Creighton University
Xavier
No. 1 Men's Soccer Hosts Xavier In Regular-Season Home Finale
10/27/2015 11:34:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Game 16 • Wednesday, Oct. 28 • #1 Creighton vs. Xavier • Omaha, Neb. (Morrison Stadium) • 7:00 p.m. CST
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Top-ranked Creighton Men's Soccer (15-0-0, 5-0-0 BIG EAST) will look to remain the nation's lone unbeaten and untied team as the Bluejays host Xavier (9-4-1, 3-2-1 BIG EAST) on Wednesday, Oct. 28 in Creighton's regular-season home finale. The match will kick off at 7:00 p.m. CST and will take place at Michael G. Morrison, S.J., Stadium in Omaha.
Follow The Match
Wednesday's match will be broadcast on the BIG EAST Digital Network. To access the feed free-of-charge via FOX Sports GO, visit FOXSportsGO.com. The BIG EAST is the first and only collegiate conference to be hosted on FOX's mobile platform, FOX Sports GO.
FOX Sports Go is currently available for iOS, Android, Kindle Fire tablets and phones, select Windows devices, and on desktops. Fans can download the mobile app for free from the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Amazon App Store, and Windows Store.
Live stats for the match can be accessed at Creighton.StatBroadcast.com.
Scouting Creighton
The No. 1 Bluejays are 15-0-0 on the season after wins versus Michigan (1-0), Milwaukee (4-0), CSUN (2-1), No. 13 UC Irvine (4-0), Michigan State (1-0), Tulsa (1-0), Northern Illinois (2-0), Seton Hall (4-2), Missouri State (4-0), DePaul (1-0), Drake (2-1), St. John's (2-1), Butler (1-0), Marquette (3-1), and Villanova (5-1). The Bluejays return eight starters and 13 lettermen from last year's team that won the BIG EAST Conference regular-season title, advanced to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals, and finished last season ranked No. 7 in the year-end NSCAA poll.
Creighton returns 30 of its 32 goals from last year, including each of its top six scorers. The Bluejays also return 24-of-30 assists from a year ago, and all but five minutes of the nearly 2,044 minutes in goal from last season.
Junior forward Fabian Herbers (12g, 9a this year) has emerged as a frontrunner for National Player of the Year honors, as he's contributed at least one point in 14 of Creighton's 15 wins, including a point in the Bluejays' first 10 matches. He currently leads the BIG EAST for goals, assists, points per game, and shots on goal per game after earning First Team All-America accolades and BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year honors during a magnificent 2014 season. Last season, he led the conference with 28 points, was second in the league with four game-winning goals, and third in both goals (10) and assists (8). Herbers was also a Third Team CoSIDA Academic All-American last year.
Senior Timo Pitter (7g, 3a this year) paced the league in assists (9), shots (75) and shots on goal (36) during a 2014 campaign that saw him add Second Team All-America plaudits. Pitter was also named BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year in 2014.
Senior goalkeeper Connor Sparrow (0.47 GAA this year) returns in net after ranking second nationally in goals against average (0.49) and 10th in save percentage (.841) a year ago. Sparrow's career 0.47 goals against average as a Bluejay is the best in Creighton history among goalies with at least 2,000 minutes in net.
Scouting Xavier
Xavier will enter Wednesday's match in the midst of a three-match unbeaten streak.
The Muskateers earned a 1-0, overtime victory over league opponent Marquette on Saturday, Oct. 24 in Cincinnati.
Series History
Prior to Creighton joining the BIG EAST, the Bluejays had never squared off against Xavier.
The Bluejays lead the series 2-0-1, with the most recent meeting, a 2-1 Creighton victory, coming in last year's NCAA tournament.
Balanced Bluejays
In 15 games this season, Creighton has allowed just seven goals. Only St. Francis Brooklyn (5) and Loyola Chicago (6) have allowed fewer goals.
Complementing its stellar defense, Creighton's offensive attack has been one of the nation's best this season. After scoring five goals in Saturday's win over Villanova, Creighton now leads the nation in total goals with 37.
