Sept. 2, 2004

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The men's soccer team will open the 2004 campaign this weekend at the Virginia/Nike Classic. The third-ranked Terps will take on Long Island on Friday, Sept. 3, at 5 p.m., and will face Marshall on Sunday, Sept. 5, at noon. Maryland is coming off a pair of 20-win seasons and consecutive College Cup appearances.

Both games are scheduled to be aired live on www.wmucsports.com. Once on that page, select which type of connection you have (broadband or modem), and the feed will come through when the broadcast begins.

Noteworthy
• Including the tournament the Terps played in 1994, the team is 6-1-1 at the tournament at Virginia, with its lone loss coming to Kentucky in 2002.
• Maryland is 34-21-0 in season openers, and head coach Sasho Cirovski is 7-4 at Maryland in season openers.

Preseason Notebook
• The Terps are ranked anywhere from third to 15th in the national polls. In the NSCAA presesaon poll, Maryland is ranked third behind only Indiana and St. John's.
• In the ACC preseason poll, the Terps were picked to finish fourth behind North Carolina, Virginia and Wake Forest. The Terps won the ACC regular season a year ago and were the runner-ups in the ACC Tournament.
• Maryland returns 57% of its goal scoring from 2003, including leading scorer Jason Garey and Hermann Trophy semifinalist Abe Thompson.
• Six starters return to the squad that earned its second straight 20-win season (the most in Maryland history) and back-to-back appearances in the College Cup. The Terps have won more games than any other team in the country over the last two seasons.
• Prior to the regular season, the Terps took a 12-day preseason training trip to England and Scotland. In addition to the various sight-seeing, the team went 3-2 in five games. In addition to the soccer skills gained during the trip, it also served as a good way for the team to bond. Domenic Mediate scored four goals and had three assists to lead all scorers, while Jason Garey chipped in three goals and three assists to help pace the Terps.
• Maryland added nine players to the squad in 2004, and this recruiting class was ranked as the fifth-best in the nation. The new players include Eric Brunner (Columbus, Ohio), Spencer Darman Allen (Washington, D.C.), Maurice Edu (Fontana, Calif.), Aki Kadotani (Fairfax, Va.), Stephen King (Medford, N.J.), Kevin Reiman (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) and Keith Vereb (Bowie, Md.). The Terps also added transfers Robbie C'deBaca (New Mexico) and Dan Waldo (Rutgers) to this year's squad.

Record Watch
• Goalkeeper Noah Palmer needs just three shutouts this season to become Maryland's all-time leader in that category. Palmer has 25 shutouts in his three seasons, two shy of Dom Macina's record of 27.
• Last season, Palmer set the Maryland single-season mark for GAA with 0.58, and his career GAA stands at 0.79. With another solid season, Palmer will set the career mark for GAA which is also held by Macina (0.82).
• Abe Thompson could also make a run at some career records at Maryland in 2004. Thompson ranks fifth for career goals (32), fourth for career points (82) and 10th for career assists (18).

Coach Sasho Cirovski
• Head coach Sasho Cirovski enters his 12th season at the helm of the Maryland Terrapin soccer program. Cirovski has transformed Maryland into a national soccer power, leading the Terps to College Cup appearances, ACC titles and producing top-level professional players.
• During his tenure with the Terps, Maryland has been to the NCAA Tournament nine times, advancing to the Final Four in three of those years, including the back-to-back appearances in 2002 and 2003. The Terps have also captured two ACC Tournament titles (1996 and 2002) and one ACC regular season title (2003) during his stay in College Park. His overall record, which includes two seasons at Hartford, stands at 177-90-16, and his record at Maryland is an impressive 151-78-10.
• A season ago, Cirovski was named the ACC Coach of the Year in helping guide Maryland to a 20-3-1 record, its first No. 1 ranking in the NSCAA poll, a second consecutive Final Four appearance and the ACC regular season crown. The 20 wins matched the school record set in 2002, and four Terp players were selected in the first two rounds of the MLS draft, more than any other team in the nation.
• Cirovski is assisted by Brian Pensky and Rob Vartughian. Pensky is in his third season working with the Terp program, while Vartughian his in his second campaign as the primary coach with the goalkeepers.

Protecting The House
• The Terps have been nearly unbeatable at Ludwig Field over the past two seasons. Maryland is 17-1-0 (including NCAA Tournament games, with the lone loss coming to Bucknell on November 4.
• Part of the home field advantage has been the tremendous student support at the games. The loyal student section is know as "The Crew."
• Ludwig Field has also gone under some renovations that continue to make it one of the top soccer venues in the country. New for 2004 is a new scoreboard and an upgrade to the lighting.

Two Is Enough
• Maryland is 35-0-1 in its last 36 games when at least scoring two goals in a game. The Terps' last loss after scoring two goals came on October 28, 2000, against Clemson.
• All three of Maryland's losses in 2003 came by a 1-0 score.

The Road Ahead
• The Terps again will test itself against top-notch competition in 2004.
• Five opponents are ranked among the Top 25 by the NSCAA, while six Terp opponents are ranked among the nation's best by Soccer America.

Back In The Back
• Chris Lancos and Kenney Bertz, consistent starters on defense over the past two defense, have moved from outside defenders to central defenders in 2004, replacing Seth Stammler and Clarence Goodson.
• Bertz provides an imposing physical presence, while Lancos is a superior one-on-one defender who is able to stop runs.
• Over the past two seasons, the Maryland defense has had 26 shutouts in 49 games.