Oct. 2, 2012

The Last Meeting Green Bay* (Chancellor's Cup) 2   Milwaukee 3 OT2 September 28, 2011 Engelmann Stadium UWM Claims Chancellor's Cup With Dramatic Double-Overtime Finish Junior Cody Banks volleyed in the game-winning goal with just seven seconds left in the second overtime to send the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team to a thrilling 3-2 victory over Green Bay Wednesday night at Engelmann Stadium. Recap | Box Score

The Last Meeting Milwaukee 1 UIC* 3 November 5, 2011 Chicago, Ill. Panthers Fall To Flames In Regular-Season Finale Craig Krzyskowski scored a pair of goals to lead UIC to a 3-1 victory over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team Saturday night at Flames Field. The Panthers (6-10-2, 2-4-2 Horizon League) cut a two-goal deficit in half and made it 2-1 on a goal by sophomore James Ashcroft in the 77th minute, but Krzyskowski hit the back of the net just over five minutes later to put away the victory for the Flames (9-6-3, 3-4-1 Horizon League). Recap | Box Score

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer team begins a big week, heading to Green Bay for the annual "Chancellor's Cup" showdown Wednesday before returning home for the first time in over a month when it hosts UIC Saturday.

UWM Game Notes

The Panthers start things off this week with a road trip to play Green Bay at 7 p.m. Wednesday night at Santaga Stadium. Then, on Saturday night, they will be back home to host the UIC Flames at Engelmann Stadium, set for a 7 p.m. kickoff.

UWM is 24-14-3 all-time against the Phoenix, with a pair of double-overtime thrillers the past two meetings. In 2010, Green Bay earned the 2-1 win. Then, last year, the Panthers reclaimed the Chancellor's Cup with one of the most memorable goals in program history when Cody Banks scored with seven seconds left in the second overtime.

The Flames have certainly had the upper hand of late, but UWM still holds a slim 16-14-4 all-time lead despite the fact that the Panthers have not beaten UIC since 2002 (0-8-2 in that span).

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:
GREEN BAY: The Phoenix returns 13 players from its 2011 roster which finished with an overall record of 11-7-1 and a fourth place finish in the Horizon League with a 5-3-0 record, advancing to the semifinals of the Horizon League Tournament. Current sophomore Kirby Allen (Appleton, Wis.) was a Horizon League All-Newcomer Team selection and currently leads the 2012 squad with three goals and seven points.

The team is 2-7-1 so far in 2012, with an 0-2 mark in league action after falling to Wright State (2-1 Sept. 29) and Detroit (2-1 Sept. 14). It is 1-6 the past seven games since last winning Aug. 31.

UIC: The Flames are 4-4-2 so far in 2012, including a 1-0-1 mark in Horizon League action after a 1-0 defeat of Valparaiso Sept. 29 and a 1-1 draw at Wright State Sept. 22. In between those games, they also knocked off No. 23 SIUE, 1-0, Sept. 26. UIC returned 13 letterwinners from last year's team that went 9-7-3, including seven players that saw significant time in the starting lineup. Head coach Sean Phillips and his staff also welcomed 11 newcomers to the mix. Ivan Stanisavljevic finished the 2011 campaign as the Horizon League leader in points (26), points per game (1.44), goals (10), goals per game (0.56) and assists (6), while ranking second in shots (48). For his efforts, Stanisavljevic was tabbed NSCAA All-Region. He is back on track in 2012 among the league leaders in points, goals and assists.

Live statistics of both matches will be available on the UWM website. Wednesday's game will be available via live video as well as Time Warner Sports 32 on a tape-delay basis. Saturday's affair with the Flames will be available live on the Horizon League Network.

THEY HAVE ALL OF `EM
Speaking of the "Chancellor's Cup", it is one of the three traveling trophies that the Panthers play for each and every season. In addition, Milwaukee takes on Marquette for the "Milwaukee Cup" and also plays Northern Illinois for the "LeWang Trophy". In 2011, UWM posted wins in all three games (2-1 over Marquette; 3-2 in double-overtime against Green Bay and 1-0 against NIU) to hold all three trophies for the first time since the start of the 2005 campaign.

EXTRA SOCCER LAST WEEK
Milwaukee went 0-1-1 last week, falling to Bowling Green on a penalty kick in double-overtime before settling for a 1-1 draw in the Horizon League opener Saturday at Loyola.

After not playing past regulation in the first seven games, UWM has participated in back-to-back double-overtime matches. The most recent occurrence for that was just last season, playing 2-2 draws against Detroit and Wright State in October.

