October 20, 1998
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame mens soccer team (7-4-3, 3-3-2), after going 1-1 in action last week versus Connecticut and Seton Hall, plays two of its final three regular season games on the road this week. The Irish travel to Providence for 3:00 p.m. contest on Wednesday, October 21 and then play at Boston College on Saturday, October 24 at 11:00 a.m.
THE WEEK IN REVIEW – Connecticut: Notre Dame was shutout for the first time at home this season as the Irish dropped a 2-0 decision to top-ranked Connecticut. It marked the ninth time in the programs history that an Irish team had faced the nations top-ranked team. The Huskies scored a goal in each half with Samuel Forko tallying Connecticuts first goal at 36:14 off an Maurizio Rocha assist and then Rocha added the Huskies second goal with less than 10 minutes to play in the contest on an assist from Luis Arauz at 80:55.
Seton Hall: Notre Dame posted its first win against a ranked opponent this season as the Irish recorded their third shutout of the 1998 campaign with a 2-0 victory over Seton Hall. Junior midfielder Andrew Aris (Auckland, New Zealand) had the first multiple-goal game of his career netting both Notre Dame goals in the win. Aris netted his first goal 1:34 into the contest when he headed in a Matt Johnson (Livermore, Calif.) cross into the left corner of the net on a ball that was fed from the right side of the field by Scott Wells (Phoenix, Ariz.). Aris second goal was scored off a penalty kick after Ryan Cox (Broadview Hts, Ohio) was fouled in the penalty box. Aris converted the penalty shot at 51:27. Greg Velho (Longwood, Fla.) made five saves in the game while recording his 24th career shutout.
HEAD COACH MIKE BERTICELLI – Notre Dame head coach Mike Berticelli is in his ninth season along the Irish sidelines and 23rd as a collegiate coach. He has led Notre Dame to three of the school’s four NCAA tournament appearances (1993, 1994 and 1996). In 1996, his Irish squad won the school’s first-ever NCAA tournament game when it defeated second-seeded UNC Greensboro in the first round. Berticelli has an 94-69-16 (.570) mark at Notre Dame and is 281-124-39 (.677) overall. In three of the last five seasons, Irish teams have won conference tournament titles. Under Berticelli, the Irish claimed the 1996 BIG EAST tournament crown in just its second year as a member of the league with consecutive wins over ranked opponents Connecticut and Rutgers. During the 1993 and 1994 campaigns, the Irish won back-to-back MCC tournament crowns and earned berths in the NCAA tournament. Prior to coming to Notre Dame, he spent six seasons (1984-89) at Old Dominion where his teams compiled a 76-27-16 record for a .706 winning percentage. Berticelli coached for four years at UNC-Greensboro (1980-83) with his teams compiling a 70-9-5 record (.863) and winning two Division III national crowns in 1982 and 1983. His first head coaching stint was at Thomas College where he coached from (1976-79) with his teams posting a 41-19-2 mark during that four-year span. The Irish have won 10-plus games in six of his eight seasons at the Notre Dame helm.
SERIES RECORD VERSUS UPCOMING OPPONENTS – Providence: Notre Dame has won all three meetings between the two teams and have not allowed a goal in the series, outscoring the Friars 5-0. Two years ago, the Irish posted their first-ever BIG EAST road win with 1-0 victory at Providence. Last season, Notre Dame beat the Friars 3-0 at Alumni Field.
Boston College: This will be the fifth meeting between the two schools and the series is tied 2-2. The first meeting between the two school occurred in Dayton, Ohio with the Irish earning a 5-0 victory. Since Notre Dame joined the BIG EAST in 1995, the Eagles have won two of the three meetings between the two schools. Boston College earned a 3-2 overtime victory in 95 at Notre Dame and a 1-0 win at home during the 1996 campaign. The Irish were 3-2 victors last season at Alumni Field.
ARIS GETS FIRST MULTIPLE GOAL GAME – Junior midfielder Andrew Aris had the first multiple goal game of his career as he scored both of Notre Dames goals in its 2-0 upset of 13th-ranked Seton Hall. The goals were the second and third of the season for Aris who also has three assists (nine points). He is the second Irish player to score two goals in the game this season freshman Shane Walton (San Diego, Calif.) netted two scores in the season opener against Valparaiso.
IRISH BACK ON TRACK – Notre Dames 2-0 victory on Sunday against Seton Hall was its first BIG EAST win since a 2-1 overtime win at Villanova on September 20. Prior to the win over the Pirates, the Irish 0-2-1 in its last three league outings, tying St. Johns (1-1 in overtime) and losing to Georgetown (2-1) and Connecticut (2-0).
NOTRE DAME GETS WIN OVER RANKED OPPONENT – Notre Dame has played four ranked opponents this season and the Irish are 1-2-1 versus those foes. The Irish tied St. Johns at home (1-1) back in late September when the Red Storm were ranked seventh. Notre Dame lost to 17th-ranked Santa Clara on the road on October 9 before its two games this past weekend against top-ranked Connecticut and 13th-ranked Seton Hall. When the Irish played the Huskies last Friday night its marked the ninth time in the programs history (dating back to 1977) that a Notre Dame squad has faced the nations number one team. Notre Dame is 1-8 in games versus ranked foes, with its only win coming on September 13, 1981 when it handed St. Louis a 4-3 setback. Irish head coach Mike Berticellis teams have gone up agains the top-ranked team five times during his nine-year tenure.
