Men's Soccer 2002 College Cup Season Review
6/25/2003 7:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Complete 2002 Season Review | Complete 2002 Statistics
With the 2003 Creighton Men's Soccer season around the corner, take a look back at the Jays' 2002 College Cup season in this Season Review.
The Bluejays’ second appearance in the College Cup in three seasons was one of many highlights in yet another memorable and successful campaign logged by the Creighton men’s soccer team in 2002. Led by NSCAA National Coach of the Year Candidate, Bob Warming, the Jays compiled an 18-4-2 record, while appearing in their 11th consecutive NCAA Tournament and capturing their eighth Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Title in 12 years.
Coming off of an 11-9-1 season in 2001, the Jays knew they had the players in place to return to the College Cup and that goal became reality as the season progressed. A 5-2-2 start to the season included a tie with #23 Notre Dame and close losses to national powers Furman and Portland on the road prepared the Jays for a late season surge. CU compiled two separate six-game winning streaks, notching a 13-2-0 record to close out the season, with one loss coming to fourth-ranked SMU and a heart-breaking 2-1 double overtime loss to #15 Stanford in the College Cup Semifinals.
CU cruised to its eighth MVC tournament championship to earn the league’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. The Jays crushed Eastern Illinois, 6-0, in the tournament play-in match, with six different players scoring a goal for CU. The Jays then defeated Southwest Missouri State, 3-1, in the semifinals. A 1-0 win over Bradley in the MVC Championship match saw the Jays out-shoot the Braves 20-5.
The Jays road to the College Cup saw them earn a first-round bye and the first home NCAA Tournament game since 1995, when the Jays defeated #10 Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 3-2. Senior Joe Wieland’s first-career goal was the game-winner in the second-round game. CU then traveled to third-ranked St. John’s, where a Mehdi Ballouchy goal in overtime led the Jays to a 1-0 victory. The Jays then unloaded on the sixth-ranked Boston College Eagles, winning 6-2 in the quarterfinals in Boston on Dec. 8.
The win over BC earned the Jays’ their third College Cup berth since 1996 and pitted them against former coach Bret Simon of Stanford. The Jays struck first, when the Cardinal penalty permitted Mike Tranchilla to notch the contest’s first goal on a penalty kick, just 14:22 into the match. CU took the lead into the half, but a Stanford goal in the 50th minute tied the match at 1-1. Two amazing team saves by Joe Wieland kept the season alive for CU in overtime, before Stanford knocked home the game-winner with just under two minutes remaining in the second overtime.
Senior forward Mike Tranchilla earned All-America First-Team recognition from both the NSCAA and College Soccer News, while he was a finalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy Award for the second consecutive season. Tranchilla finished fourth in the National Player of the Year voting after becoming the MVC’s career leader with 55 goals and 140 points. His senior campaign, which saw him score 15 goals with seven assists, earned him several more accolades and witnessed him drafted by the MLS’ Dallas Burn in the fourth round and the MISL’s Dallas Sidekicks.
Junior defender David Wagenfuhr earned NSCAA First-Team all-Midwest region honors for the second consecutive season, and was joined by freshman Mehdi Ballouchy. Tranchilla, Wagenfuhr and Luiz Del Monte all earned first-team all-MVC recognition, while three Jays earned second-team honors.
Senior goalkeeper Mike Gabb completed one of the most successful careers in Bluejay history. His 41 career wins and .802 (41-9-3) career winning percentage both rank second in school history, while Gabb was the starting keeper in both of CU’s recent runs to the College Cup. Gabb’s collegiate success led to a contract with the Syracuse Salty Dogs of the professional A-League.
Head Coach: Head coach Bob Warming (Berea College, 1975) is in his second stint as the Jays’ head coach with a 101-32-10 (.741) record in seven seasons at CU. His overall mark is 295-148-40 (.652) in 25 years of coaching. Warming, the all-time winningest head coach at CU, has guided his teams to nine NCAA Tournament appearances and was the Valley Coach of the Year in 1992 and 1993. He has taken his teams to two College Cup appearances and has been a finalist for NSCAA National Coach of the Year on four occasions, including 2002.