No. 1 Creighton, No. 2 Wake Forest, and No. 3 Clemson are the only programs to be ranked in the nation's top 10 for both scoring offense and team goals against average.
Pitter Continues To Shine
With his game-winning goal at Butler on Wednesday, Oct. 14, Timo Pitter moved into seventh-place on Creighton's all-time list for career goals (30) and ninth-place for career points (80), moving past former All-American and current Creighton women's soccer head coach, Ross Paule, on both lists.
Herbers For Hermann
Fabian Herbers recorded at least one point (a goal or an assist) in each of Creighton's first ten regular-season games this fall.
Herbers was the first Bluejay to start a season in such fashion since restarting the program in 1990. MLS standout and Creighton alumnus, Ethan Finlay, had a run of nine straight such games from Sept. 17-Oct. 23, 2010.
The junior forward has notched a point in 14 of Creighton's 15 contests.
Herbers Dominates BIG EAST Stats
The BIG EAST Conference updates stat leaders after each set of games, and the latest stat provides a glimpse at just how dominant junior forward Fabian Herbers has been.
The league tracks nine different offensive categories, and Herbers ranks first or tied for first in all nine.
Category Total BIG EAST Rank
Shots 65 1st
Shots Per Game 4.64 1st
Goals 11 1st
Goals Per Game 0.79 2nd
Assists 7 T-1st
Assists Per Game 0.50 2nd
Points 29 1st
Points Per Game 2.07 1st
Game Winning Goals 4 T-1st
Blank Space
The Bluejays, who have recorded shutouts in nine of their 14 contests this season, are currently ranked third in NCAA Division I for shutouts. Only St. Francis Brooklyn (12) and Washington (10) have recorded more shutouts.
At Home, Ranked First, At Last
The 1-0 win over Tulsa on Sept. 19 was Creighton's first home game as the nation's No. 1 team since a Nov. 14, 1993 four-overtime loss to Air Force.
Creighton is 11-1-0 all-time when playing at home as the nation's top club, losing only that game to Air Force 21 years ago.
Since then, Creighton has also played seven games as the nation's No. 1 team at road or neutral venues and has gone 7-1-1 in those contests.
Super Seniors
The Bluejays' outgoing senior class, consisting of Fernando Castellanos, Eric DeJulio,Vincent Keller, Mike Paye, Timo Pitter, and Connor Sparrow, has helped Creighton to a 57-16-8 (.753) record over the past four years, including a 29-6-3 (.803) mark inside Morrison Stadium.
From Germany To Omaha
The BIG EAST Digital Network chose Creighton Men's Soccer as the subject of its first school-conference coordinated feature on BEDN.
The feature story, focusing on the German influence on Creighton's team, can be viewed online by visiting the following URL:
http://YouTube.com/BIGEASTNetwork
Starting Strong
Creighton is off to an 15-0-0 start, marking the program's best start to a season since 1993 when the Bluejays began 19-0-0.
Creighton's 8-0-0 Starts or Better
Year Start First Non-Win Postseason
2015 15-0-0* ??? ???
2011 8-0-0 at #3 Maryland College Cup
1993 19-0-0 Air Force NCAA 1st Rd.
1990 9-0-0 Drake None
*active
Creighton is the nation's only unbeaten and untied team in Division I (men's or women's) remaining in 2015.
The Bluejays 15-0-0 start to a season marks the best start in NCAA Division I Men's Soccer since 2009 when Akron began its campaign with 23-consecutive wins en route to a College Cup appearance.
Dancing In September
Creighton capped a perfect month of September, recording a 7-0-0 record, marking the program's first seven-win September since 1995.
All-time under Elmar Bolowich, Creighton is 26-6-4 in the month of September. Bolowich and the Bluejays are 28-6-1 all-time in October.
Creighton is currenly 6-0-0 in October.
