First Place at Stake as No. 10 Men's Soccer Hosts Missouri State Wednesday

Match 16 vs. Missouri State • Wednesday, Nov. 3 • 7:00 p.m.
Missouri State Bears at #10 Creighton Bluejays
Morrison Stadium • Omaha, Neb.
Series History: CU leads 18-7-4

Following the Jays: Every Creighton home match this season can be followed on the internet via live stats and live video at www.gocreighton.com. Live stats for all home matches can be viewed free by clicking on the 'Live Stats' link. New this year – fans can also follow home live stats on their mobile device at www.gocreightonstats.com. Fans can subscribe to watch a live video stream of the Bluejays' home matches via the 'Live Video' link.

This Week: The 10th-ranked Bluejays wrap up the regular season with a pair of home conference matches, starting with a battle for first place. CU hosts Missouri State on Wednesday at 7 p.m., as both sides enter with a 4-0-1 league mark. The Bluejays then celebrate Senior Day with a rare noon kickoff against Bradley on Saturday.

Last Week: Creighton fell 1-0 in a closely contested match at No. 1-ranked Akron last Wednesday and played to a 2-2 draw against SIU Edwardsville at home last Saturday. Ethan Finlay scored a goal and assisted the other in the tie, becoming the all-time leading scorer in Morrison Stadium history with 35 points.

Scouting #10 Creighton (11-3-1, 4-0-1 MVC): Creighton won its first four games via shutout, jumped out to its best start since 1998 and started 4-0-0 in MVC play for the first time since 1999. The Jays are 5-1-1 at home this season and 22-3-3 at home in MVC regular-season play all-time at Morrison Stadium. The Bluejays lead the MVC and rank 31st in the NCAA with 1.9 goals per game and top the league in points (94) and assists (36). Preseason All-American forward Ethan Finlay, a MAC Hermann Trophy candidate, leads the league and ranks sixth in the NCAA with 12 goals and leads the MVC and ranks eighth in the NCAA with 27 points – the most by a Bluejay since 2005. Finlay's 35 career points at home are a Morrison Stadium record, while his 14 home goals have tied the venue record. With six assists in his last seven matches, Dion Acoff leads the MVC with nine assists, which ranks ninth in the NCAA. Jose Gomez ranks 13th in the nation with his eight assists. With 26 career shutouts in 50 starts, junior goalkeeper Brian Holt has tied the Bluejay shutout record and his career goals against average of 0.72 ranks second in school and MVC history. Freshman Tyler Polak is the only Bluejay to play every minute this season.

Scouting Missouri State (7-5-2, 4-0-1 MVC): The Bears enter the week on a five match unbeaten streak (4-0-1) since losing at Northwestern on Oct. 3. MSU is 2-5-1 in road matches this year, but both wins have come in MVC play. The Bears lost in double-overtime to both SMU and Tulsa earlier this season and dropped a one-goal match at now top-ranked Louisville. Heath Melugin (6 g, 1 a) and Gerard Barbero (5 g, 3 a) are tied for the team-lead with 13 points. Barbero has scored four of MSU's seven goals in MVC play. Alex Riggs, 2009 MVC Defensive Player of the Year, has played all but five minutes in goal for MSU, logging seven shutouts and a league-best 0.67 GAA. The Bears rank seventh in the NCAA in save percentage (.865), 10th in shutout percentage (.571) and 17th in GAA (0.67).

Head Coach: Jamie Clark (Stanford, 1999) is in his first season at Creighton after spending two successful seasons at Harvard in his first head coaching assignment. A former MLS player and collegiate All-American, Clark is 37-13-2 (.731) in his third season as a head coach, guiding Harvard to the NCAA Tournament in his first two years as a head coach. He was named the NSCAA Northeast Region Coach of the Year in 2009 while leading Harvard to a top-10 ranking, Ivy League championship and third round of the NCAA Tournament. Prior to becoming a head coach he served as an assistant at New Mexico and Notre Dame.

CU-MSU Series: Creighton is 18-7-4 all-time against Missouri State and 3-1-3 in its last seven meetings with the Bears after going 0-1-1 last year. The Bluejays have scored just one goal in their last 400 minutes against the Bears, a span of four matches. The Jays have scored more than one goal against MSU once in the previous nine meetings. CU is 9-3-0 all-time against the Bears in Omaha, 3-2-0 at Morrison Stadium.

