Top-Ranked Terps Face William & Mary
9/22/2004 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 21, 2004
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The Maryland men's soccer team puts its No. 1 ranking on the line against this week with games against William & Mary and Duke.
The Terps are ranked No. 1 in the NSCAA/adidas Coaches Poll for the second time in school history. Last season, the team held the top spot from Sept. 8-Sept. 29.
Maryland is 6-1 all-time as the No. 1 team in the country. Last season, Maryland's reign as the top-ranked team was ended at North Carolina.
Maryland holds a slight 3-2 edge in the all-time series with William & Mary. The Terps have won three in a row in the series, defeating the Tribe 4-1 in 2002. William & Mary's last win in the series came in 1998, a 1-0 victory at Ludwig Field.
The game against William & Mary will be a homecoming of sorts for Williamsburg, Va., native Noah Palmer.
There will not be LiveStats or live audio for the game against William & Mary.
Up Next: Maryland will take on No. 13 Duke at home on Saturday, Sept. 25.
The Week That Was
• Maryland finished last week with an 1-0-1 record after routing Loyola, 9-0, and tying NC State, 1-1. The scoring output against Loyola was the highest for the Terps in 2004, while the one goal against NC State was the lowest.
• The nine goals was the most since the Terps defeated Manhattan, 10-0, on November 7, 2001, at Ludwig Field. Maryland set a Ludwig Field record with 13 assists against the Greyhounds. The previous high was 12, set against Manhattan. Abe Thompson tied the field record for points in a game (seven) -- the mark previously set by Jason Garey against St. John's. Michael Dello-Russo and Garey tied the field record for assists in a game (three).
• Abe Thompson pushed his career point total to 104, becoming just the second player in Maryland history to reach 100 career points. Thompson now needs just six more points to surpass Eberhard Klein (109 points) as the all-time leader.
• With the tie to NC State, it marks the first time Maryland hasn't started ACC play with a win since 2001 (a 1-0 loss to Duke on Sept. 22, 2001).
• Maryland has fallen behind in just two of its six games this season. However, it hasn't take the Terps long to get the equalizer as Maryland has been behind for just 25 minutes (out of 560).
• The tie to NC State means Maryland is 8-0-1 in its last nine meetings with the Pack.
• Jason Garey scored the lone goal for the Terps against the Wolfpack, meaning Garey has scored at least one goal in each of Maryland's six games this season.
Getting Offensive
• Maryland has proven so far in the young season to have one of the most explosive offenses in the country. The Terps have the highest scoring offense (5.00) in the country as of Sept. 12.
• The Terps have 30 goals through five games this season. Maryland did not tally its 30th goal in 2003 until October 26 (15 games).
The Best Feet Forward
• Maryland's dynamic forward combination of Abe Thompson and Jason Garey are proving to be a tenacious tandem in 2004.
• Through four games, the pair has 63 percent of Maryland's goals on the year (19 of 30) and just under 50 percent of the team's total points (48 of 102).
• Garey has scored a goal in each of Maryland's first six games.
• Garey leads the nation in points per game (4.33) and Thompson ranks third in that category (3.67). Garey is second in the country in goals per game (1.67), while Thompson is fourth in that category (1.50).
• Thompson or Garey scored seven straight goals, including all five against St. John's and the first two against Georgetown. They have scored a goal in each of the first five games.
Scouting The Tribe
• William & Mary enter Wednesday's contest with a 3-1-1 record on the year. In their last outing, the Tribe defeated Loyola 2-1 on Saturday.
• After a season-opening loss to South Carolina, the Tribe are unbeaten in their last four contests. William & Mary has wins over VMI, Navy and Loyola, while posting a tie against Rutgers.
• With the exception of the tie to Rutgers, all four of William & Mary's games have been decided by one goal. The Tribe have not allowed more than two goals in any game, and have not been shutout in any game this season.
• Five of W&M's seven goals have been unassisted.
• Brannon Thomas and Brendan McCurdy each have a pair of goals in 2004 to lead the way offensively. However, five differnt players have scored goals for William & Mary this season.
• Kris Rake has seen all of the action in net for the Tribe this season. Just a sophmore, Rake has started every game for the Tribe the past two seasons. In 2004, he is surrendering just 0.94 goals per game in 470 mintues of work, allowing just five goals and making 20 saves.
• With a 9-6-4 record in 2003, William & Mary has had 29 consecutive winning seasons, which is tied for the fourth-longest active streak in the NCAA.
• The Tribe are in their first season under head coach Chris Norris. Norris replaced long-time mentor Al Albert who retired after 33 seasons at William & Mary. Norris, a four-year starter for the Tribe from 1991-94, he was also an assistant under Albert for nine seasons.