Statistical Leaders Across The Board
Creighton ranks near the top of nearly every major statistical category in NCAA Division I, as well as several other individual categories. Below are rankings through Oct. 27:
Team Category Rank Stat
Win Percentage 1st 1.000
Wins 1st 15
Shots/Game 1st 20.53
Shots on Goal/Game 1st 8.80
Total Home Attendance 1st 3,8922
Average Home Attendance 4th 3,538
Team Goals Against Average 4th 0.47
Points Per Game 5th 6.93
Goals Per Game 2nd 2.47
Total Goals 1st 37
Name Category Rank Stat
Fabian Herbers Shots Per Game 2nd 4.60
Fabian Herbers Game-Winning Goals 10th 4
Fabian Herbers Shots on Goal/Game 3rd 2.27
Fabian Herbers Total Goals 6th 12
Fabian Herbers Total Assists 2nd 9
Fabian Herbers Total Points 1st 33
Fabian Herbers Goals Per Game 5th 0.80
Fabian Herbers Points Per Game 3rd 2.20
Timo Pitter Game-Winning Goals 10th 4
Timo Pitter Shots on Goal/Game 5th 2.13
Timo Pitter Total Goals 41st 7
Timo Pitter Total Points 59th 17
Connor Sparrow Goals Against Avg. 8th 0.472
Connor Sparrow Save Percentage 65th 0.774
Connor Sparrow Goalie Mins. Played 57th 1334:22
Huge Crowd, Huge Win
A crowd of 6,453 fans turned out to watch the Sept. 19, 1-0 win over Tulsa on homecoming, the second largest home crowd in school history, and fourth largest in the nation this fall.
It was also the largest home crowd to see the Bluejays pick up a win.
Below is a list of the largest home crowds in program history:
Att. Opponent CU Result Date
6,848 #14 Old Dominion L 1-2 9/14/02
6,453 Tulsa W 1-0 9/19/15
5,812 #11 UCLA T 0-0 9/8/07
5,743 Stanford (Ex.) L 0-1 9/26/05
5,609 Missouri State L 0-1 9/19/09
5,425 Drexel W 1-0 9/4/11
Top 10 Crowds
Creighton finished last season 10th nationally in average home attendance and fifth overall in total home attendance.
It was the 11th-straight season the Bluejays have finished in the top-10 nationally in average home attendance.
Creighton is currently averaging 3,538 fans through 11 home dates, which ranks fourth nationally through games as of Oct. 27, Creighton is also first with 38,922 total home fans.
The 4,838 fans for Michigan on Aug. 28 ranked as the largest crowd in school history to witness a season-opener, while the crowd of 4,907 vs. CSUN on Sept. 4 was the program's largest crowd since 2012. CU's crowd of 6,453 on Sept. 19 vs. Tulsa was the second-largest home crowd in program history.
Creighton's average home attendance of 3,538 is nearly triple that of any other BIG EAST institution. Butler and Georgetown rank second and third with averages of 1,206 and 1,044, respectively.
Simon Says Bolowich Is #1
Saturday's win versus Villanova improved Elmar Bolowich to 78-18-9 as Creighton head coach, good for a .786 winning percentage.
With Creighton's win over Seton Hall on Sept. 26, Bolowich passed Bret Simon atop Creighton's all-time coaching list for best win percentage. Simon went 96-26-8 in six seasons from 1995-2000, good for a .769 win percentage.
Simon, like Bolowich, also took Creighton to a pair of College Cups.
Keller Repeats Defensive Honor
For the third time this season, co-captain Vincent Keller was named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 5. The league tabbed Keller with the distinction after he helped lead Creighton to a pair of wins over Missouri State and DePaul. Helping anchor the defense, Keller and the Bluejays allowed just eight total shots in the wins, including just two total shots on goal.
Hot and Fresh(man)
Freshman Joel Rydstrand has played a key role in the Bluejays' hot start to the season, recording two goals and two assists, including the game-winning goal at Marquette on Saturday, Oct 17. Following his game-winner at Marquette, Rydstrand was named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 19. Rydstrand also accounted for one of Creighton's five goals versus Villanova on Oct. 24, subsequently earning BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors.
We're No. 1, We're No. 1
For the eighth-straight week, Creighton is ranked first nationally in the NSCAA, Top Drawer Soccer and College Soccer News polls this week. It's the 15th time in program history the coaches have voted CU to the top spot.
