Nov. 24, 2009

Game Notes | Maryland NCAA Tournament Central

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Defending national champion Maryland travels to No. 10 seed Harvard Sunday for third round action of the 2009 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. Sunday's match is slated to begin at 1 p.m.

Maryland (14-5-2) defeated No. 7 seed Penn State last Sunday to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the eighth consecutive season. Jason Herrick tallied his seventh game-winning goal of the year when his score in the 86th minute provided the Nittany Lions with their first loss at home this season. Billy Cortes was named to College Soccer News' National Team of the Week after tying a career-high with three points on a goal and an assist versus Penn State.

Last season, Maryland topped California, 2-1, in the Sweet Sixteen at Ludwig Field. The Terps are 4-2-1 in third round matches since the tournament field was expanded to 48 teams in 2001.

The winner of Sunday's contest will move on to face either No. 2 seed Virginia or Portland in the quarterfinals next weekend.

For full tournament information, including ticket and Gametracker information, please follow the link to Maryland's tournament central above.

SCOUTING HARVARD...
• Harvard (14-3-1) returns to the third round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1987.
• Winners of the Ivy League championship, Harvard is making its fourth-straight trip to postseason play in 2009.
• The Crimson is paced by Ivy League Player of the Year Andre Akpan. Akpan's goal against Monmouth puts him at the top of the all-time career goals list at Harvard with 47. The senior has 12 goals and six assists this season.
• Akpan works up top with Ivy League Rookie of the Year Brian Rogers, who has six goals and six assists in 2009, including one goal in Harvard's second-round rout of Monmouth, 3-0, last Sunday. Austin Harms is the Crimson's keeper and boasts a 0.75 GAA along with 55 saves this season.
• Harvard has scored 20 of its 32 goals in 2009 in the second half.
• This is the first meeting between Harvard and Maryland.

MARYLAND AND THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
• Maryland continues its quest for a repeat national title Sunday when it hits the road for a battle against No. 10 seed Harvard.
• The Terps boast a 41-23-4 record in 29 NCAA appearances.
• 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 eight consecutive seasons and landed in the Final Four five times since 2002.
• The Terps are 4-2-1 in third round matches and dropped California, 2-1, last season in its Sweet Sixteen contest.

FIRST TIME'S THE CHARM
• Maryland has been tremendous at keeping the lead once it gets it this season.
• The Terps are undefeated (11-0) this season when they score first.
• Maryland is 11-0 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 nine goals this season.
• Seven 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...
• The Maryland men's soccer team captured its eighth-straight Sweet Sixteen berth last Sunday as it upended No. 7 seed Penn State, 2-1, in the second round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship.
• Jason Herrick netted the game-winner with 4:05 remaining to lift the Terps against a Nittany Lion squad that was undefeated at Jeffrey Field in 2009.
• Billy Cortes tallied Maryland's first goal in the 25th minute and also provided Herrick with the game-winning assist. Maryland keeper Zac MacMath had four saves en route to his 12th win in 2009.

CORTES GARNERS NATIONAL AWARD
• Junior Billy Cortes was named to College Soccer News National Team of the Week for the week ending Nov. 22, 2009.
• Cortes scored a goal and tallied an assist in Maryland's NCAA second round win versus Penn State.

SEEDY BUSINESS
• Of the total 16 seeds in this year's NCAA tournament, eight were defeated in second round action.
• Following Drake's win against No. 4 Ohio State, Maryland dropped the second-highest seed to fall in tourney play thus far by defeating No. 7 Penn State.
• Other seeded squads to take a tumble include No. 11 San Diego, No. 12 Butler, No. 13 St. John's, No. 14 Michigan State, No. 15 N.C. State, and No. 16 UC-Irvine.
• Besides N.C. State, all ACC teams advanced to third round play.

SWEET SIXTEEN TERPS
• Maryland has now advanced to eight consecutive NCAA Sweet Sixteen tournament contests.
• Head coach Sasho Cirovski is 4-2-1 in third round matches since the tournament field was expanded to 48 teams in 2001.
• The Terps in the Sweet Sixteen (since 2001)
2002 - W, Saint Louis, 1-0
2003 - W, Akron, 1-0
2004 - tied Creighton, 0-0 (won in pks)
2005 - W, St. John's, 3-1
2006 - L, Notre Dame, 1-0 (2OT)
2007 - L, Bradley, 3-2 (OT)
2008 - W, California, 2-1

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 250-107-22 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.

ROAD WARRIORS
• For the first time in 12 years, Maryland will be road tested as it will likely play three out of four playoff games prior to the College Cup on the road.
• Maryland has not played a postseason match anywhere other than Ludwig Field since it battled Rutgers on Nov. 23, 1997.
• The Terps are 1-0 in its mission so far, defeating Penn State in second round action. The Nittany Lions were unbeated at home this season prior to the contest.

ANTICIPATED STARTERS

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

Midfield
#23 Kaoru Forbess - So.
#7 Billy Cortes - Jr.
#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.

HARVARD
Forwards
#10 Akpan, Andre
#11 Rogers, Brian

Midfield
#4 Mitchell, Desmond
#8 Rousmaniere, Adam
#9 Chi, Alex
#14 Grimm, Brian

Defense
#2 Millock, Robert
#5 Smith, Richard
#6 Omosegbon, Baba
#19 Nyamekye, Kwaku

Goalkeeper
#1 Harms, Austin

YOUTH NATION
• Maryland boasts one of the youngest starting lineups in the country this season.
• 44 percent of the Terrapins' points (37 out of 85) 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 SWEET SPOT
• Maryland has been tremendous in second round matches this decade, going 7-1-1 in nine outings.
• Maryland largest win in that span was a 2004 rout of Hofstra, 4-0, while its battled to five one-goal victories.
• With its 2-1 win against Penn State last Sunday, Maryland secured its eight consecutive Sweet Sixteen appearance.

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 14 players have tallied assists in 2009.
• Following Kassel, Forbess (4), Cortes (3), Yates (2) and Darko (2) are the other Terrapins with multiple assists this season.

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

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.

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.

TDS TABS TERPS TO LIST
• Zac MacMath and Jason Herrick added to their award cabinets Thursday, being tabbed to TopDrawerSoccer.com's College Soccer Team of the Season.
• MacMath earned second-team honors while Herrick landed on the third team.
• Freshman Taylor Kemp earned all-rookie accolades.

MAINSTAY YATES
• Drew Yates has played in every match since his arrival to College Park in 2006.
• The senior from Severna Park, Md., has played in 90 consecutive matches and played a vital role in 11 NCAA contests in his four-year career.

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 eight-straight Sweet Sixteen 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.

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 21 games.
• Freshmen standouts Taylor Kemp and Ethan White are joined by 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.

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).

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.

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 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 609-303-79 record overall and 167-119-23 in conference play.

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.

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 82 wins in a five-year span.
• The five-player class has combined for 19 goals and 26 assists.

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, has five goals in an injury-shortened 13 games this season.

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.

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.