Quarterfinal Summary: The Jays advanced to the College Cup with an impressive 6-2 victory over the fifth-seeded Boston College Eagles in Boston on Dec. 8. Junior Damien Westfield scored two goals in the first 12 minutes of the match to set the tone. Mike Tranchilla and Matt Jewett added the third and fourth tallies before freshman Mehdi Ballouchy concluded the scoring with two goals in the second half. Luiz Del Monte set a school record for assists in an NCAA tournament match with three helpers, while Jewett and Matt Thomas each notched two assists in the blowout. Tranchilla’s goal was the 54th of his career, becoming the Missouri Valley Conference’s all-time leading goal-scorer.
Third Round Summary: Creighton eliminated fourth-seeded St. John’s with a 1-0 overtime victory in Jamaica, N.Y. (Dec. 1). Freshman Mehdi Ballouchy’s game-winning goal came at 97:56, with just over two minutes remaining in the first overtime. Ballouchy took a Mike Tranchilla cross and sent a low blast from about 20 yards out to beat the SJU keeper for the win. The match was CU’s seventh shutout in NCAA tournament history, the fourth with Mike Gabb in goal. It also marked the 100th victory for Bob Warming as Creighton’s head coach.
Second Round Summary: Creighton snapped a two-game NCAA tournament skid with a 3-2 victory over 10th-ranked Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The Jays used goals from their two leading goal-scorers and the unlikely foot of senior Joe Wieland. The defensive midfielder scored his first collegiate goal in the 83rd minute to give the Jays a victory. After allowing the opposition to score first for just the third time this season, CU tied the score at 1-1 when Julian Nash headed in a goal in the 27th minute. The nation’s leading scorer, Antou Jallow, then put UWM back ahead in the 58th minute on his 24th goal of the year. CU answered in the 60th minute with its leading scorer, Mike Tranchilla, heading in his 13th of the season. Wieland then deflected a Tranchilla shot past the UWM keeper for the game-winner at 82:22. The CU victory halted the nation’s longest winning streak at 19 games. All three goals resulted off of corner kicks, with David Wagenfuhr recording an assist on the first two tallies.
NCAA Tournament Time: CU appeared in its 11th consecutive NCAA tournament in 2002. With its victories over UW-Milwaukee, St. John’s and Boston College in 2002, CU’s all-time record in the NCAA postseason now stands at 13-11-1 (advancing on PKs after tying CS-Fullerton, 1996). The Jays have made seven Sweet 16 appearances, four quarterfinals and three College Cups, 1996, 2000 and 2002.
Record Setting Tournament: The Jays’ eighth MVC tournament title came at a record-setting clip. CU set a tournament record for assists (13) and points (32) in three tournament wins. The Jays also tied tournament records for goals (6), assists (7) and points in a match (19), in their 6-0 win over Eastern Illinois. Their 10 goals in the tournament tied the MVC mark.
MVC Tournament: Creighton's 21-4 all-time record in MVC tournament play is by far the best in conference history. With its championship in 2002, CU has won more tournament titles, eight, than any other MVC team. The Jays have lost in the semifinals twice, the championship match twice and have won eight MVC tournament titles.
Lopsided Shots: In the Jays’ three Missouri Valley Conference tournament matches, CU outshot its opponents 68-20, including a 20-5 advantage in the MVC championship match against Bradley.
Three Named All-Region: Mehdi Ballouchy, Mike Tranchilla and David Wagenfuhr were tabbed to the NSCAA All-Midwest Region First-Team in 2002. Ballouchy’s honor marks the first time in the storied history of Bluejay soccer that a freshman has been named to the first-team. Tranchilla moves to the first-team after earning second-team honors last year, while Wagenfuhr is a repeat first-team honoree.
Valley Honors: Eight men’s soccer players were honored by the Missouri Valley Conference when the postseason honors were awarded. Senior forward Mike Tranchilla and junior defender David Wagenfuhr were both named to the all-MVC first-team for the second consecutive season. They were joined on the first-team by senior midfielder Luiz Del Monte. Second-team honors went to senior goalkeeper Mike Gabb, senior midfielder Joe Wieland and sophomore forward Julian Nash. Freshman Mehdi Ballouchy and junior college transfer Damien Westfield were tabbed to the all-newcomer team.
Postseason Laurels: With CU winning its eighth MVC tournament title, four Bluejays were honored on the all-tournament team; Ballouchy, Nash, Tranchilla, Wagenfuhr. Tranchilla was tabbed the MVP for assisting on the game-winning goal in the championship and scoring a goal, while taking six shots in the semifinal match. Ballouchy unloaded five shots in the championship match and assisted the game-winning goal in the semifinal match. Nash had a role in both game-winning goal on the weekend, scoring the GW in the semifinal and assisting the lone goal in the championship bout. Wagenfuhr assisted two goals in the semifinal and set up several scoring opportunities throughout the tournament.