OVERTIME IRISH – Notre Dame has played six overtime games this season. Coach Mike Berticellis squad is 2-1-3 in overtime games in 98. The Irish played in a school-record five consecutive overtimes games earlier this season. The single-season record for overtime games in a season by a Notre Dame squad is seven set during the 1985 campaign.
IRISH PERFECT IN PENALTY KICKS – Notre Dame is a perfect two-for-two in penalty kicks this season. Andrew Aris had one over the weekend in the win over Seton Hall. Ryan Cox had the first one for the Irish this season in a 3-1 loss at Santa Clara.
WALTONS HEROICS – Freshman Shane Walton has four game-winning goals this season and one game-tying goal. He leads the team in scoring with nine goals and five assists (23 points). Walton has scored a goal in all but eight games in 1998 and has been named the BIG EAST Rookie of the Week three times. He has had one multiple-goal game and two multiple-point contests this season.
HOME SWEET HOME – Notre Dame is 4-1-2 at home this season. The 1998 campaign marks the ninth season for the Irish playing at Alumni Field. Since 1990, Notre Dame has won 72.0 percent of its games there, compiling a 57-20-7 record. Alumni Field has not been a friendly place for Irish opponents the past three-plus seasons, although Coach Mike Berticellis squad somewhat struggled at home in 1997 winning just six of 10 games. The four losses represented the most for a Notre Dame team at Alumni Field in eight years. Four of the six wins, however, were shutouts. The previous season, 1996, the Irish had a 7-1-2 mark at home after posting an 8-3 record during the 1995 campaign. Notre Dame won a school-record 11 wins in 1994 en route to an 11-3-1 mark. Berticelli’s team recorded eight shutouts in 1996, six of which were at home.
CLOSE CALLS – Six of Notre Dames 14 games this season have been decided by a single goal. The Irish are 4-2 in those games in 1998. Notre Dame beat Northwestern (1-0), Villanova (2-1 in overtime), IUPUI (1-0 in overtime) and Saint Marys (3-1) and lost road games to Rutgers (1-0 in overtime) and Georgetown (2-1).
MURPHYS DEFENSE TOUGH – Senior defender Phil Murphy (Brentwood, Tenn.), one of seven players to start all 14 games this season, turned in a stellar defensive performance over the week against Connecticut and Seton Hall as he held two of the BIG EASTs leading scorers scoreless. In the 2-0 loss to the Huskies, Murphy allowed the Conferences third-leading scorer, Bobby Rhine, to just three shots. Against Seton Hall, in the 2-0 Irish win, he held Peter Scavo (second-leading scorer in the BIG EAST) to three shots (all in the first half).
VELHO GETS CAREER SAVE 24 – Senior Greg Velho recorded his third shutout of the season and 24th of his career in Notre Dames 2-0 overtime win against Seton Hall. Velho has played in 72 games during his career and made 68 starts while registering a 37-24-7 record.
VELHO HAS BEEN STRONG IN GOAL – Greg Velho has 67 saves overall this season (4.8 per game) and 45 in eight BIG EAST games (5.6 per game). He tied his career best with 12 saves in Notre Dames 1-1 tie with St. Johns on September 26. He established the personal high against UNC Charlotte in the second round of the 96 tournament. This season, he has a 1.05 overall goals against average and .807 save percentage.
WALTON AND COX ARE A SCORING COMBINATION – The combination of Shane Walton and Ryan Cox (Broadview Hts, Ohio) has appeared prominently on the Irish scoresheet this season. Together, the duo has been involved in nine of the 21 goals scored by the team this season. They are both one-two in the Irish scoring column with 38 of the teams 71 points. Walton and Cox have combined for 13 goals and 12 of Notre Dames 25 assists.
IRONMAN – Matt Johnson (Livermore, Calif.) has played in all 77 games throughout his career and has made starting appearances in 76 of those contests. The only start he has missed was against Georgetown during the 1995 season. Johnson has dished off two assists this season. He had one of the assists on Andrew Aris game-winning goal in the 2-0 win over 13th-ranked Seton Hall.
IRONMAN II – Since midway through the 1996 campaign, four-year starter Greg Velho has played every minute of every contest spanning Notre Dames last 46 outings. He has played 4,371 consecutive minutes in goal. With a shoulder injury to Gerick Short (Mobile, Ala.) this season, he is the only goalkeeper in the Irish lineup. Velho has not been replaced in the lineup since the Irish beat Western Illinois 6-0 on October 11, 1996.
BIG EAST WELL REPRESENTED IN POLLS – Five BIG EAST teams are ranked in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Poll. NFor the third straight week, Connecticut is the top-ranked team, St. Johns and Georgetown remained 10th, while Georgetown fell to 14th. Rutgers moved up from 19th to 14th, while Seton Hall dropped from 13th to 25th.