Creighton was ranked No. 1 the final five weeks of the 1993 season by the Intercollegiate Soccer Association of America.
Since the NSCAA poll became the poll of record in 1996, Creighton has been No. 1 for one week each on Sept. 15, 1999 and Sept. 10, 2013. CU moved into the top spot in this year's NSCAA poll on Sept. 8 poll and has remained there since.
During Creighton's 2013 stint atop the poll, the Bluejays lost 3-2 in double-overtime vs. William & Mary to drop to fifth, and would actually end the season unranked.
Below is a list of the last time the Bluejays were ranked No. 1 by each organization before this season:
NSCAA - Sept. 10, 2013
Soccer America - Oct. 21, 2014
College Soccer News - Nov. 11, 2014
Top Drawer Soccer - Oct. 21, 2014
Herbers From The Spot
Creighton is a perfect 3-for-3 on penalty kicks this season, with Fabian Herbers converting all three kicks.
This is just the second time in the last dozen years that Creighton has made three or more penalty kicks in the same season, joining the 2011 club that was 4-for-6 from the spot.
Herbers is the first Creighton player to make three penalty kicks in the same season since Mike Tranchilla converted four in 2002.
Herbers Earns National Honor
Fabian Herbers was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week on Oct. 5, marking the third time this season Herbers has earned the distinction. Last month, Herbers was named CSN National Player of the Week on Sept. 14 for his role in a 1-0 win at Michigan State.
Milestone Win #350 For Bolowich
Elmar Bolowich picked up his 350th career win on Tuesday, Sept. 22, becoming the 10th active Division I coach to reach 350 career wins.
Here's a look at the top-12, through games of Oct. 27. The list includes all victories as a head coach at a four-year institution, but the individual must have been a Division I head coach for a minimum of the last five years:
Most Victories, Active Division I Head Coaches
Rk. Coach, Team Years W Next
1. Mark Berson, South Carolina 39 479 10/27
2. Bob Warming, Penn State 38 447 11/01
3. Bob Gray, Marshall 39 435 10/27
4. Ralph Lundy, Charleston 40 431 10/28
5. Ray Reid, Connecticut 27 409 10/27
6. Rich Posipanko, Winthrop 37 389 10/28
7. Dave Masur, St. John's 29 385 10/28
8. Seamus McFadden, San Diego 36 369 10/30
9. Sasho Cirovski, Maryland 25 367 10/31
10. Elmar Bolowich, Creighton 27 358 10/28
11. Bobby Clark, Notre Dame 29 343 10/31
Alan Dawson, Old Dominion 28 343 10/27
Home Cooking
Creighton owns a 112-19-15 (.818) record all-time record at Morrison Stadium, including a 15-game unbeaten streak (14-0-1).
The Bluejays are 112-7-8 all-time at Morrison Stadium when scoring at least one goal, including 23-straight victories. At all sites, Creighton is 28-0-2 since the start of the 2014 season when scoring at least one goal.
With Creighton's victory over DePaul on Oct. 3, Elmar Bolowich earned his 50th win inside Morrison Stadium, joining Bob Warming as the only coaches to eclipse 50 home wins at Creighton. Bolowich is currently 53-6-3 (.879) at home as headman of the Bluejays.
Sparrow Finds A Way To Win
Senior goalkeeper Connor Sparrow has allowed one goal or less in 39 of his 41 career starts at Creighton.
The only team to score against him multiple times in the same game has been Seton Hall, which did it in both 2014 and 2015, though Creighton won both matches (3-2 in 2014 and 4-2 in 2015).
In his other 39 starts as a Bluejay, Sparrow has allowed just 16 total goals.
O Captain! My Captain!
Seniors Vincent Keller and Eric DeJulio have been named captains on this year's team. Both men started all 22 games a season ago for Creighton's BIG EAST champion club.
Pitter Sets Another Morrison Mark
Timo Pitter has attempted 171 shots in his career at Morrison Stadium to break the all-time mark formerly held by Ethan Finlay (141) from 2008-11.
