Nov. 17, 2009

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COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland begins the road to a repeat title Thursday when it plays host to Loyola (Md.) in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship at Ludwig Field. First kick is slated for 7 p.m.

Maryland (12-5-2) heads into postseason play unseeded for the first time since 2001 and boasts a 6-1 record in NCAA first round matches under head coach Sasho Cirovski. The Terps have now earned nine consecutive bids to the NCAA Tournament and aim to extend its streak to eight-straight sweet sixteen berths. Maryland has been to five final fours since 2002, winning two national title in the last four seasons.

Tickets for Thursday's NCAA action versus the MAAC champion Loyola (Md.) Greyhounds are $10 for adults and $5 for students, seniors and children and can be purchased in advance by following the link above.

SCOUTING LOYOLA (Md.)...
• Loyola (Md.) (11-7-3) defeated Niagara in overtime to win the 2009 MAAC Championship and earn an automatic bid the NCAA Tournament.
• Maryland edged Loyola in penalty kicks, 4-2, to advance to the Sweet Sixteen of the 2007 NCAA Tournament. Current Terrapins Doug Rodkey, Will Swaim, Billy Cortes, Drew Yates and Greg Young all landed on the stat sheet in that match, with Swaim earning the win in goal. • The Greyhounds are led offensively by Jamie Darvill, who has ten goals and nine assists but did not play in Loyola's conference tourney finale.
• Kyle Wittman has surrendered 14 goals in 19 games this season and has 82 saves at keeper.
• Maryland is only the third ranked opponent the Greyhounds have faced this season. Loyola fell to #14 Monmouth and defeated #22 Iona.
• Maryland leads the all-time series, 25-8-6, including an 11-2-2 record since head coach Sasho Cirovski's arrival to College Park in 1993.

MARYLAND AND THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
• Maryland looks to defend its national title Thursday when it begins the quest for a repeat at Ludwig Field.
• The Terps boast a 39-23-4 record in 28 NCAA appearances heading into the 2009 campaign.
• This is the first season Maryland has entered the tournament unseeded since 2001, snapping a nation-best streak of seven-straight seasons with a first-round bye.
• Maryland has been to the NCAA Tournament 15 out of the last 16 seasons. The Terps have advanced to the Sweet Sixteen seven consecutive seasons and landed in the Final Four five times since 2002.
• The Terps are 9-10 in first round NCAA matches in program history.

FIRST TIME'S THE CHARM
• Maryland has been tremendous at keeping the lead once it gets it this season.
• The Terps are undefeated (9-0) this season when they score first.
• Maryland is 9-0 when leading heading into the second half.

CAPTAIN CLUTCH
• Maryland junior Jason Herrick has been the Terps' top clutch performer in 2009.
• The Elmhurst, Ill., product has a Maryland-best eight goals this season.
• Six of the captain's eight scores have been game-winners, including consecutive game-winners against No. 16 Georgetown, Clemson and Seton Hall.

LAST TIME OUT...
• Maryland ran up against the elements and a tough Virginia squad in ACC quarterfinal action last Wednesday.
• Tony Tchani scored the lone goal of the game in the 87th minute to lift the Cavs to the victory. Virginia moved on to win the championship.

PACKING THE STANDS
• Maryland is currently second in the nation in attendance this season, trailing only UC Santa Barbara.
• Below is a rundown of the top 10 attendance averages in the nation in 2009 as of Oct. 30.

1. UC Santa Barbara 4836
2. Maryland 3085
3. Connecticut 2877
4. Creighton 2449
5. Indiana 2335
6. New Mexico 2254
7. North Carolina 1819
8. Wake Forest 1773
9. Portland 1690
10. Clemson 1681

CIROVSKI RETURNS FOR 17th SEASON
• Head coach Sasho Cirovski is in his 17th season at the helm of the storied Maryland men's soccer program and his 19th overall.
• Cirvoski's resume is nothing short of impressive, possessing a 248-107-22 record with the Terps, with a pair of national championships, 14 NCAA appearances, three ACC Tournament championships, six appearances in the College Cup, and 16-straight winning seasons.
• He became the winningest head coach in Maryland men's soccer history last season, passing long-time coach Doyle Royal.