GET OFF THE BUS
The Panthers will return home to host UIC Oct. 6, marking over a full month in between home games for the team after last playing at Engelmann Stadium Sept. 2. The team is 3-0 in Milwaukee so far in 2012 and has not had such an extended run of road matches (six) since six straight in 2004 (from September 13 to October 13).

ABOUT THOSE LOSSES
Milwaukee stands in at 4-4-1 after nine games. A closer look makes the record a bit more impressive.

The three teams that UWM has lost to in regulation in 2012 (as of Oct. 1) are now a combined 24-1-4 overall and are each ranked in all of the national polls. Marquette is 10-0-0 and is No. 9 in the most recent NSCAA/Continental Tire poll. Xavier is 7-0-2 and is No. 17 in the most recent poll. Lastly, Northwestern is 7-1-2 and is the No. 22 team in the country according to NSCAA.

RING THE BELL
Sophomore Laurie Bell continued to be among the Horizon League leaders in points (second with 11), goals (tied for second with four) and assists (tied for third with three) following UWM's last outing.

Bell scored in three games in a row (Aug. 26-Sept. 2) and was looking to be the first UWM player to find the back of the net in four straight since Antou Jallow last accomplished the feat in November of 2004. The goal-scoring streak was snapped at Xavier Sept 9, but he did have an assist in back-to-back matches to record at least one point in five games in a row. The last UWM player to record a goal or assist in five straight games was Zeke Dombrowski in 2007.

POLL POSITION
The Panthers were receiving votes in the NSCAA Great Lakes Regional poll for three weeks in a row, culminating with an appearance at No. 10 the week of Sept. 18. That marked the first time in the regional poll since being ranked third in the November 15, 2005 poll.

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS
The Panthers have now recorded 151 shots through the first nine games of the season and lead the Horizon League in shots per game at 16.8. Wright State and Cleveland State rank second 13.5.

Following its last outing, Milwaukee had two of the top 10 in the league in the category, with sophomore Laurie Bell leading the conference with 32 shots. In addition, freshman Aaron Horvat was tied for 10th with 22.

SCORING IN BUNCHES
UWM has scored at least two goals in four out of nine games in 2012 and are second in the Horizon League in that category with 13 total and 1.44 per game (Detroit leads at 1.78). In addition, the squad is also second in points per game at 4.11 (UDM first with 5.11) and assists with 1.22 (Titans first again with 1.56).

For perspective, UWM scored 27 goals in 18 games in 2011 for an average of 1.5. It had 17 goals in 2011 and had just 12 over the course of the 2009 campaign. At this rate, Milwaukee will score its highest amount of goals in quite some time. The Panthers netted 17 goals in 2008, 16 in 2007 and 26 in 2006. The last time a Milwaukee squad averaged two goals per game or better was in 2004, when it tallied 44 goals in 22 games.

The Panthers have now already had eight different players score goals and 11 different players record points this season. Once again for comparison, as recently as 2009, those numbers were eight goal scorers and nine point scorers over the course of the entire season.

LEARNING ON THE FLY
It may take more than a quick glance at the season statistics to notice, but the Panthers have been playing a very young squad so far in 2012. In fact, freshmen have accounted for 28 starts overall this season. UWM has started as many as four freshmen in a game (on two occasions), with Patrick Ruhland and Declan Rodriguez starting eight games each so far.

THEY LIKE THE "S" IN GOALS
The multi-goal efforts from the Panthers so far in 2012 cannot be overlooked, as they had a streak of four-straight games with at least two goals snapped at Xavier Sept. 9 when they only netted one. UWM has had some high-powered offenses over the years, but the last time Milwaukee scored two goals (or more) in four straight games was the end of the 2004 campaign when it beat Cleveland State (4-0), Wright State (3-0), Detroit (3-0) and #20 San Francisco in the NCAA Tournament (3-2).

FOR OPENERS
Milwaukee is now 18-17-5 all-time in season openers, including a 13-12-3 ledger in road openers after the heartbreaking 3-2 loss at Marquette Aug. 24. Prior to a win in 2010, the Panthers had been a bit jinxed in their season opener the past few years, not having come out on top since the 2003 season in going 0-4-2 from 2004-09.

Head coach Kris Kelderman had one season opener under his belt at the collegiate level prior to last week. A year ago, his Green Bay squad topped SIU Edwardsville, 1-0.

89:59
For the second time this season, Milwaukee played in a game where the winning goal was scored as the horn sounded to end regulation, with freshman Pol Narbona thrilling a packed Engelmann Stadium with his goal against IUPUI Aug. 31. His winning goal went into the books at the 89:59 mark, quickly making happier memories of the buzzer-beater after UWM suffered the same fate at Marquette in the season opener.