Earlier this year Pitter broke the stadium record for career shots on goal (89), passing the 66 by Finlay.
Pitter is also second in Morrison Stadium history in career goals and points, trailing Finlay in both categories. He trails Finlay by just one goal (21).
With his appearance versus Villanova on Saturday, Pitter became Morrison Stadium's all-time leader for matches played with 48.
Bolowich Keeps CU Winning
Creighton ranks second nationally with 78 wins in the last five years, which coincides with the arrival of head coach Elmar Bolowich. Bolowich was named BIG EAST Co-Coach of the Year last season after helping the Bluejays to a league title.
Below is a list of the nation's most wins since Bolowich arrived before the 2011 season, through games of Oct. 27, 2015.
2011-14 2015 Total Next
Rk. Team Wins Wins Wins Game
1. Coastal Carolina 73 11 84 10/28
2. Creighton 63 15 78 10/28
3. Akron 63 11 74 10/28
4. North Carolina 61 13 74 10/27
5. Maryland 64 7 71 10/31
Keller & Pitter Up For Senior Class Award
Vincent Keller and Timo Pitter are among 30 men's soccer student-athletes who excel both on and off the field that were selected as candidates for the 2015 Senior CLASS Award® in collegiate soccer.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Pitter is one of four men (along with CSU Bakersfield's Christian Duarte, Cal Poly's Chase Minter and Stanford's Brandon Vincent) who are also on the preseason watch list for the Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy, which recognizes the top player in collegiate soccer. Outside of academics and athletics, all candidates also have been consistently involved in community service on their campus or in their communities.
The candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition. ?
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2015 NCAA Men's and Women's College Cup® championships in December.
Former Creighton goalkeeper Brian Holt won the 2011 Senior CLASS Award on the pitch, while ex-Creighton men's basketball standout Doug McDermott won the 2014 Senior CLASS Award on the hardwood.
NSCAA Team Academic Award
The Creighton men's soccer program was recognized by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) with the organization's team academic award for 2014-15.
It is the seventh honor in the last eight seasons (2008-12, 2014-15) for Creighton.
The NSCAA annually recognizes college and high school soccer programs that have excelled in the classroom, in addition to their work on the field and requires a team grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
Herbers Play Gets Noticed
Fabian Herbers was a First Team All-American last year, and the junior picked up where he left off as the forward was named to College Soccer News' National Team of the Week on Aug. 31 and the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week on Sept. 1. He repeated his honor from Top Drawer Soccer on Sept. 8 with two goals and two assists in two wins. Herbers earned recognition for a third straight week when he was named the National Player of the Week by College Soccer News on Sept. 14. He again earned a spot on College Soccer News' National Team of the Week on Oct. 5.
Herbers has tallied at least one point in 14 of Creighton's 15 matches this year and has scored a goal in all but four contests.
His five points against No. 13 UC Irvine on Sept. 6 were a personal high, and the most by a Bluejay since Ethan Finlay had six points on Oct. 15, 2011, also against UC Irvine.
In addition, Herbers performance vs. UC Irvine included his second career multiple-game as a Bluejay. Thirteen times in his 47 career contests he has scored the first goal of the game for either team.
In 16 games against outside competition this fall (two exhibitions, 15 regular-season games), Herbers owns 14 goals and 13 assists:
Opponent Goals Assists Final Score
at Bradley (Ex.) 1 2 W 3-0
Northwestern (Ex.) 1 2 W 5-0
Michigan 1 0 W 1-0
Milwaukee 1 1 W 4-0
CSUN 0 1 W 2-1
#13 UC Irvine 2 1 W 4-0
at Michigan State 1 0 W 1-0
Tulsa 0 1 W 1-0
Northern Illinois 1 1 W 2-0
at Seton Hall 1 1 W 4-2
Missouri State 1 0 W, 4-0
DePaul 1 0 W, 1-0
Drake 0 0 W, 2-1
St. John's 1 0 W, 2-1
Butler 0 1 W, 1-0
Marquette 1 0 W, 3-1
Villanova 1 2 W, 5-1
Total (16 games) 14 13 CU 45-7
League Openers
Creighton's win at Seton Hall on Sept. 26 improved Creighton to 16-4-5 all-time in conference openers, including a 3-1-1 mark under Elmar Bolowich.