Decade of Dominance: The Bluejays have enjoyed one of the best runs in the NCAA over the past 10 seasons. The Jays are one of just five programs to appear in the NCAA Tournament each of the past 11 years (including this season). They join national powers Indiana, St. John’s, UCLA and Virginia. Since the 1990 season, the Jays’ .751 winning percentage (prior to 2002) ranked fifth-best in the NCAA.
Pulling Rank: The Bluejays ranked fourth in the final NSCAA/adidas Top 25 poll. The Jays also ranked fourth in the final College Soccer News Poll. They ended the regular-season in two other Top 25 polls; Soccer Times (12) and Soccer America (15).
Battling the Best: Including a 5-3-1 record in 2002, the Bluejays are now 33-30-6 all-time versus the Top 25.
Warming Trend: Head Coach Bob Warming appeared in his ninth NCAA tournament in 2002 (5 at CU, 4 at Saint Louis). He has compiled a 7-7-2 mark in the tournament, advancing on PKs once and being eliminated on PKs in the other tie. After the 2002 NCAA run, he is now 4-5-0 in NCAA tournament matches at CU. He guided SLU to a Final Four appearance in 1997.
Coaching 100: With his win at St. John’s (Dec. 1), the Bluejays’ all-time winningest coach, Bob Warming, collected his 100th victory as the head coach of the Bluejays. Earlier this season he surpassed current Stanford head coach Bret Simon, to become CU’s all-time winningest coach.
Tranchilla Named Finalist: For the second consecutive season Mike Tranchilla was named one of 15 finalists for the Missouri Athletic’s Club Hermann Trophy, awarded to the top player in NCAA Division I soccer. He was one of three repeat finalists, joining Pat Noonan (Indiana) and Alecko Eskandarian of Virginia. Eskandarian took home the honor as the top player in NCAA soccer, while Tranchilla finished fourth in the voting.
Tranchilla Sets Valley Highs: With three goals and three assists in the NCAA tournament, senior Mike Tranchilla climbed to the top of the Missouri Valley Conference scoring charts. He finished his career as the most prolific goal scorer in league history with 55 career goals, surpassing Gavin Glinton of Bradley. His nine points in the postseason give him 140 career points, also surpassing Glinton for first place on the Valley career list. Tranch still does not rank on the top of the CU charts because the Jays were not members of the MVC until 1991.
Us First: The Jays scored first in all but three matches in 2002. Falling behind to UW-Milwaukee (Nov. 27), SMS (Nov. 15) and Notre Dame (Sept. 1). CU came from behind to end UWM and SMS’ seasons and tied ND.
The Teacher and the Student: Stanford’s Bret Simon has served as an assistant coach on two of Bob Warming’s staffs - Berry (Ga.) College and Creighton. They have now faced each other as head coaches on six occasions, with five of those meetings occuring within a three-year span between 1997-99, while Warming was at Saint Louis and Simon at Creighton. Simon owns the edge in the series at 4-1-1, including an NCAA tournament match on Nov. 30, 1997, where Warming’s SLU squad ended Simon’s CU team’s season.
Third Time’s a Charm: The 2002 College Cup berth for Creighton marks the third time the Bluejays have advanced to the Final Four, also making the trip in 1996 and 2000. CU has advanced to the quarterfinals four times, winning three of those four quarterfinal appearances. Stanford’s head coach Bret Simon, was the Jays’ leader during their two previous trips to the College Cup.
College Cup 2000 Revisited: Creighton was in the national title game in 2000, facing Connecticut in the title match after eliminating two-time defending champion Indiana in the semifinals. Mike Tranchilla’s goal in the third overtime against the Hoosiers, gave CU a 2-1 victory (Dec. 8). CU lost to UConn, 2-0, in the championship (Dec. 10). Tranchilla and goalkeeper Mike Gabb were named to the College Cup All-Tournament team, along with eventual Los Angeles Galaxy draft picks, Ishmael Mintah and Brian Mullan.
Nine Still Around: Nine Bluejays on the 2002 roster, were also on the active roster during CU’s last trip to the College Cup in 2000. Two 2002 seniors, Jeremy Shelton and Skylar Nelson, redshirted the 2000 season. The nine players include; Andrew Brown, Mike Gabb, Matt Jewett, Zach Piercy, David Wagenfuhr, Shane Havens, Mike Tranchilla, Matt Thomas and Joe Wieland.
