Creighton University
St. John's
St. John's Rallies to Beat Men's Soccer, 3-2
12/7/2003 2:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Creighton's men's soccer team suffered a stunning end to a magnificent run through the NCAA Tournament on Sunday afternoon at Ludwig Field on the campus of the University of Maryland. The Bluejays lost to sixth-ranked St. John's by a 3-2 score, after holding a 2-0 lead with 25 minutes to play in the quarterfinal match.
After a scoreless first half, which saw St. John's defender Chris Leidner receive a red card in the 12th minute, the Bluejay offense struck first in the 53rd minute. Damien Westfield scored his fifth goal of the season from six yards out. His blast was assisted by freshman Michael Kraus at 52:38.
The Bluejays found the back of the net again when Kraus set up Matt Wieland's fourth tally of the year at 59:36. Wieland pounded it in, while St. John's keeper Bill Gaudette was out of position.
With a 2-0 lead and playing one-man up, the Bluejays were just 25 minutes from their third College Cup appearance since 2000, when the Red Storm began to storm back.
A goal at 65:06 cut the CU lead in half and a penalty kick shot just one minute later evened the score 2-2 at 66:04. The game remained tied until Simone Salinno scored his team-leading 14th goal of the year in the 79th minute, proving to be the game-winner for SJU.
The loss ends the Bluejays' season at 12-6-4. The match marked the first time all season the CU defense - which ranked 15th in the NCAA prior to the tournament - had allowed more than two goals in a contest. CU had only allowed an opponent to score as many as two goals in a match, three times this season.
“I'm certainly proud of some the greatest road warriors in NCAA history and what they've been able to accomplish since 2000,” said Head Coach Bob Warming after the defeat. “What they've done in that span is incredible and I'm proud to have coached every one of them.”
Creighton's 10 wins in the NCAA Tournament since 2000 are second only to Indiana's 11 victories and the Bluejays' seven road wins in that span are far and away the most in the NCAA. No other team has won more than three road games in the NCAA Tournament since 2000.
CU's future continues to be bright with Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year Matt Wieland returning for two more seasons. Freshman Michael Kraus assisted on six CU goals in the Bluejays' four NCAA Tournament matches this year - a Bluejay single-season and career record. The rookie finished as the team-leader with six goals, nine assists and 21 points.
The sixth-ranked Red Storm (16-5-3) now advance to the College Cup in Columbus, Ohio next weekend, where they'll join Santa Clara, Indiana and Maryland.