NSCAA (Week of October 19)
LW 1. Connecticut (14-0-0) 1 2. Indiana (13-1-0) 2 3. Duke (13-1-0) 3 4. Clemson (13-1-0) 5 5. Washington (11-2-0) 4 6. Creighton (9-2-1) 8 7. Virginia (9-2-2) 7 8. Stanford (10-3-0) 17 9. UCLA (10-2-0) 610. St. Johns (8-3-3) 1011. Saint Louis (12-2-1) 1212. Butler (12-2-0) 1513. South Carolina (10-3-1) 2114. Georgetown (11-3-0) 1115. Rutgers (10-4-2) 1916. Dartmouth (8-1-1) 1417. James Madison (10-2-1) 1818. Akron (11-2-1) 2019. Cal State Fullerton (9-3-1) NR20. Southern Methodist (9-3-1) NR21. Wake Forest (9-3-1) 1622. Penn State (9-3-2) NR23. Southwest Missouri State (9-3-0) 2524 St. Francis (11-4-0) NR25. Seton Hall (8-3-3) 13SOCCER AMERICA (Week of October 19) LW 1. Indiana (13-1-0) 1 2. Duke (13-1-0) 3 3. Clemson (13-1-0) 4 4. Connecticut (14-0-0) 5 5. UCLA (10-2-0) 2 6. Stanford (10-3-0) 7 7. South Carolina (10-3-0) 8 8. Creighton (9-2-1) 9 9. Washington (11-2-0) 610. Saint Louis (12-2-1) 1111. Virginia (9-2-2) 1012. Dartmouth (8-1-1) 1313. Furman (12-2-2) 1614 St. Johns (8-3-3) 1415. Cal State Fullerton (9-3-1) NR16. Georgetown (11-3-0) 1717. Santa Clara (9-3-2) 1518. Butler (12-2-0) 2019. Wake Forest (9-3-1) 1820. Sothern Methodist (9-3-1) NRNSCAA GREAT LAKES REGIONAL POLL (October 18) 1. Indiana (50) 13-1-0 2. Butler (45) 12-2-0 3. Akron (40) 11-2-1 4. NOTRE DAME (34) 7-4-3 5. Cincinnati (30) 8-4-2 6. Oakland (24) 9-3-0 7. Xavier (17) 10-6-0 8. Western Kentucky 9-6-0 9. Wright State 8-5-0 10. Marshall 8-6-1
Others receiving votes: Dayton, Louiville 1998 BIG EAST STANDINGS
BIG EAST Overall Record Record 1. Connecticut (18) 9-0-0 14-0-0 2. St. Johns (14) 7-1-0 10-4-2 3. Rutgers (13) 6-2-1 8-3-3 4. Georgetown (10) 5-3-0 11-3-0 Seton Hall (10) 4-3-2 8-3-0 6. West Virginia (9) 4-4-1 9-4-1 7. NOTRE DAME (8) 3-3-2 7-4-3 8. Providence (6) 3-4-0 5-8-0 9. Boston College (5) 2-5-1 5-7-2 Syracuse (5) 2-6-1 4-8-111. Pittsburgh (4) 1-6-2 4-6-312. Villanova (0) 0-9-0 2-11-0
( ) - points
1998 Schedule/Results (7-4-3, 3-3-2)
AUGUST 21 Fri. OHIO STATE (Exhibition) L, 1-2 28 Fri. DEPAUL (Exhibition) W, 3-1 SEPTEMBER 1 Tue. VALPARAISO W, 6-1 5 Sat. at Syracuse* W, 3-1 8 Tue. (15/NR) NORTHWESTERN W, 1-0 13 Sun. (15/NR) PITTSBURGH* T, 2-2 (OT) 18 Fri. (16/NR) at Rutgers* L, 0-1 (OT) 20 Sun. (16/NR) at Villanova* W, 2-1 (OT) 26 Sat. (18/NR) ST. JOHNS* (7/7) T, 2-2 (OT) 29 Tue. (17/NR) at Western Michigan T, 1-1 (OT)
OCTOBER 3 Sat. (17/NR) at Georgetown* L, 1-2 6 Tue. (T22/NR) IUPUI W, 1-0 (OT) 9 Fri. (T22/NR) at Santa Clara (20/17) L, 1-3 11 Sun. (T22/NR) at St. Marys (Calif.) W, 2-1 16 Fri. CONNECTICUT* (1/5) L, 0-2 18 Sun. SETON HALL* (13/NR) W, 2-0 21 Wed. at Providence* 3:00 p.m. 24 Sat. at Boston College* 11:00 a.m. 30 Fri. WEST VIRGINIA* 7:30 p.m.
NOVEMBER 7 Sat. BIG EAST Tournament TBA 8 Sun. Quarterfinals (Campus Sites) 13& Fri.& BIG EAST Tournament Semifinals 15 Sun. Finals (Piscataway, N.J.)
*BIG EAST match
( ) - indicates rankings at time of game in NSCAA and Soccer America polls.All times are local