Since joining the BIG EAST, Creighton is a perfect 3-0-0 in league lid-lifters, picking up 1-0 wins over St. John's (in OT in 2013) and at Villanova (in 2014) before this season's 4-2 win at Seton Hall.
In league road openers, Creighton improved to 13-5-7 overall and 2-1-2 under Bolowich. During Bolowich's tenure, the Bluejays are 5-0-0 in league home openers.
The Bluejays win over DePaul on Oct. 3 improved Creighton's all-time mark in league home openers to 21-2-2.
Bluejay Flurry Keys Comeback
In its BIG EAST opener, Creighton trailed 2-1 late versus Seton Hall lon Sept. 26 before unleashing three goals in less than six minutes to lock up a hard-fought, 4-2 road win.
After Lucas Stauffer was fouled in the box, Fabian Herbers tied the game at 2-2 on a penalty kick with 10:14 to play. Just 128 seconds later Myles Englis scored to make it 3-2. And 5:45 after Herbers' initial score it was Stauffer who found the back of the net for the first time in 2015 to add an insurance tally.
Creighton had not scored three goals in less than a six minute span since Sept. 21, 2003, when it did so vs. Yale.
Saturday's comeback was Creighton's first victory under Elmar Bolowich in a game in which it's trailed with less than 11 minutes left, and first time since a 2-1 overtime win on Oct. 16, 2010 at Evansville under Jamie Clark.
The last time Creighton trailed with 11 minutes left and won a game in regulation came Oct. 17, 2007, when it won 2-1 at Western Kentucky with Bob Warming as coach.
Creighton also rallied from one-goal, second-half deficits to beat Drake and St. John's.
A Big Win Over A Big-Time Team
Creighton's 4-0 win over No. 13 UC Irvine on Sept. 6 was its largest margin of victory against a ranked team since a 4-0 win versus No. 23 Tulsa on Oct. 3, 2004.
Creighton's last win by four or more goals against a top-20 team had been a 6-2 victory over No. 6 Boston College on Dec. 8, 2002.
Top 10 Preseason Jays, Again
Creighton was ranked sixth nationally in the preseason edition of the NSCAA Top 25 Coaches poll.
This was the fourth time in the last five years the Bluejays have been ranked in the top-10 of the preseason poll, and 11th time since 1998.
Creighton has now spent at least one week in the top 10 of the NSCAA poll in each of the last 24 seasons.
Dynamic Duo
Timo Pitter and Fabian Herbers form one of the nation's top offensive duos, and the numbers continue to bear that out.
Either Pitter or Herbers has scored or assisted on 48 of Creighton's 69 goals since the start of the 2014 season, including 24-of-32 tallies a year ago.
That pair have combined for 35 goals and 29 assists in that span. 14 of those 35 goals have been assisted by the other half of their star duo.
Among Active Career Leaders
Timo Pitter currently ranks third in NCAA Division I among active players with 80 career points. Pitter is tied for fourth among active players for career goals (30).
Fabian Herbers ranks fifth for points per game among active players, maintaining an average of 1.31.
Sparrow A Rare Bird
Senior GK Connor Sparrow remains Creighton's all-time leader in goals against average, allowing just 0.47 goals per 90 minutes in a Bluejay uniform.
Sparrow's numbers are even more impressive at home, where he owns a 0.37 GAA in a Creighton uniform at Morrison Stadium.
Of the 20 goals that Sparrow has allowed as a Bluejay, only six have come prior to halftime.
Sparrow is Creighton's all-time leader for win percentage with a .833 mark (33-5-4).
Ethan Finlay, All-Star
Former Creighton All-American Ethan Finlay is having a splendid summer.
Finlay entered the week ranked fifth in the MLS with 13 assists to go with 12 goals in 34 starts with the Columbus Crew this year.