Similar Road Map: Creighton’s 2002 trip in the NCAA Tournament was reminiscent of its 2000 road to the College Cup. In 2002, CU defeated the No. 10, No. 3 and No. 6 ranked teams in the nation and faces No. 15 in the semifinals. Two years ago the Jays knocked off No. 12, No. 3 and then No. 5 before defeating #16 Indiana in the semifinals. CU ousted two seeded teams in 2000 (No. 4 San Diego and No. 5 Virginia) and have defeated two seeds this year - No. 4 St. John’s and No. 5 Boston College.
Rookies Tie Records: Freshman Mehdi Ballouchy and junior college transfer Damien Westfield tied a school record with two goals in an NCAA tournament match in CU’s win at Boston College on Dec. 8. Four previous players have scored two goals in the NCAA tourney, with Brian Mullan last accomplishing the feat at Virginia (Dec. 2, 2000).
CU NCAA Tournament Records: Mike Tranchilla finished the 2002 NCAA Tournament with three goals and three assists, moving his career totals to six goals and five assists in the NCAA tourney. With his 17 points, he surpassed Brian Mullan (16) by one for the school career record for points in NCAA tournament contests.
Jewett’s Surge: Junior Matt Jewett scored the game-winning goal in the MVC Championship match and also netted a goal against Eastern Illinois in CU’s MVC play-in match. Of his five career goals, four have come in the postseason. He broke a long scoring drought against EIU on Oct. 25 when he netted his first goal since his freshman season. The midfielder scored at EIU, his first tally since Nov. 26, 2000, when he scored his first collegiate goal against No. 3 San Diego in the NCAA tournament.
Brazilian Bomber: Luiz Del Monte’s three assists against Boston College on Dec. 8 broke the Creighton record for assists in an NCAA tournament match. He is just the fourth Jay to ever dish out at least three assists in one game, falling one shy of the single-game record of four (Richard Mulrooney, 11-10-96).
Helping Out: Creighton’s nine assists against Boston College (Dec. 8) were a season high and ranks as the fourth highest assist total in a game in school history. CU’s six goals equalled a season high, which the Jays recorded against Eastern Illinois in the first round of the MVC tournament.
On a Roll: After Mike Tranchilla’s game-winning overtime goal against Western Kentucky on Oct. 11, the Jays went 13-2-0. Their only two losses came to fourth-ranked SMU, 2-1, on Nov. 3 in Omaha and #15 Stanford at the College Cup. The Bluejays put together two separate six-match winning streaks during the season
Bringing Out the Best: Former junior college All-American Damien Westfield transformed into a Division I athlete very well in his first season at CU. Of his eight goals in 2002, five came against ranked opponents.
Zero Zeros: The Bluejays were not shut out in 2002, outscoring their opponents, 54-24 on the year, while recording nine shutouts of their own. It marked the first season since 1993 the Jays were not shutout.
NCAA Shutouts: The Bluejays held an opponent scoreless for the eighth time in school NCAA tournament history with a 1-0 blanking of St. John’s on Dec. 1. It was the seventh shutout in the NCAA postseason (CU held CS-Fullerton to no goals in 1996, but tied 0-0 so is not credited with a shutout). Senior goalkeeper Mike Gabb was in net for four CU NCAA shutouts.
Postseason Numbers: After the end of the regular-season, Creighton scored 21 goals and 26 assists for 68 points in seven postseason games (MVC and NCAA tournament). The Jays averaged 3.0 goals and 9.7 points per postseason game. There were 10 goal-scorers in the postseason, with half of those notching three goals apiece! 15 different Jays scored a point in the postseason, with seven players having at least two assists. Each postseason win had a different game-winning goal-scorer.
One Goal Wonders: Thirteen of CU’s 24 games in 2002 were decided by one goal, with the Jays owning a 10-3 record in those contests. Of CU’s 25 NCAA Tournament matches, 16 have been decided by one-goal, including two victories in 2002. The Jays are 6-10 in one-goal matches in the NCAA postseason.
Flying Northeast for the Fall: Creighton’s last three NCAA tournaments have had a Northeastern flavor to them. In 2002, the Jays have played in New York and Boston. In 2001 the Jays lost to Massachusetts in a match played in New York. In 2000, the Jays lost to Connecticut in the Championship Match.