First Half Heavy: Creighton has scored 17 of its 29 goals this season in the first half, out-scoring opponents 17-4 in the first 45 minutes of the match. The Jays have out-scored opponents just 12-10 after halftime, including an even 9-9 tally in second-half points.

Quick Starts: Not only has CU out-scored its opponents 17-4 in the first half this year, but the Bluejays have scored some very quick goals after kick off this year. Ethan Finlay has recorded the sixth and seventh-fastest goals in school history to start a match this season, scoring in 41 seconds against No. 5 Tulsa (Oct. 5) and 43 seconds in against SIU Edwardsville (Oct. 30). Five of CU's 17 first-half goals have been scored in the game's first nine minutes.

CU's Fastest Scores From Start of Match
1. Brian Kamler, 0:16 vs. Bradley, 10-9-92
2. Vince Odorisio, 0:26 vs. UCLA, 9-10-04
3. Lance Hill, 0:30 vs. Missouri State, 11-5-94
4. Johnny Torres, 0:34 at Bradley, 10-6-95
5. Andrei Gotsmanov, 0:36 vs. Tulsa, 11-25-08
6. Ethan Finlay, 0:41 vs. Tulsa, 10-5-10
7. Ethan Finlay, 0:43 vs. SIUE, 10-30-10

Brick Walls: With two of the top defenses and goalkeeper in the MVC playing Wednesday night, goals won't be easy to come by at Morrison Stadium for either side. Bluejay keeper Brian Holt owns the school record and leads active MVC keepers with 26 career shutouts – second in MVC history. Holt, who is second in CU and MVC history with a 0.72 career goals against average, was second-team all-MVC behind Defensive Player of the Year Alex Riggs of Missouri State last year. Riggs has posted 21 career shutouts and owns a 0.92 career GAA, and this season he ranks 17th in the NCAA with a 0.67 GAA and is ninth in the nation in save percentage (.865).

Morrison Stadium Records: Junior Ethan Finlay is now the all-time leading scorer in Morrison Stadium history. With 18 points at home this year, Finlay now has 35 career points at Morrison Stadium, surpassing the former mark of 34 set by Andrei Gotsmanov. Finlay's eight goals this year give him 14 at home in his career, tying Gotsmanov for the venue record. Finlay has eight goals and 18 points at home this year, both are second in single-season Morrison Stadium history (behind Gotsmanov's nine goals and 21 points in 2008).

Bluejays are No Bird Brains: Kyle Deremer, Brian Holt and Andrew Ribeiro were each named to the ESPN Academic All-District VII First-Team on Tuesday. Deremer owns a 3.61 GPA as a history major with a minor in business administation. Holt is a finance major with a 3.70 GPA and Ribeiro is a nursing major with a 3.57 GPA.

Fantastic Fans: Creighton has had at least 2,000 fans at every home match this season, to again lead the MVC with an average of 2,633 fans per home match. The Bluejays are on pace to lead the MVC and rank in the NCAA top-10 in attendance for the eighth straight season. Notably, Creighton has played at the top-two attendance leaders this season, UCSB and Akron. See 2010 unofficial attendance leaders below:

Unofficial 2010 NCAA Attendance Leaders
1. UC Santa Barbara - 6,619
2. Akron - 3,500
3. Cal Poly - 3,346
4. Connecticut - 3,329
5. Maryland - 3,200
6. New Mexico - 2,731
7. Creighton - 2,633
8. Indiana - 2,423
9. Virginia - 2,256

Peters Plays: Junior transfer Jace Peters returned to play 79 minutes off the bench against SIU Edwardsville on Oct. 30 after missing eight matches with a leg injury. The defender had started Creighton's first six matches before injuring himself in CU's match against Dartmouth on Sept. 19.

MVC Starts: At 4-0-1, the Bluejays are undefeated through five MVC matches for the third time in four seasons – finishing 4-0-2 in 2007 and 4-0-1 in 2008. The Jays won their first four MVC matches this season for the first time since 1999. Since its previous 4-0-0 start, the Bluejays have won four regular-season conference titles, including a pair of undefeated Valley seasons.