If you are a fan of late goals, it can't come any later. Cody Banks scored the memorable game-winner against Green Bay last season with just seven seconds left in double-overtime, making it one of the latest goals to end a match (109:53) in recent memory. Since 2000, only a handful has even come close. UWM and Green Bay are familiar with the late heroics, with their game in 2010 decided in the 109th minute in the win by the Phoenix. Looking back, Milwaukee lost a 2-1 game to Michigan in October of 2005 in the 109th minute.

The other contenders? Vermont edged UWM, 2-1, with just 21 seconds left in double-OT in 2010 and Bowling Green defeated Milwaukee, 2-1, back in the 2001 season with just 15 seconds left in double-overtime as well.

FRESHMAN IMPACT
Freshman Declan Rodriguez did not take long to make an impression as a Panther. Inserted into the lineup at halftime of the game against Marquette Aug. 24, he tallied the first goal of his career just 25 minutes later to give UWM a 2-1 lead at the time. Then, against Northern Kentucky Aug. 26, his header off a corner kick tied the game, 1-1, before Milwaukee would go on to prevail.

In doing so, Rodriguez became the fourth freshman since 2000 to score in the season opener, joining Antou Jallow (2001), Adam Skalecki (2005) and Edison Crespo (2010) on that list. He also became just the second-ever freshman to score in the first two games of the season.

EXHIBITION SEASON REWIND
Milwaukee played just one exhibition contest against outside competition, falling to DePaul, 1-0, Aug. 20. The Panthers outshot the Blue Demons and had plenty of scoring chances, but could not find the back of the net and a goal scored directly off a corner kick in the 59th minute proved the difference.

VIDEO COVERAGE EXTENDED
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will stream 29 home fall sporting events live through the end of October as part of the Horizon League Network. The 29 events during the first two-plus months of the school year mark just the beginning of an extensive streaming schedule for the Panthers through HLN.

Matt Menzl and Nate Lisko return as the two main voices of Panther athletics in the fall. Menzl will call the majority of soccer matches while Lisko will be the voice of Panther volleyball. In addition to the volume of home events, many of UWM's league road events are also available through the Horizon League Network via broadcasts from the host institution. Live streaming of home events is just one part of UWM's extensive online video presence. The Black and Gold Network - the You Tube channel for Panther athletics - will again provide a variety of features, previews, postgame interviews and highlights. Last school year, the Black and Gold Network produced over 300 video features with more than 50,000 page views. Those broadcasts are produced by the home school, with a full listing of those events available at horizonleague.com.

PANTHERS FOUND THE OFFENSE
Overall in 2011, the Panthers featured one of their highest-powered offenses in quite some time. Their 79 points led the Horizon League, with their 1.5 goals per game (27 total goals) second and 1.39 assists per game ranking at the top of the conference. For perspective, UWM scored 17 goals in 2010 and had just 12 total over the course of the 2009 campaign. The team also recorded 272 shots - a total that also placed second in the league.

COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS TABS BOYD
Junior Robbie Boyd earned some national recognition when the website "College Sports Madness" announced its Preseason All-Horizon League squads. Listed among the 22 members of the first and second team was Boyd, selected as a first-team honoree at forward.

WELCOME TO MILWAUKEE
There will be plenty of chances for newcomers to make an impression in 2012, as 16 players out of the 32 on the roster will be putting on a UWM uniform for the first time this season.

In addition to the players that have never put on a UWM uniform before, one addition will be welcomed back. Junior Andrew Wiedabach will return after a season away. Wiedabach has a resume that includes Horizon League All-Newcomer status as a freshman and then first-team all-league honors in 2010 when he led the team in points (13), goals (4), assists (5) and shots (58).

MORE WITH COACH KELDERMAN
Look for a weekly audio podcast of the "Kris Kelderman Show", as we sit down weekly with Kris to revisit the week that was and talk about the upcoming schedule. The first episode was made available Aug. 21 and will follow with a new episode every Monday during the course of the 2012 campaign.

The show is available as a link off the main UWM website page or directly at www.uwmpanthers.cstv.com/genrel/podcasts.html.

UWM'S NEW HOME TURF
A new synthetic playing surface was installed at Engelmann, giving the Panthers a FIFA Two-Star Field, with the new Polytan playing surface the first of its kind in North America.

Engelmann Stadium has been the home of Panther soccer since the 1970's, and soccer supporters have been stepping forward to help with improvements to what is considered one of the best college soccer environments in the country.

ON TAP
The Panthers have just one game on the schedule for next week and it involves another in-state rivalry. Milwaukee heads to play Wisconsin, Oct. 10, in a 7 p.m. kickoff.