YOUTH NATION
• Maryland boasts one of the youngest starting lineups in the country this season.
• 46 percent of the Terrapins' points (34 out of 74) this season have come courtesy of the freshman and sophomore classes. In total, nine underclassmen have tallied a goal and/or an assist in 2009.

THE GOLD STANDARD
• Maryland established several school-records on its way to the national title last season including wins (23) and shutouts (15) in a season as well as a program-best 16-game winning streak.

HELPING THE CAUSE
• After a stellar freshman campaign, Matt Kassel leads the charge in assists this season with six.
• In total, an amazing 13 players have tallied assists in 2009.
• Following Kassel, Forbess (3) and Darko (2) are the other Terrapins with multiple assists this season.

TERPS PICK UP PROGRAM WIN NO. 600
• The Maryland men's soccer team defeated No. 2 North Carolina, 1-0, in front of a Ludwig Field record crowd of 6,946 on Sept. 22, 2009 to pick up its 600th win in program history.
• One of the finest college soccer programs in the nation with a pair of national championships in the last four seasons, Maryland boasts a 607-303-79 record overall and 167-119-23 in conference play.

ACC- THE BEST OF THE BEST
• Last year's College Cup was filled to the brim with ACC squads as North Carolina, Wake Forest and Maryland advanced to the final four in Frisco, Texas.
• Known as the premier soccer conference in the nation, the ACC is tough again in 2009 with seven teams in the NCAA Tournament field. Virginia, Wake Forest, North Carolina and N.C. State were awarded seeds while Maryland, Boston College and Duke also advanced to postseason play.

HOME SWEET LUDWIG
• Maryland ranked fifth in the nation in 2008 in attendance, averaging 2,545 per game.
• Ludwig Field has already had its attendance record broken twice this season as 6,718 fans came out for the Terps' season opener against UCLA and then a crowd of 6,946 commenced in Maryland's upset win against No. 2 North Carolina on Sept. 22.
• This season, Ludwig Field has grown an additional 500 seats for a total capacity of 7,000.

TOP CROWDS IN LUDWIG HISTORY
9/25/09 - North Carolina, 6,946
9/4/09 - UCLA, 6,718
9/26/08 - Wake Forest, 6,500
9/29/06 - Duke, 6,489
10/14/06 - Boston College, 6,214
10/29/05 - Indiana, 6,203

HERRICK EARNS NATIONAL HONORS
• Jason Herrick has been named to TopDrawerSoccer.com and College Soccer News' National Teams of the Week, in October.
• Herrick scored two game-winners in wins at No. 16 Georgetown and Clemson last week before tacking on his third-straight game-winning score against Seton Hall Tuesday night. The co-captain leads Maryland in game-winning scores (6) and goals (8).

GONZALEZ NAMED MLS TOP ROOKIE
• Former Maryland standout Omar Gonzalez has been named 2009 Gatorade Rookie of the Year announced by Major League Soccer.
• Gonzalez was one of only 14 players in the league to play in all 30 regular season games and ranked second among all rookies with 2,672 minutes played.
• Maryland now boasts two of the last three Gatorade Rookies of the Year as Maurice Edu garnered the award in 2007 as a member of Toronto FC.
• Joining Gonzalez as former Terps on Soccer America's 2009 MLS All-Rookie Team is A.J. Delagarza, Rodney Wallace and Jeremy Hall.

IN MEMORY OF...
• Four days after the passing of long-time Maryland athletics supporter and Maryland men's soccer fan Jack Heise, the Terps rallied for an incredible comeback against Virginia Tech on Oct. 9 at Ludwig Field.
• Jack Heise Scholarship award winner Kevin Tangney netted the game-tying score with 3:02 remaining in the game. John Stertzer put away the game-winner with 52.3 seconds left to lift the Terps to their third ACC win of the year.