Fit to be Tied: Creighton played to a draw against SIU Edwardsville last Saturday, its first draw in 15 matches this season. That was the longest the Jays had made it into a season without a tie since the 2004 team didn't draw until its 18th match of the season. CU has recorded at least two draws in every season since 2002. The tie marked the first time since 1981 that the Bluejays followed a home loss with a home tie.

The Streak Ends: Nearly four months to the day of their previous regular-season road loss, the Bluejays had their 22-match regular-season unbeaten streak snapped by top-ranked Akron on Oct. 27. Before the 1-0 loss at Akron, the Bluejays' previous regular-season road loss was a 2-1 defeat at Bradley on Oct. 28, 2006. The Jays went 15-0-7 in regular-season road contests between Oct. 7, 2007 and Oct. 23, 2010. Since the start of the 2007 season, the Bluejays are now 20-5-7 overall in matches away from Omaha, 15-1-7 in regular-season road matches (0-2-0 in postseason road matches) and 5-2-0 in neutral contests.

NCAA Stats: The Bluejays lead the MVC and rank 31st in the NCAA with 1.9 goals per game after being shutout for the first time all season last week. Ethan Finlay ranks sixth in the NCAA with 12 goals and eighth with 27 points. Dion Acoff ranked ninth in the NCAA with nine assists, while Jose Gomez ranks 13th with his eight assists.

Creighton in the Polls: After receiving no votes in any preseason national poll, the Bluejays jumped into the top 25 after a solid opening week and have remained there, climbing all the way to the top-10. This week, the NSCAA and College Soccer News rank the Bluejays 10th. Soccer Times has CU at No. 12 and Soccer America has the Jays at No. 13 this week.

Creighton in the RPI: The Bluejays are ranked 17th in the RPI released by the NCAA on Nov. 2. The Jays debuted at No. 14, moved to No. 9 and then back to No. 14 before this week. Missouri State is second in the MVC with an RPI of 51. Six of CU's opponents this year are in the RPI top-50 – Akron (1), SMU (4), Indiana (9), Tulsa (22), UCSB (41) and UNC Greensboro (42). Each of Creighton's losses this year have come to teams inside the RPI top-10 (Akron, SMU and Indiana).

Home Sweet Morrison: Including a 5-1-1 start this season, Creighton is now 57-12-12 (.778) all-time at Morrison Stadium. Creighton has lost just one home match in four of its last six seasons. Since 1990, the Bluejays are 159-28-16 (.823) at home. The Jays are 22-3-3 (.839) at Morrison Stadium all-time in MVC play.

Playing No. 1: Creighton played at consensus No. 1-ranked Akron in its final non-conference match of the season on Oct. 27. The Bluejays dropped to 0-4-0 all-time against top-ranked teams with a 1-0 loss to the Zips. The Jays also lost on the road at Indiana 1-0 on Nov. 27, 1994 in NCAA Tournament, 4-2 at SMU on Oct. 14, 2001 and again to SMU, 2-1 in four overtimes on Nov. 18, 2001 in the MVC Tournament championship match in St. Louis.

Pulling Rank: Creighton is 2-2-0 against top-25 opponents this year, with wins over No. 5 Tulsa (Oct. 5) and at No. 21 UC Santa Barbara (Sept. 7) and losses to No. 18 SMU (Sept. 17) and No. 1 Akron (Oct. 27).   The Bluejays are now 55-41-9 (.567) all-time against the coaches top 25, including 22-17-7 (.554) all-time on the road against top-25 teams. The Jays are 15-2-1 (.861) against the NSCAA top 25 at Morrison Stadium and 25-9-2 (.722) against nationally-ranked foes at home all-time.

Finlay's Streak Snapped: Ethan Finlay had a streak of nine straight matches with at least one point scored snapped in CU's 1-0 loss at No. 1 Akron (Oct. 27). Before Finlay's streak, the last Bluejay to score a point in more than eight straight matches was CU Hall of Famer and current MLS star Brian Mullan. Mullan had a point in 10 straight matches during the 2000 season. Finlay was the first Bluejay to score a point in eight straight matches since Julian Nash did so in the 2002 season. Following the lead of teammate Jose Gomez (who scored a point in six straight matches to start the season), the pair are the first Jays to record a point in six straight contests since Brian Biggerstaff in 2004.