Earlier this summer, Finlay played in the MLS All-Star Game.
Finlay played at Creighton from 2008-11, leading the Bluejays to a pair of College Cups before being 10th overall in the 2012 MLS Super Draft.
Jays Favored In Preseason BIG EAST Poll
Creighton and Georgetown tied for first in the preseason BIG EAST poll that was released on Aug. 18. Both teams had 77 points and five first-place votes in the poll.
GK Connor Sparrow, M Timo Pitter and F Fabian Herbers were each named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Pitter was a unanimous selection, while Sparrow was named BIG EAST Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year.
This is the eighth time in the last 11 years, and 15th time since 1990, that Creighton has been picked to win its league in the preseason.
Perennial Power
Creighton won the program's first BIG EAST title last season when it claimed the regular-season crown with a 7-1-1 mark.
The Bluejays now own 13 regular-season and 13 conference tournament titles in program history, all since 1992.
You Play To Win The Game
Creighton's 16-3-3 record last year led the nation in winning percentage (.795). The Bluejays were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament after falling in penalty kicks vs. UMBC during the team's 10th appearance in the national quarterfinals in the last 19 years.
Another Strong Class
College Soccer News has dubbed Creighton's recruiting class as the nation's 31st best. Among the newcomers the website highlights are Evan Waldrep, Jacob Rooth and Peter Prescott.
Herbers & Pitter Earn Preseason Acclaim
Fabian Herbers and Timo Pitter have both been recognized nationally in the preseason. Both men are among the 30 players on the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. Creighton is one of six schools with two players on the list, joining Charlotte, CSU Bakersfield, Georgetown, Kentucky and Stanford.
Top Drawer Soccer also honored Herbers and Pitter on their Preseason Best XI Teams. Herbers was a first-team pick at forward, while Pitter was a second-teamer as a midfielder.
College Soccer News also acknowledged Herbers and Pitter on its Preseason All-America Teams. Herbers was a first-team choice at forward, while Pitter was a second-team midfielder.
Top 100 Trio
Fabian Herbers, Timo Pitter and Connor Sparrow all earned a spot on Top Drawer Soccer's Preseason Top 100 list of the nation's top players. Herbers checked in at No. 5, while Pitter (No. 18) and Sparrow (No. 74) made the Bluejays one of eight teams nationally with three players in the top-75.
Tough 2015 Slate
The Bluejays' 2015 schedule features five regular-season contests against teams that were nationally-ranked in the preseason NSCAA poll, as CU meets No. 3 Georgetown, No. 7 Providence, No. 9 Michigan State, No. 19 Xavier and No. 20 UC Irvine.
Creighton also has a game vs. Tulsa and won an exhibition vs. Northwestern, two teams that were listed among those 'also receiving votes."
All told, Creighton's 2015 schedule will see it face nine teams that finished last year in the top 55 of the RPI, including five games against teams that reached the Sweet 16.
So Close
Each of Creighton's last 14 losses have been by a single goal, including every setback in 2013 and 2014.
Creighton has fallen behind by two goals just four times in 98 games under Elmar Bolowich, and lost by two goals just twice.
Streaks To Watch
Creighton is 43-0-2 under Elmar Bolowich when leading at halftime.
Creighton is 28-0-1 in its last 29 games when scoring first, and 68-3-2 under Bolowich.
Creighton has trailed at the half in just two of its last 33 games (1-0 vs. CSUN on Sept. 4, 2015, and 1-0 vs. Drake on Oct. 6, 2015).
Creighton is unbeaten in its last 16 games at all sites (15-0-1).
Creighton has not lost a true road game since late in the 2013 campaign, going 6-0-3 away from Morrison Stadium in that stretch.
Creighton is 13-0-0 in home matches under Bolowich that kick off prior to 6 pm.
Creighton Soccer's European Vacation
Creighton spent nearly two weeks in Europe in early July, spending most of that time in Germany and Austria. The team went 2-2-0 against strong competition, but also bonded in a foreign culture that included trips Neuschwanstein Castle, Allianz Arena and Munich's Olympic Stadium, among other areas.
