Creighton University
Seton Hall
#9 Men's Soccer Squares Off Against Seton Hall For Saturday's First Responders Night
9/27/2018 2:45:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Creighton resumes BIG EAST play, hosts First Responders and Wounded Warriors for special event
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Creighton resumes BIG EAST play with a match at home against Seton Hall. Saturday is also First Responders Night at Morrison Stadium.
First Responders Night At Morrison Stadium
Creighton will be hosting First Responders and Wounded Warriors Appreciation Night on Saturday at Morrison Stadium.
Members of Omaha Fire Department and Omaha Police Department will be on hand, while the band Cadillac Lemon will be performing in the North Endzone.
Additionally, three individuals involved with the Wounded Warriors Project will be recognized during halftime of the match.
Following the conclusion of the match there will be postgame fireworks.Â
Saturday's event is in partnership with the First Responders Foundation.Â
The First Responders Foundation partners directly with the Omaha and the region's police and fire chiefs to serve and honor first responders and their families, build appreciation and respect for their work, and enhance public safety.Â
The Wounded Warrior Project connects the more than 100,000 wounded warriors, family members, and caregivers it serves with programs that empower them to live their lives on their own terms. Thanks to generous donors, WWP is proud to offer these services free of charge.
Follow the Match
Saturday's match will be broadcast on the BIG EAST Digital Network, which can be found at FOXSportsGo.com or on the FOX Sports Go app. Donny Baarns will provide play-by-play and Rob Simms will handle color commentary.
Live stats for Saturday's contest can be found at Creighton.Statbroadcast.com.
Bluejay fans can stay updated through the Creighton men's soccer Twitter feed: Twitter.com/CreightonMSOC.
Scouting #9 Creighton (6-1-1, 2-0-0 BE)
The Bluejays enter Tuesday's match on a five-match winning streak, which includes three shutouts. Creighton is 6-1-1 overall and 2-0-0 during BIG EAST play.Â
The Bluejays opened league play with consecutive shutouts (Butler and Villanova) for the first time since 2013.Â
Sven Koenig leads Creighton in goals (5) and points (10).Â
Akeem Ward paces the squad in assists with four, while Joel Rydstrand and Younes Boudadi each have two assists.Â
Six different Bluejays have scored goals during the first eight matches of the season, as Creighton has outscored the opposition 12-3.Â
Freshman goalkeeper Paul Kruse has started all eight matches for Creighton and claims a 0.36 goals against average during 740 minutes of action, which is the best mark in the BIG EAST and ranks fifth nationally. The Germany native, owns a BIG EAST-best five shutouts, which also ranks fifth in Division I.
Head coach Elmar Bolowich is in his eighth season at the helm of the Bluejays.
Scouting Seton Hall (4-2-1, 1-1-0 BE)
The Pirates head to Omaha on a two-match winning streak and hold a 1-1 record in BIG EAST play.
Seton Hall is paced offensviely by CJ Tibbling who has four goals and one assist. The freshman scored both goals during the Pirates' 2-0 victory at home against Marquette this past Saturday (Sept. 22).Â
Andreas Nota owns starts in goal during each of the Pirates' first seven matches and claims a 0.95 goal against average, which ranks third in the BIG EAST.Â
Head coach Andreas Lindberg is in his first season at the helm of Seton Hall.Â
Series History Against Pirates
Creighton leads the all-time series against Seton Hall, 3-2-0, including a 2-0-0 mark at Morrison Stadium.
The Pirates claimed a 2-0 victory at Seton Hall last season.Â
Seton Hall is the only team in the BIG EAST that the Bluejays have yet to shutout since Creighton joined the league prior to the 2013 season.Â
The Pirates have scored 10 goals during five matches against Creighton -- the most of any conference foe during the past six seasons, including three during two matches at Morrison Stadium.
First Responders Night At Morrison Stadium
Creighton will be hosting First Responders and Wounded Warriors Appreciation Night on Saturday at Morrison Stadium.
Members of Omaha Fire Department and Omaha Police Department will be on hand, while the band Cadillac Lemon will be performing in the North Endzone.
Additionally, three individuals involved with the Wounded Warriors Project will be recognized during halftime of the match.
Following the conclusion of the match there will be postgame fireworks.Â
Saturday's event is in partnership with the First Responders Foundation.Â
The First Responders Foundation partners directly with the Omaha and the region's police and fire chiefs to serve and honor first responders and their families, build appreciation and respect for their work, and enhance public safety.Â
The Wounded Warrior Project connects the more than 100,000 wounded warriors, family members, and caregivers it serves with programs that empower them to live their lives on their own terms. Thanks to generous donors, WWP is proud to offer these services free of charge.
Last Time Out
Sven Koenig scored two second-half goals as the Creighton extended its winning streak to five matches with a 2-1 victory against Jacksonville on Tuesday night at Morrison Stadium.
After a scoreless first half, Koenig tallied goals during the 59th and 71st minutes and propelled Creighton to a 2-0 lead before Jacksonville found the back of the net during the 76th.
Koenig posted his second multi-goal match of the season.Â
Creighton ended the match with a 23-5 advantage in shots. Paul Kruse made a pair of saves during the Bluejays' fourth victory this season at Morrison Stadium (4-0-1).
Bluejays Streaking
Creighton enters Saturday's match on a five-match winning streak, which includes three shutouts.Â
The current stretch is the team's longest since starting the 2015 season with 15 straight wins.Â
The Bluejays have also opened BIG EAST play with consecutive shutouts for the first time since 2013 when the squad posted three straight clean sheets to start league play.
Putting Up Zeros At Home
Creighton allowed its first goal at home this season during the 76th minute against Jacksonville on Tuesday night.