TERPS LITTER ACC LIST
• Jason Herrick and Zac MacMath landed on the 2009 ACC Men's Soccer First Team.
• Herrick led Maryland in goals and points with eight and 17, respectively. MacMath was tabbed the top keeper in the ACC after helping lead a completely refurbished backline to eight shutouts in 18 matches.
• Seniors Kevin Tangney and Drew Yates earned second-team honors while Ethan White and Taylor Kemp were tabbed to the All-Freshman Team.

RELOADED
• Despite losing all four starters from the defense in 2008, Maryland has reloaded in the back and is having another tremendous season with eight shutouts in 19 games.
• Freshmen standouts Taylor Kemp and Ethan White are joined by sophomore Alex Lee and fifth-year senior captain Kevin Tangney as well as reserve Kwame Darko in a new back line that has not batted an eye this season. Tangney, a player who already has two national championships to his name, has endured two separate ACL surgeries to win a starting spot in his final season at Maryland.
• Departed Terps from last year's back line Omar Gonzalez, A.J. Delagarza and Rodney Wallace have started nearly match for their respective MLS clubs in their rookie seasons.

TERPS IN THE PROS
• The Terps lost eight letterwinners from a year ago, including five that were drafted in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft.
• Maryland, for only the second time ever in MLS history, had three players selected in the first round, including Omar Gonzalez (3rd - L.A. Galaxy), Rodney Wallace (6th - D.C. United) and Jeremy Hall (11th - New York Red Bulls).
• Joining the three Generation adidas players are departed seniors A.J. Delagarza, who was nabbed by the Galaxy with the 19th pick and College Cup Most Outstanding Player Graham Zusi, who landed in Kansas City after being selected 23rd overall.

TANGNEY SNAGS WEEKLY AWARDS
• Kevin Tangney was tabbed the Soccer America National Player of the Week in addition to picking up the Atlantic Coast Conference weekly award after scoring the game-winner against No. 2 North Carolina on Sept. 25.
• Tangney was instrumental in a pair of shutout wins for Maryland, which moved up to No. 2 in the NSCAA/adidas national rankings this week.
• Tangney was also named to College Soccer News' Team of the Week.

OFFENSIVE RETURNS
• Maryland returns 42 percent of its scoring last season including Casey Townsend, who was second on the team with 11 goals in 2008. The vast majority of the set-up men return as Doug Rodkey and Matt Kassel, who ranked first and second, respectively, in assists, will be back in the starting lineup in 2009.

KEEPING THE STREAK ALIVE
• Maryland has several streaks they look to continue in 2009.
• The program has had 16 consecutive winning seasons in addition to making seven-straight Sweet 16 appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• In total, Maryland has been to nine consecutive NCAA Tournaments while advancing to the final four in six of the last eight seasons.

WELCOME ROOKIES
• Once again, Cirovski and his staff have compiled a top tier recruiting class, earning a No. 2-ranking by both Soccer America and College Soccer News.
• The ten-player class is highlighted by three NSCAA All-Americans, including Taylor Kemp, Jordan Cyrus and London Woodberry, along with international standouts Widner Saint Cyr and Gonzalo Frechilla.

SENIOR DAY
• The Maryland men's soccer program has profited greatly from the dedication of its 2009 senior class.
• Seniors Kwame Darko, Tyler Mishalow, Doug Rodkey, Kevin Tangney and Drew Yates have all spent at least four seasons at Maryland.
• Rodkey, Darko and Tangney will all leave College Park with at least two national championships under their belts.
• Members of this year's class has helped the Terps to 80 wins in a five-year span.
• The five-player class has combined for 18 goals and 25 assists.