2009 vs. 2010 Offense: Creighton has scored 29 goals this year – nine more than it did in the entire 2009 campaign. The Jays started the week ranked 31st in the NCAA with 1.9 goals per game, one year after scoring just 20 goals in 16 matches.
• In 2009 Creighton had only four players score at least two goals. This season, six players – Ethan Finlay (12), Jose Gomez (3), Andrew Ribeiro (3), Greg Jordan (3), Kris Clark (4), Josh Moran (2) – have at least a pair of goals scored.
• The Bluejays have scored at least two goals in 11 of their first 15 games this year. They scored two or more goals in a match just four times in 2009.
• The Jays were shutout five times last season, all within their first 13 matches. CU was not shutout for the first time this season until its 14th match.

Ten: Ethan Finlay has joined Andrei Gotsmanov as the only two Bluejays to score at least 10 goals in a season since 2003. Gotsmanov scored exactly 10 in 2008. Finlay now has 12 goals on the season, the most by a Bluejay since Mike Tranchilla's 15 goals in 2002. Finlay's three multi-goal matches this year are the most by a Bluejay since Tranchilla had three in 2002.

Holt Keeps Clean Sheets: Junior Brian Holt tied a school record with his 26th career shutout in a 2-0 win at Central Arkansas (Oct. 23). Holt pulled even with his predecessor Matt Allen for the school record. With two matches remaining in the regular-season this year and the entire 2011 campaign to play, Holt is sure to obliterate not only the CU record, but also the MVC record currently held by Bradley's Chris Dunsheath (27.5).

October Dominance: Creighton went 5-2-1 in October, marking the first October since 2005 that the Bluejays have suffered two losses. The Jays went 4-1-3 last October, suffering their first October loss since 2006, which snapped a 16-match unbeaten streak in the month (11-0-5). In 2008 the Jays were 4-0-2 in October and the 2007 squad was 5-0-2 in October. Since 2002, the Bluejays are now 48-10-12 (.771) in the month of October, including four unbeaten Octobers in that span (2002, 2003, 2007, 2008).

Hot Starts: At 8-1-0, the Bluejays were off to their best start since the 1998 team posted an 8-1-0 start. The Jays won their first four games this season for the first time since 2000 – when that squad opened with six straight wins and advanced to the College Cup championship match. Creighton logged four straight shutouts to open the year for just the second time in school history, equalling the feat first accomplished by the 1999 team. Creighton started 4-0-0 in MVC play for the first time since that 1999 team and are undefeated through five MVC matches for the third time in four years.

10 Wins in a Dozen: Creighton won at least 10 of its first 12 matches for the eighth time since 1990. The Jays were exactly 10-2-0 for the fourth time in that span and for the first time since 2004. The previous three times the Jays have had 10 wins through 12 matches, they have advanced to at least the third round of the NCAA Tournament, including a 10-2-0 start in 2000 when they reached the NCAA Championship match.

Finlay's a Winner: Junior Ethan Finlay has led the MVC in game-winning goals in each of his first two collegiate seasons and his five game-winners this year again lead the league. Of his 26 career goals, 14 are game-winners.

Fantastic Freshman: Freshman Tyler Polak has played every minute of his rookie season at outside left back – the only Bluejay starter to not have been subbed for this season. He has played a team-leading 1,400 minutes because of his outstanding play on defense. Playing every minute of important matches is nothing new to the newcomer, as he played every minute of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Nigeria and the U-17 CONCACAF Tournament in Mexico in 2009 with the U.S. U-17 National Team. Now a member of the U-20 U.S. National Team Pool, he was recently ranked by TopDrawerSoccer.com as the fifth-best freshman in the country, one of the top-15 freshman in the nation by Goal.com and was named a “Top 100 Freshman to Watch” by College Soccer News before the season.

Chart Climbing: With a career-high 12 goals this year, junior Ethan Finlay has started to climb up the Creighton career scoring charts. The forward now has 26 goals to rank 10th in school history, becoming the first Bluejay to crack the top-10 in career scoring since Mike Tranchilla finished his career second in goals (55) in 2002. His three multiple-goal matches this year are tied for seventh in single-season CU history and his four career multi-goal matches are tied for eighth in school history. He has scored 13 goals and 32 points at home in his career to rank second in both categories in Morrison Stadium history.

