No. 13 Men's Soccer Opens Valley Play at Home Friday

Match 8 vs. Eastern Illinois • Friday, Oct. 1 • 7:00 p.m.
Eastern Illinois Panthers at #13 Creighton Bluejays
Morrison Stadium • Omaha, Neb.
Series History: Creighton leads 16-4-2

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 13th-ranked Bluejays open Missouri Valley Conference play with their only match of the week, hosting Eastern Illinos on Friday at 7 p.m. at Morrison Stadium.

Last Week: Creighton defeated Wisconsin 1-0 in overtime last Friday night on a golden goal from Wisconsin native Ethan Finlay. The Bluejays out-shot the Badgers 18-5 and allowed just one shot on goal in their third consecutive home shutout. Kyle Deremer was named the MVC Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season for his efforts in the clean sheet.

Scouting #13 Creighton (6-1-0, 0-0-0 MVC): Creighton, off to its second 6-1-0 start in the last three years, started the season with four consecutive shutout victories to break into the national rankings. The Bluejays rank 24th in the NCAA in both scoring (2.14 goals per game) and goals against average (0.69), one of only six teams in the nation to rank in the top 25 of both categories. The Jays return 12 players and six starters from last year's team which finished 7-4-5 and had a streak of 17 straight NCAA Tournament appearances snapped. CU, which started the season with 428 consecutive scoreless minutes, ranks fourth in the NCAA in shutout percentage with five clean sheets in seven matches. Junior goalkeeper Brian Holt, who owns the CU and MVC career record with a 0.64 goals against average, is back for his third season starting in net. With 24 shutouts in 42 career starts, he is just two clean sheets shy of the school record. Senior Kyle Deremer, a preseason all-MVC honoree, is the only returning starter for the CU defense, which has been boosted with the addition of U.S U-20 National Team member, freshman Tyler Polak, who has played every minute of the season thus far. Preseason All-American Ethan Finlay, a MAC Hermann Trophy candidate, leads the team and ranks 15th in the NCAA with five goals. Sophomore transfer Jose Gomez leads the MVC and ranks third in the NCAA with six assists. Midfielders Greg Jordan (3) and Kris Clark (2) also have multiple goals this season.

Scouting Eastern Illinois (3-4-0, 0-0-0 MVC): The Panthers have won each match they have scored in this year, while they have been shutout four times already and scored only four goals through seven matches. Four different players have scored for EIU, including Ryan Child, who also has the only two assists for the team so far. Sean Molony has played every minute in net this year, making 40 saves. EIU has posted three shutouts and allowed only six goals for a 0.85 goals against average. The Panthers are playing in their final season as a Missouri Valley Conference affiliate soccer member.

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 32-11-1 (.739) 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-EIU Series: Creighton is undefeated against Eastern Illinois since restarting the program in 1990, going 16-0-2 in the 18 meetings since the Panthers joined the MVC as an affiliate soccer member. The Jays had won 14 straight matches against the Panthers before playing to a scoreless draw at EIU last Oct. 24. Seven of the last 10 meetings with EIU have been shutouts, while the Jays have scored at least two goals against the Panthers in 12 of the last 14 meetings. The Jays scored a season-high five goals against EIU last year on Oct. 11 in Omaha. CU is 16-4-2 all-time against EIU, with the four losses coming between 1981-85, including three at EIU.

Records Set & Tied vs. EIU: In CU's 5-1 win over Eastern Illinois in Omaha last year (Oct. 11), the Bluejays set a Morrison Stadium record and tied a pair marks. The Jays' 15 shots on goal broke the former mark of 13, which had been done three times previously. CU's nine assists and 19 points tied the facility mark set against EIU on Oct. 8, 2005. The Jays out-shot EIU 26-5, allowing just two Panther shots on goal at home last year.

Welcome and Goodbye: The MVC welcomes two new affiliate men's soccer members this fall, as Southern Illinois Edwardsville and Central Arkansas join the league for the sport. This season also marks the final season that Eastern Illinois will be an affiliate of the MVC in men's soccer. The Panthers, who have been an MVC soccer affiliate since 1996, will become an affiliate member of the Summit League in 2011.

MVC Opener: The Jays are 12-3-4 all-time in MVC openers, including a 1-0 home loss to Missouri State last year in front of a Missouri Valley Conference record 5,609 fans at Morrison Stadium. Even with last year's loss, the Bluejays have out-scored their opponents 14-5 in their last five Valley openers – including 4-0 (Western Kentucky, 2006) and 5-0 (Eastern Illinois, 2005) wins.

Milestone Match: Creighton will be playing its 200th home match since restarting the program in 1990 when it hosts Eastern Illinois this Friday. Of the 199 home contests, 77 have been played at Morrison Stadium since 2003. From 1990 through 2002, CU played home matches at Tranquility Park in west Omaha. The Bluejays are 157-27-15 (.827) at home since 1990, including 55-11-11 (.786) at Morrison Stadium.