TOWNSEND GARNERS PRESEASON AWARD
• Maryland forward Casey Townsend was tabbed to the Soccer America Presason All-America Second Team.
• The Traverse City, Mich., native, was named an All-ACC Freshman Team selection in 2008.
• Townsend already has three goals in five games this season.

SOPHOMORE SENSATIONS
• Maryland relies heavily on its coveted sophomore class.
• Zac MacMath returns in goal after a tremendous freshman campaign. The U-20 national team product led the nation in goals against average (0.44) in 2008. The sophomore boasts an 9-4-2 record in 2009 thus far.
• Matt Kassel will look to improve in the midfield and joins now-healthy classmate Kaoru Forbess. Forbess notched his first career goal as a Terrapin against Loyola (Chicago) on Oct. 6. The pair has teamed up for nine of Maryland's 22 assists in 2009. Kassel leads the Terps with six.
• Casey Townsend, who ranked second on the squad in scoring with 11 goals, aims to have another stellar season in 2009. He has four goals in an injury-shortened 11 games this season.

ANTICIPATED STARTERS

MARYLAND
Forwards
#9 Jason Herrick - Jr.
#11 Casey Townsend - Fr.

Midfield
#23 Kaoru Forbess - So.
#7 Billy Cortes #10 Drew Yates - Sr.
#8 Matt Kassel - So.

Defense
#2 Taylor Kemp - Fr.
#4 Ethan White - Fr.
#15 Kevin Tangney - Sr.
#14 Kwame Darko - Sr.

Goalkeeper
#1 Zac MacMath - So.

LOYOLA (MD.)
Forwards
#11 Bannister, Phil

Midfielders
#6 Leitch, Glenn
#7 Ankrah, Danny
#8 Dines, Eddie
#16 Deasel, Mike
#19 McHugh, Wade
#27 Hutton, Charlie

Defense
#5 McVea, Tennant
#17 Curran, Kevin
#25 Jones, Gerwyn

Goalkeeper
#1 Wittman, Kyle

LIGHTS OUT AT LUDWIG
• Maryland scored a total of seven goals as five different Terps found the back of the net in a 7-0 shutout against Duquesne on Sept. 15 at Ludwig Field.
• 24 players saw game action for Maryland as eight different players notched at least a point in the match, led by a hat trick by Casey Townsend and two assists and a goal from Matt Kassel.
• Several firsts were established as well as six players saw their first action as Terrapins, goalkeeper Will Swaim tallied his first career assist and freshmen John Stertzer and Ethan White each registered their first goals in the Red and Black.

SEASON SNAPSHOT
• After establishing the `Gold Standard' in 2008 with an NCAA National Championship, an ACC Tournament title and a school-record 23 wins and 15 shutouts, the Terps have a tall task ahead to repeat the kind of success they achieved just a year ago.
• However, with a core of returners including All-ACC honorees Zac MacMath, Matt Kassel and Casey Townsend, solid leadership from a talented group of upperclassmen, and a promising nationally-ranked recruiting class, there are plenty of reasons to believe the 2009 Terps will reach the College Cup and beyond.
• MacMath returns to goal after a spectacular freshman season where he led the nation in goals against average (0.44). He also tied a Maryland program-record with 12 shutouts and ran off a streak of 19 consecutive wins after losing his collegiate debut to California.
• The biggest question mark for the Terps this season will be the backline. After being depleted by the graduation of three-year starter Rich Costanzo and the departures of All-American Omar Gonzalez, Rodney Wallace and A.J. Delagarza to the MLS, Cirovski will rely heavily on a young, fresh crop of defenders in 2009. The refurbished backline will, however, profit from the experience of Kevin Tangney as an anchor.
• The midfield, along with the forward corps, should be strong units for Maryland in 2009. The Terps return seniors Doug Rodkey and Drew Yates along with sophomores Kassel and Kaoru Forbess, to the midfield.
• Maryland is thrilled to return both of its starters at the forward position as junior Jason Herrick and Townsend are poised for their second season working together up front. The duo combined for 15 goals last season.