Spreading Success: During one stretch in the 2002 NCAA tournament, Creighton had six successive goals off the feet (or heads) of six different Bluejays; Matt Jewett, Julian Nash, Mike Tranchilla, Joe Wieland, Mehdi Ballouchy and Damien Westfield.
Even More Sharing, By the Numbers: Six different Bluejays scored goals in CU’s three NCAA tournament wins and six different Bluejays notched assists. Ten Bluejays tallied at least one point in the tournament. Each win had a different game-winning goal-scorer: Joe Wieland vs. UW-Milwaukee; Mehdi Ballouchy at St. John’s; Mike Tranchilla at Boston College.
He Shoots, He Scores ... and Assists: Senior All-American Mike Tranchilla is known for his elusive moves that lead to goals, but in 2002 that didn’t always meant HIS goals. Tranchilla scored 15 goals with seven assists in 2002. Six of his goals have been game-winners and five of his assists have been ON game-winning goals. Before his game-winning goal at Boston College, Tranch had assisted on the previous three CU game-winners.
Wags’ Wobble: Junior David Wagenfuhr has once again turned his game up a notch in the latter half of the season this year. The defender had four assists in the Jays’ last six games including two against #10 UW-Milwaukee in the second round.
Go to the Corner: David Wagenfuhr was told to go to the corner nine times in CU’s second round victory over UW-Milwaukee. CU took nine corner kicks in its win, all struck by Wags. Each of CU’s goals were set up by the corner kick, as Wagenfuhr was awarded two assists on the evening and the third goal was a result of him placing the ball in the box off a corner.
Your First Will Come Last: Senior Joe Wieland saved a first for one of his last matches. The defensive midfielder scored the first goal of his collegiate career, the game-winner, in CU’s win over UW-Milwaukee. It marked the first time he’s found the back of the net since scoring for Creighton Prep in the 1999 Class A Nebraska high school soccer tournament.
Home Field: Creighton’s second round NCAA Tournament match against UW-Milwaukee had to be moved to the campus of Nebraska-Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Neb., due to unplayable field conditions on CU’s home field of Tranquility Park. The match was the first NCAA match hosted by CU since 1995. The victory was CU’s first on its “home field” in the NCAA tournament, after losing its three previous NCAA matches in Omaha. The “home” match also ended a streak of 16 consecutive NCAA tournament matches played on the road for CU. Abel Stadium at NWU provided an artificial playing surface with no snow for the teams to compete on.
Autumn in Omaha: CU’s Nov. 27 home match marks the latest date that the Bluejays have played host to a contest. Previously, the latest CU had played in Nebraska, was Nov. 21, 1992, a second-round NCAA match with SMU.
Coaches Corner: CU’s assistant coaches Kevin Doyle and Jason Mims have experienced the NCAA tournament as players as well. Doyle, as a goalkeeper under Bob Warming in the early 90s. Mims also played for Warming as a midfielder at Saint Louis University from 1997-99. Mims was a member of the SLU team which made a trip to the College Cup in 1997, while Doyle played in the first NCAA tournament match in Creighton history on Nov. 21, 1992.
Nothing But Net: After clinching their eighth MVC tournament title and the Valley’s automatic NCAA berth, the Jays appeared in their 11th consecutive NCAA tournament. With the CU women’s team making its first NCAA tournament in 2002, Creighton will send both its men’s and women’s soccer teams to the NCAA tournament in 2002 and sent its men’s and women’s basketball teams to the big dance this year. There are only four schools in the nation that sent men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s basketball to the NCAA Tournament in 2002: Connecticut, Creighton, Notre Dame and Stanford.
Mad Gabb: Senior Mike Gabb continues to notch both single-season and career milestones this season. With 41 career victories, Gabb now ranks second on the CU career victory list, moving ahead of current assistant coach Kevin Doyle (33). His .802 (41-9-3) career winning percentage ranks first in school history and he also ranks in the top five in career saves (196) and goals against average (1.02). His win total, minutes, GAA and shutouts in 2002 all rank in the CU single-season top five.
Tranch Triumphs: With 15 goals in 2002, senior preseason All-American Mike Tranchilla passed Johnny Torres on the all-time goals scored list at CU, and has moved into second place on the school points scored list. Torres, the national player of the year in 1996 and 1997, scored 46 goals in his stellar Bluejay career. Tranchilla scored 55 goals at CU, good for second place on the career goals-scored list. His 140 points ranks second at CU, first in MVC history. With three multiple-goal matches in 2002, he finished his career with 11 multiple-game matches.