Finlay's Honors: Junior Ethan Finlay was named the MVC Offensive Player of the Week, MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week and College Soccer News National Player of the Week on Oct. 11 after an impressive week. The forward had two two-goal matches, striking twice against No. 5 Tulsa (Oct. 5) and also against nationally-ranked Indiana (Oct. 9).

Never Behind: Creighton scored first in its first nine matches of the season before falling behind to Indiana (Oct. 9). In fact, when Indiana scored in the first half, it marked the first time all season the Bluejays had trailed in a match with time still on the clock. The only time the Jays had been behind prior to the Indiana match this year was on SMU's double overtime game-winning goal on Sept. 17.

Home Shutout Streak Ends: Creighton posted four straight home shutouts to start the season, before allowing a second-half goal to No. 5 Tulsa on Oct. 5. Tulsa's goal snapped a streak of 420 consecutive scoreless minutes CU had held opponents at home to start the season. The four straight home shutouts were the longest single-season home shutout streak since the 2003 posted five consecutive home matches shutout. The Jays had posted shutouts in five straight home games dating back to last year's 1-0 home finale over UCLA and had an overall count of nearly 554 (553:46) straight shutout minutes at home dating back to last season.

Duran Done: Creighton has played a majority of the 2010 season without two of its starters on defense. Senior Andrew Duran suffered a torn meniscus in his knee against SMU on Sept. 17 and had surgery on Sept. 23, and will likely take a medical redshirt, returning for a fifth year in 2011.

Unusual Goals: CU did now allow a goal in its first four matches this year, one of only four teams nationally to not allow a goal in the first two weeks of the season. The Jays allowed five goals in two matches on Sept. 17 and 19, yet only two came the "old fashioned" way. Two of SMU's three goals on Sept. 17 came via penalty kick, while one of Dartmouth's two tallies on Sept. 19 was a Bluejay own goal.

Ribeiro's Firsts: Sophomore Andrew Ribeiro scored his first career goal against 18th-ranked SMU on Sept. 17, in his ninth career match off the bench for the Bluejays. He earned his first career start against Eastern Illinois on Oct. 1, after coming off of the bench in his first 11 career appearances.

Duran Duran: Senior Andrew Duran has been slowed by injuries throughout his career, limiting him to just 30 matches through his first three seasons. Duran, the 2006 NSCAA National High School Player of the Year, scored his first collegiate goal in a 1-0 win at No. 21 UC Santa Barbara (Sept. 7). Duran has again been bitten by the injury bug this season, suffering a torn meniscus against SMU on Sept. 17 and undergoing surgery on Sept. 23. With Duran on the pitch, the Bluejays did not allow a goal through four and a half matches.

First Two Weeks = Sweeps: Through two weeks of the season, Creighton accounted for all four weekly honors awarded by the Missouri Valley Conference. In week one, Kris Clark and Kyle Deremer were named Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively. In week two, Jose Gomez and Brian Holt notched the same honors. Deremer again earned MVC Defensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 27.

A Hoie There!: Redshirt junior goalkeeper Bryan Hoie made his regular-season collegiate debut for the Bluejays in their shutout of UNC Greensboro (Sept. 4). Hoie, in his fourth year with the program, faced no shots while playing just over nine minutes in his first action as a Bluejay.

Bluejays Hit Blackjack: Creighton has its smallest roster since 1996, with just 21 student-athletes listed on the squad this year. The entire roster of 21 played in CU's 4-0 win over UNC Greensboro on Sept. 4. The small roster is in sharp contrast to the last decade at Creighton, where the average roster size was 30.2 between 2000-09. That 1996 team had 22 players on the squad, but capped the season by appearing in the first College Cup Final Four in school history.

Clark Wins Debut: Head coach Jamie Clark won 2-0 over Loyola Chicago on Sept. 1 in his first match as CU's leader. The win puts the six all-time Bluejay coaches at 5-1-0 in their debut match. (The only head coach to lose in his debut was Bret Simon, falling to No. 20 Duke in 1995.)