The Bluejays held a streak at Morrison Stadium of 615:59 without allowing a goal, which spanned seven matches, including five consecutive shutouts.
The Bluejays did not allow a goal during the first 455 minutes at home this season, and did not allow a goal during the final home match of 2017.Â
The last goal Creighton conceded before Tuesday night was during the 20th minute against Xavier on Oct. 14, 2017, the second-to-last home match a year ago.
Creighton was 14:55 away from matching a program record for consecutive home matches without allowing a goal. The Bluejays have claimed six consecutive home shutouts twice during program history (Oct. 15, 1999-Sept. 2, 2000 and Oct. 26-Nov. 20, 2011).
Dates    Consecutive Home Shutouts
10/15/99-9/2/00 6
10/26/11-11/20/11 6
10/28/17-9/15/17 5
The Bluejays' longest shutout streak at home is 636:26 (Oct. 15-Nov. 27, 2011).Â
Additionally, Creighton posted shutouts during its first four matches of the season at Morrison Stadium for the first time since 2014 when the team also started the season with four straight shutouts at home and did not allow a goal until the 75th minute of its fifth home contest.
The last time Creighton did not allow a goal through its first five home matches of the season was in 2011.Â
The Bluejays' enter Saturday's match with a 0.19 goals against average through 470 minutes of action (one goal allowed) at Morrison Stadium during 2018.
Saturday's match is the second of three consecutive home matches for the Bluejays.Â
Fortress Morrison
Creighton is 134-23-19 overall at Morrison Stadium, including a 4-0-1 mark this season.
The Bluejays have never lost consecutive matches at Morrison Stadium during the same season (since 2003).Â
Creighton's loss at Morrison Stadium against No. 17 Virginia Tech to open the 2017 season followed the team's loss at home to end the 2016 campaign (2-1 vs. Providence), marking the first time since 1985 that Creighton had lost consecutive home matches (spanning across two seasons).
The Bluejays went 7-1-1 during 2017 at Morrison Stadium.Â
Creighton Ranks Among Leaders In Attendance
Creighton enters the weekend fourth on the NCAA Men's Soccer Average Attendance list. The Bluejays have averaged 3,564 fans through their first four home matches.Â
2018 Division I Avg. Attendance Leaders (Sept. 27)
Rk. Team Games Total Avg.
1. Maryland 4 15,845 3,961
2. UConn 5 19,538 3,908
3. South Carolina 4 14,904 3,726
4. Creighton 5 17,820 3,564
5. Grand Canyon 4 12,370 3,093
6. Indiana 4 10,764 2,691
7. Utah Valley 3 7,876 2,625
8. Clemson 3 7,394 2,465
9. Wake Forest 6 13,731 2,289
10. Portland 8 17,664 2,208
The Bluejays ranked 10th in average home attendance last season with 2,006 fans per contest, marking the 14th straight season Creighton finished in the top 10.
Kruse Named BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week
Freshman Paul Kruse earned BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week honors, the league announced on Monday morning.
Monday's accolade marked Kruse's second BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Week honor this season (also on Sept. 10).Â
Kruse claimed his BIG EAST-leading fifth shutout of the season -- third consecutive -- during Creighton's 1-0 victory at Villanova on Sept. 22 as the Bluejays improved to 2-0-0 in league action and 5-1-1 overall.
The Heilbronn, Germany native, made three saves, each during the second half, while helping the Bluejays move into sole possession of first place in the conference standings and extend their overall winning streak to four matches.
The freshman is currently tied for fifth (5th) in Division I in shutouts as Enrique Facusse (Kentucky) and Remi Prieur (Saint Mary's) each have seven (7) this season to lead the country, and Alex Ashton (Hofstra) and Miha Miskovic (Northwestern) each have six (6).
Kruse also holds a 0.365 goals against average, which leads the BIG EAST and ranks fifth (5th) nationally.Â
Division I Goals Against Average Leaders (Sept. 27)
Rk. Player (School)     Min    GA GAA
1. Colin Shutler (Virgina) 580:00 1 0.155
2. Roger Penske (Rhode Island) 494:15 1 0.182
3. Enrique Facusse (Kentucky) 745:37 2 0.241
4. Andrew Thomas (Stanford) 684:33 2 0.263
5. Paul Kruse (Creighton) 740:00 3 0.365
Creighton Ranked No. 15 In Initial RPI
Creighton was listed 15th in the initial RPI released by the NCAA on Monday afternoon (Sept. 24).
The Bluejays are one of four BIG EAST schools listed in the top 50 (25. Xavier, 26. Georgetown, 49. DePaul).
Seven of the 10 league schools are inside the top 100 of the RPI as the BIG EAST is the ranked third (3rd) as a conference, behind the ACC and Pac-12.
Seton Hall is listed at 150 in the rankings.
Creighton Jumps Into Top 10 of Coaches Poll
The Bluejays moved into the top 10 nationally and is listed at No. 9 in this week's United Soccer Coaches Poll, the organization released on Tuesday.
The Bluejays improved to 5-1-1 overall and 2-0-0 in BIG EAST play with a 1-0 shutout at Villanova on Saturday as the squad moved up three spots from last week's rankings. Creighton claims five consecutive victories, including three shutouts (includes Tuesday win vs. Jacksonville).Â
Creighton is off to its best start since 2015 when the team started the year 15-0-0 and ended its season in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament.Â
The Bluejays have now been ranked in the top-10 for at least one week during 26 of the past 27 seasons.Â
Creighton is one of two BIG EAST schools listed in the top 25 as Xavier moved into the poll at No. 22. Georgetown also received four votes.