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow: Superstition perhaps persuaded Mike Tranchilla to shave his head prior to play the weekend of Sept. 13-15. The All-American went back to the hair style he displayed over the past two seasons for the Bluejays, after beginning the year with more than a full head of hair, the forward shaved it all off. The new doo paid immediate dividends as Tranch scored two goals and added an assist and was named to the Ameritas Classic All-Tournament Team and MVC Player of the Week.
Octoberfest: The Bluejays enjoyed an unbeaten October, recording a 6-0-1 mark during the month. The last time CU went unbeaten in a month, was November 2000, when the Jays won their seventh MVC tournament and then began their NCAA tournament run to the College Cup. The Jays have previously recorded four unbeaten Octobers (1992, 93, 95, 97).
Back-to-Back-to-Back: When Mike Tranchilla was tabbed the MVC Player of the Week for the second consecutive week on Sept. 23, it marked the third straight week a Bluejay received the honor. During his two week reign as the Player of the Week, he scored four goals and added two assists for 10 points in just four matches. The highlight of his run was a game-winning double-overtime goal at nationally ranked Washington on Sept. 19. Sophomore Julian Nash, who scored two goals and added two assists at the Furman Invitational (Sept. 6-8), was honored by the conference on Sept. 9. Tranchilla was then honored as the MVC Player of the Week on Oct. 14, after a four-goal weekend and his second overtime game-winning goal in 2002.
More Honors: Mike Tranchilla was honored by Soccer America as a preseason All-American. Tranch is one of 11 players to make the preseason squad, joining Diego Walsh of SMU. The senior forward was also named to the College Soccer News Preseason Third-Team. Junior David Wagenfuhr was tabbed on the preseason second-team by College Soccer News. CSN also has named newcomers Mehdi Ballouchy and Jered Turner as a “Freshmen to Watch in 2002”.
Coming To America: Four Bluejays on the 2002 roster were from foreign countries. Midfielder and preseason honorable mention all-conference pick, Luiz Del Monte (Sao Paulo, Brazil) is the only returning Jay from a different country. Three newcomers joined Del Monte as world-wide representatives at CU. Transfer Damien Westfield (Morvant, Trinidad) came to Nebraska after spending two years in Georgia. Westfield was a two-time junior college All-American at Young Harris (Ga.) College, scoring 71 points in 21 matches last fall. Another transfer student is sophomore Kama Bennah (Monrovia, Liberia). Bennah played one season of soccer at San Mateo (Calif.) Community College prior to heading to Omaha. Fellow rookie Mehdi Ballouchy (Casa Blanca, Morocco) arrives in Omaha after attending high school in the States. Ballouchy graduated from Henry Gunn High School in Palo Alto, Calif., last year and also spent one year of high school in Denver. Ballouchy and Bennah were roommates in California prior to their journey to the Midwest.
Brotherly Love: Junior Damien Westfield, played in his first season of Division I soccer in 2002, perhaps has proved his brother isn't the only DI star in the family. Older brother, Dimelon, of Clemson, led the Tigers in scoring in 2002. Damien netted eight goals in 2002, while brother Dimelon led his squad with 20 goals and 45 points. Damien and Dimelon were teammates and Junior College All-Americans at Young Harris (Ga.) College.
The Wieland Bros: The 2002 CU roster boasted a set of brothers as senior Joe Wieland was joined in the backfield by his younger brother and freshman, Matt. The Omaha natives and Creighton Prep grads combined for stellar defense in 2002. They played every match together, starting all but two (Matt did not start the Portland or Oakland matches).
Brett’s Bounce: Sophomore Brett Rodriguez notched a first for his career in CU’s Oct. 13 win over Vanderbilt. Rodriguez, a defender, scored the first goal of his collegiate career off of a corner kick from David Wagenfuhr. Rodriguez, who did not attempt a shot as a freshman, took three shots as a sophomore.
Two Ties: The Bluejays' 1-1 tie with Drake, Oct. 5, gave them two ties in 2002, the most since tying twice during the 1999 campaign. The Jays have now notched two ties in a season on seven occasions and have had a school record three ties in a campaign twice (1981 and 1990). The tie was the first MVC stalemate for CU since a 2-2 outcome against No. 6 SMS on Oct. 31, 1999.
