Bradley Wins Second MVC Soccer Title
By ending the regular-season on a six-game winning streak, Bradley (14-4-1, 5-1-1) secured its second Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championship by earning a 1-0 victory Saturday night at Missouri State. The Braves, who won their first Valley championship in 1998, already had been picked to host the 2005 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament through a bid process last summer, but now the Braves will host the six-team tournament at Shea Stadium as the top seed.
The tournament kicks off Wednesday at 5 p.m. with a pair of quarterfinal games -- No. 3 seed Vanderbilt versus No. 6 seed Eastern Illinois, followed by #4 seed Drake versus #5 seed Missouri State. The semifinals will be played Friday when No. 2 seed Creighton takes on the Vanderbilt/Eastern Illinois winner at 5 p.m., followed by the Braves versus the Drake/Missouri State winner. The championship game will be played Sunday at 1 p.m. at Shea Stadium and will be televised on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Fox Sports Midwest and Fox College Sports.
Dunsheath Breaks Shutout Records
? Bradley senior keeper Chris Dunsheath helped Bradley secure its second Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title in record-setting style Saturday.
? By making four saves at Missouri State, Dunsheath recorded his 10th shutout of the season, while increasing his career total to 26.5.
? The 10 shutouts in 2005 breaks his own single-season school record of 9.0 set in 2002.
? The 26.5 career shutouts breaks the Valley career record of 26.0, which was set by Missouri State’s Mark Modersohn from 1997 through 2000.
Magic 14
? With two wins last week, Bradley improved to 14-4-1, marking the fourth time in program history the Braves have won at least 14 games.
? The Braves have been rewarded in each of their previous three 14-win seasons.
? In 1998, Bradley set the program record for winning percentage by going 14-2-2 overall on the way to their first Valley regular-season title.
? The Braves won a program-record 15 games in 2000 (15-7-2), the year they earned their first NCAA Tournament invitation.
? Bradley earned its second NCAA Tournament at-large invitation in 2002 to cap a 14-6-4 season.
Semifinal Streak Intact
? By earning the top seed and a first-round bye for this week’s State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, Bradley ensured itself a spot in the semifinals for an eighth consecutive season.
? Bradley’s streak of eight straight appearances in the MVC Tournament semifinals is the longest active streak in the Valley.
Friday’s 8,000-Minute Man
? Having already played 7,927 career minutes, senior keeper Chris Dunsheath should become the fifth goalkeeper in NCAA Division I history to play at least 8,000 minutes when Friday’s second semifinal game reaches the 74th minute.
? Dunsheath enters the tournament seventh in Division I history and ninth in all divisions for career keeper minutes.
