-season finale against Western Kentucky, an eventual 4-1 win that clinched a share of the team's third straight Valley regular-season title.
? Scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute Nov. 18 at #7 Creighton (1-0), delivering Bradley's first-ever MVC Tournament championship.
? Added the game's first goal in the 61st minute last Saturday night against DePaul, scoring what proved to be the game-winning goal versus the Blue Demons for Bradley's first-ever NCAA Tournament victory.
? Most recently, Brust scored the game-tying goal in the 69th minute Wednesday at Indiana, then for good measure, started the deciding penalty kick shootout by converting his attempt.
? Prior to the last five games, Brust owned two goals in 45 career games for the Braves.
Taking On League Champs
? Indiana was the fifth regular-season or postseason conference tournament champion on Bradley's schedule this season.
? The Braves are 2-2-2 so far this year against conference champions:
Creighton (MVC regular-season co-champion): 1-0-1
DePaul (Big East Red regular-season champion): 1-0-0
Illinois-Chicago (Horizon League Tournament): 0-1-0
Indiana (Big Ten regular-season co-champion): 0-0-1
Saint Louis (Atlantic-10 regular-season): 0-1-0
Against The Top 25
? Saturday's game at Maryland, which is ranked as high as 17th in the national college soccer polls, will be Bradley's seventh game against a nationally-ranked opponent.
? So far this year, the Braves are 1-3-2 against nationally-ranked teams, all of which were actually ranked among the top nine at the time of their respective games against Bradley.
? Not only has Bradley faced six nationally-ranked teams this season, but like Saturday's game at Maryland, five of those games have been played on the road.
? Bradley is 4-13-3 all-time in road games versus the Top 25.
Quality, Not Quantity
? The key to Bradley's successful stretch run has been the quality of its scoring chances, not necessarily the quantity.
? While compiling a 9-1-2 record, Bradley has been outshot in nine of the last 12 games and by a total 191-148 count in those games.
? Despite taking 43 fewer shots than the opposition in the last 12 games, the Braves have outscored their opponents 19-6 down the stretch.
Did You Know?
The fact that Bradley survived Wednesday's double-overtime draw at Indiana should not come as a surprise. Bradley owns the all-time college soccer record by going unbeaten (10-0-14) in 24 consecutive overtime games, a streak that started Sept. 15, 2001 at VCU and was ended by Illinois-Chicago Sept. 3, 2006 at Shea Stadium.