Scoring in Debut: Sophomore transfer Jose Gomez scored at Loyola Chicago on Sept. 1 to become the first Bluejay to score in his Creighton debut since another transfer did so in 2005. Brian Kallman (older brother of current sophomore Brent Kallman) scored in his first game of his only season at Creighton, helping the Bluejays tie Portland 1-1 on Sept. 2, 2005. Gomez, who has three goals and 14 points, has avoided Kallman's fate, as that proved to be the only goal of his season.

Don't Shoot: The Bluejays did not allow a shot on goal in their season-opening win at Loyola Chicago (Sept. 1). It marked the first time since Oct. 18, 2008 that the Bluejays held an opponent without a shot on goal. CU allowed only two shots total to the Ramblers, the fewest shots by a Bluejay foe since Memphis attempted only three shots on Oct. 8, 2008. Since 2000, the Jays have posted six matches in which they allowed three shots, but none with two or fewer before their 2010 opener.

California Dreaming: With its 1-0 win at No. 21 UC Santa Barbara on Sept. 7, Creighton is now 10-0-3 in its last 13 meetings with California-based schools. The Bluejays have posted three straight on 1-0 wins over ranked California teams. In fact, Creighton has not allowed a goal to a California school in its last nine meetings, out-scoring Golden State squads 10-0 in that span. CU last allowed a goal to a California school in a 2-2 tie with San Diego State on Aug. 31, 2007 and last lost to a team from California on Sept. 7, 2003 (2-1, 2OT, at Loyola Marymount).

Ethan Finlay Nets Preseason Honors: Junior forward Ethan Finlay has joined a long list of former Bluejays that have been candidates for college soccer's top individual honor, as he has been named to the preseason MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. Finlay, who has also been tabbed to Soccer America's Preseason All-America Team, led the team with eight goals and 19 points as a sophomore and is CU's active career leader with 14 goals, seven assists and 35 points. He has led the team and MVC in game-winning goals in each of his first two seasons, as nine of his 14 career goals have been game-winners. Finlay is now on the long list of National Player of the Year candidates from Creighton, including the 1997 winner and current assistant coach, Johnny Torres.

CU National Player of the Year Candidates
Year    Player
2010    Ethan Finlay
2009    Byron Dacy, Chris Schuler, Seth Sinovic
2008    Byron Dacy, Andrei Gotsmanov
2007    Byron Dacy, Matt Allen
2006    Byron Dacy
2004    Julian Nash
2003    David Wagenfuhr
2002    Mike Tranchilla
2001    Mike Tranchilla
1997    Johnny Torres (Won)
1996    Ross Paule
1993    Keith DeFini & Brian Kamler

Familiar Faces Return: Jamie Clark retained assistant coach Johnny Torres on his staff, while two other former Bluejay standouts have returned to the bench this fall. Matt Wieland, the 2003 MVC Defensive Player of the Year and 2005 NSCAA Third-Team All-American, is serving as CU's graduate manager this season. Michael Kraus, 2006 MVC Player of the Year, has returned to campus to complete his undergraduate work this semester and will be a student assistant coach for the Bluejays while finishing up his school work.

Torres is HOFer: Assistant coach Johnny Torres, already a Creighton Athletics Hall of Famer, will be inducted into the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame in March, 2011 – becoming the first soccer inductee into the Valley's Hall. A two-time National Player of the Year with the Bluejays between 1994 and 1997, Torres is arguably the greatest soccer player in school and league history, ending his career as the MVC's all-time leader in points (128) and assists (36).

Updated & Extended Coverage: Fans will notice Creighton home matches not only have a new live stats platform, but will also benefit from Creighton's change to BCS Stats. The new live stats provider allows fans to follow the live action on their mobile device at www.gocreightonstats.com. Fans can also find more info on Bluejay athletics on Facebook at the “Official Creighton Athletics Page” and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/gocreighton. The men's soccer team also has its own Facebook page.

First Place at Stake as No. 10 Men's Soccer Hosts Missouri State Wednesday

Players Mentioned

Kris Clark

Byron Dacy

Kyle Deremer

Andrew Duran

Ethan Finlay

Ethan Finlay

Andrei Gotsmanov

Andrei Gotsmanov

Bryan Hoie

Brian Holt

Greg Jordan

Chris Schuler

Seth Sinovic

Related Videos