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 654 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 after being named a “Top 100 Freshman to Watch” by College Soccer News before the season.

Working Overtime: Creighton played in its third straight overtime match last Friday night against Wisconsin. Despite having played in 25 overtime matches over the previous four seasons, Creighton had not played in three straight overtime games since 1990. The final three matches of the 1990 season mark the only previous time in recorded school history that the Bluejays have played three straight overtime games.

NCAA Stats: Creighton ranks fourth in the NCAA in shutout percentage (.714), with five clean sheets in seven matches. The Jays rank 24th in the nation with a 0.69 goals against average and 24th with 2.13 goals scored per game. Only six teams in the NCAA rank in the top-25 in both scoring and GAA – Creighton, Connecticut, UC Irvine, Butler, Akron and Navy.
    Jose Gomez ranks third in NCAA with six assists and Ethan Finlay ranks 15th in the nation with five goals scored.

That Hurts: Creighton has lost two of its starting defenders to injury indefinitely. Senior Andrew Duran suffered a torn meniscus in his knee against SMU on Sept. 17 and had surgery on Sept. 23. Junior Jace Peters was injured against Dartmouth on Sept. 19, tearing muscles in his upper leg and abdomen area. Both players have no set date to return.

Gomez Streak Ends: Jose Gomez, who leads the MVC and ranks third in the NCAA with six assists, logged at least one point in each of CU's first six matches, including assisting five straight Bluejay goals between Sept. 4-11. The sophomore transfer tops the team with his six assists and 10 points and became the first Bluejay to record a point in six straight contests since Brian Biggerstaff in 2004.

Standing at Home: Creighton's match with Wisconsin (Sept. 24) started a four-game home stand for the Bluejays. Since Morrison Stadium opened in 2003, the Bluejays have had four regular-season home stands of at least four matches (three have been five-game home stands). In those four long stands, the Bluejays are a combined 13-4-2 (.737).
Previous Regular-Season 4+ Game
Home Stands at Morrison Stadium
2008 – 3-1-0    2005 – 3-1-1
2006 – 3-1-1    2004 – 4-1-0

Hot Starts: With four straight shutout victories to open the season, Creighton was off to its best start through four matches since the 2000 season – 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. The Jays are now 6-1-0 for the second time in three seasons (2008).

2009 vs. 2010 Offense: Creighton has scored 15 goals in seven matches this year – nine more than it had at this point last year, as the 2009 team scored just six goals in its first seven contests. The Jays currently rank 24th in the NCAA with 2.14 goals per game and 25th with 15 goals scored, one year after averaging 1.3 per match (20 goals in 16 matches). Last year, CU did not reach 15 goals scored on the season until its 12th match – on Oct. 21.

Unusual Goals: Creighton had not allowed a goal through 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 No. 18 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.

More Offensive Improvements: The Jays scored three goals in the first half of their home opener against UNC Greensboro on Sept. 4. In 2009, the Bluejays did not score three total goals at home until their fifth home contest of the season. The Bluejays have scored at least two goals in five of their first seven games this year, one year after they scored two or more goals in a match just four times all year.

Five Winners: In each of Creighton's first five wins this season the Bluejays had a different game-winning goal scorer. Last year, the Bluejays had only three players score a game-winning goal all season, as Ethan Finlay accounted for five of CU's seven winners. This year, Finlay has two of CU's first six winners.

Four Multiples: In 2009 Creighton had only four players score at least two goals over the entire season. This season, through seven matches, four players – Ethan Finlay (5), Greg Jordan (3), Kris Clark (2), Jose Gomez (2) – already have at least a pair of goals scored.

Ribeiro's First Goal: 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. As a rookie he played in just four matches, but has played in all seven matches for the Jays this year.

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, providing all the offense 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 are plus-10 in goals scored, with him sidelined with injury, the Jays are even.

Home Sweet Morrison: Including a 3-0-0 start this season, Creighton is now 55-11-11 (.786) all-time at Morrison Stadium. Creighton has lost just one home match in four of its last six seasons. Since 1990, the Bluejays are 157-27-15 (.827) at home.

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 remained there. This week the NSCAA poll has the Bluejays ranked No. 13, as does Soccer Times. College Soccer News has the Jays at 14 and Soccer America has CU at No. 12.

Pulling Rank: The Bluejays topped No. 21 UC Santa Barbara 1-0 on Sept. 7 and fell 3-2 in double overtime to No. 18 SMU on Sept. 17, to move to 1-1-0 against top-25 teams this year. Creighton went 2-1-0 against top-25 opponents last year, defeating No. 23 Cal Poly and No. 7 UCLA by 1-0 scores. The Bluejays are 54-40-9 (.568) all-time against the coaches top 25, including 22-16-7 (.567) in true road games and 8-15-0 (.348) in neutral site games against ranked opponents.

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.

Clean Sheets: Creighton opened the season with four consecutive shutouts for just the second time in school history – the 1999 squad posted four straight clean sheets to open the season. The Bluejays rank fourth in the NCAA in shutout percentage this year.

Road Warriors: With a pair of road wins this year, the Bluejays are now undefeated in their last 19 regular-season road matches dating back to a 2006 loss. At 2-0-0 on the road this year, the Jays are now 12-0-7 in regular-season road games over the last four seasons (4-0-1 in 2007, 4-0-2 in 2008, 2-0-4 in 2009). CU last lost a regular-season road match on Oct. 28, 2006, a 2-1 defeat at Bradley. Since the start of the 2007 season, the Bluejays are now 17-4-7 overall in matches away from Omaha, including 12-2-7 in true road matches and 5-2-0 in neutral contests.

Finlay's a Winner: Junior Ethan Finlay scored two goals against UNC Greensboro (Sept. 4), his second career multiple goal match. Included in the match, was his first career penalty kick attempt (and make) and his 10th career game-winning goal. Finlay, who has led the MVC in game-winning goals in each of his first two collegiate seasons, now has 11 game-winning goals of his 19 career scores.

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 two goals and team-best 10 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

Strong Schedule: Jamie Clark inherited one of the toughest schedules in the nation this year, one that features seven teams which advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2009. Akron, the 2009 NCAA runner-up, begins the season ranked No. 1 in the NSCAA, Soccer America and College Soccer News preseason polls. The Jays also play preseason No. 7 Tulsa and No. 8 UC Santa Barbara. The Jays play at UCSB – the site of this season's NCAA College Cup – on Sept. 7. MVC foe Drake, which advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals last year, is ranked 14th in the preseason NSCAA poll. CU also hosts preseason No. 20 Indiana. In addition to those five squads, the Jays also take on 2009 NCAA teams Dartmouth and Missouri State this fall.

Senior Citizens: Creighton has four seniors on the roster this year, all starters. Defender Kyle Deremer, a second-team all-MVC honoree in 2009, has started 34 of the 35 matches he has played in during his three seasons at CU. Sergio Castillo, a two-time MVC All-Tournament Team selection, has started 42 of his 53 career games. Andrew Duran has been slowed by injuries throughout his career, limiting him to 20 starts in 31 matches. Josh Moran started 13 of 15 matches and led the team with five assists in his first year with the Jays last year, earning second-team all-MVC notice for his play.

Nine Newbies: Creighton welcomes nine newcomers to Omaha this fall, including a pair of transfers and seven freshmen. Both transfers – junior Jace Peters and sophomore Jose Gomez started in the season-opener, along with freshman Tyler Polak. Polak, a Lincoln native, is a U-17 and U-20 U.S. National Team member.    Polak has been named one of the College Soccer News “100 Freshmen to Keep an Eye On”. Another freshman who debuted in the opener, Liam Kelly, is a member of the U-20 Canadian National Team.

MVC Preseason Poll: For the first time since 2004, the Bluejays are not favored to win the Missouri Valley Conference as voted on by league coaches. MVC coaches have tabbed Creighton for a third-place finish, behind Evansville and defending regular-season champion Missouri State. This marks just the second time in 20 years of MVC soccer that the Jays have not been picked to finish in the top-two, as CU was tabbed third in the initial MVC preseason poll in 1991. The Bluejays, who have been picked to win The Valley 12 times, own a league record nine regular-season titles.

Format Switch: The MVC will return to its typical regular-season schedule this fall, which sees teams meet just once during the season. Last year, the MVC played a double round-robing, with teams meeting twice (home and road). The Valley tournament will return to a six-team field after including just four last year. The top two seeds will earn a bye into the semifinals on Nov. 12, while the 3-6 seeds will face off in opening round play on Nov. 10. The championship will be played on Nov. 14, as all matches will be played at Bradley's Shea Stadium in Peoria, Ill.

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.

Exhibition Summary: Creighton won both of its exhibition matches by 2-1 scores, defeating Denver (Aug. 21) on the road and winning a home contest against nationally-ranked NAIA foe Hastings (Neb.) College last Friday. Illinois natives Andrew Duran and Greg Jordan scored for the Bluejays in Denver, while Kyle Deremer and Ethan Finlay notched the tallies at home. Sophomore transfer Jose Gomez assisted three of CU's four goals in exhibition play. Junior goalkeeper Brian Holt logged seven saves and a 0.62 goals against average.

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 now has its own Facebook page as well.

No. 13 Men's Soccer Opens Valley Play at Home Friday

Players Mentioned

Sergio Castillo

Kris Clark

Kris Clark

Byron Dacy

Kyle Deremer

Andrew Duran

Ethan Finlay

Jose Gomez

Bryan Hoie

Brian Holt

Greg Jordan

Greg Jordan

Brent Kallman

Liam Kelly

Josh Moran

Jace Peters

Tyler Polak

Andrew Ribeiro

Chris Schuler

Seth Sinovic

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