Weekly Release #4

Upcoming Schedule ...
Friday, Sept. 16 -- at Oakland (Rochester, Mich.), 5 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 18 -- vs. Kentucky (U-M Soccer Field), 2 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 25 -- vs. Northwestern (U-M Soccer Field), 2 p.m.

This Week ...
The University of Michigan men's soccer team try to continue their two-game win streak as they take on Oakland on Friday, Sept. 16, at 5 p.m. EST/CDT in Rochester, Mich. On Sunday the Wolverines will face the Kentucky Wildcats on Sunday (Sept. 18) on U-M Soccer Field at 2 p.m.

Scouting the Opponents ...
Oakland -- Oakland opens the 2005 season for the 25th year under head coach Gary Parsons. Last year the Grizzlies finished the season 2nd in the Mid-Continent Conference with an overall record of 11-5-3 and a conference record of 4-1-1. Oakland has 16 returning starters, seven of which are starters and 10 newcomers. The first meeting between the two games came in the 2000 season where they tied in a 3-3 exhibition game. Overall, the Wolverines are 2-0-2 against Oakland, finish the 2004 match up in a 0-0 double overtime tie. Oakland on the Web: www.ougrizzlies.com.

Kentucky -- This will be the second straight meeting for the two teams, last year Kentucky lost to the Wolverines in a 1-0 overtime game, closing the season with a 12-7-2 record, and 4-1-1 in the Mid-American Conference. After the loss to Michigan, the Wildcats finished the season 5-2-2 winning the MAC championship. For the 2005 season, the Kentucky men's soccer program will join 10 more teams in Conference USA as head coach Ian Collins enters his 11th year. Currently Kentucky is 2-1-1. Kentucky on the Web: www.ukathletics.com.

Michigan Wins Own Tournament
This past weekend (Sept. 9-11) the Michigan Wolverines hosted their own tournament, the Michigan Invitational, for the first time in team history. With a 1-0 win over Louisville on Friday (Sept. 9), and a 3-1 win over Long Island on Sunday (Sept. 11), the Wolverines took first place out of four teams. Louisville came in second, MSU was in third and Long Island finished in fourth place. With a first place finish, the Wolverines sent four players to the All-Tournament team, seniors Ryan Alexander (Southfield, Mich./University of Detroit Jesuit), Trai Blanks (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer), Peter Dzubay (Sylvania, Ohio/Northview) and junior Kevin Savitskie (Plymouth, Mich./Salem).

Blanks and Dzubay are MVPs
For their performances over the weekend Blanks was named Offensive MVP while Dzubay took Defensive MVP honors. In the victory over Long Island, Blanks played an enormous roll taking two shots, two shots on goal, scoring two goals and having one assist. Along with these stats, Blanks assisted on the opening goal, scored the go-ahead goal as well as the goal that closed the game out. Dzubay's roll, as coach Steve Burns puts it, "was that stalwart for us in between the pipes." Dzubay's dominating goalkeeping was first shown in the first game of the tournament, when he got his third shutout of the year, with three saves. Over the weekend Dzubay played a total of 180 minutes, grabbed six saves and only gave up one goal, while facing nine shots on goal; two of which were saved by the team.

Seniors Leading the Pack
Through four games, three seniors are ahead of the pack in stats for the Wolverines. Alexander leads the team in shots (12) and second in shots on goal with 5. Senior Adam Bruh (Roslyn Heights, N.Y./Wheatley) displays great field vision as the leading assist man, with two assists, one setting up a game-winning goal, and the other was on a Michigan lone-goal. While Blanks is the team leader in points (7), goals (3), game winning goals (2), shot percentage (.333), and shots on goal (7).

Raising the Bar
In 2004, Michigan finished the year with its third-best record, 11-8-4 overall, 1-4-1 in the Big Ten. The first and only conference victory came against the Big Ten's fourth ranked Wisconsin, 2-1 in overtime. The Wolverines earned their second invitation to the NCAA Tournament where they beat Akron 2-1 and later suffered a second round loss to the NCAA Champion Indiana Hoosiers by a last minute goal.

Team Leadership
The 2005 Wolverines look for their leadership to come from their team-captains, seniors Adam Bruh (Roslyn Heights, N.Y./Wheatley HS), Ryan Sterba (Westlake, Ohio/St. Ignatius HS) and junior Kevin Hall (Kalamazoo, Mich./Portage Central HS). All three captains have been nominated as Michigan All-Time Lettermen, and finished second, fourth and tenth place, respectively, as the team point scorers. Bruh brings back his scoring ability after finishing tied for second on the team in goal scoring. Sterba returns to the team after leading them in assists last year with seven for the season, while Hall will maintain the team's defensive prowess.

New Faces in Town
Michigan adds six recruits this year, ranking 10th on the College Soccer News top 40 list for the new recruiting class. Of the six new faces, two, Steve Bonnell (St. Clair Shores, Mich./Detroit Country Day HS) and Jacob Stacy (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central HS) are on the College Soccer News top 100 freshman to watch list. Bonnell, a forward in high school, was named 2004 NSCAA Michigan Player of the Year, selected to the 2004 NSCAA High School Boys All-America Team, and scored a total of 92 career goals at Detroit Country Day. Stacy, also a forward in high school, was named as Michigan's Mr. Soccer in 2004 and was also a selection for the NSCAA High School Boys All-America Team. Joining these bright new stars are two defenders Michael Holody (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS) and Chase Tennant (Rochester, Mich./Rochester HS), a midfielder, Alex Morrisset (Shelby Township, Mich./De La Salle HS) and a goalkeeper, Patrick Sperry (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central HS).

The Book on Burns
Head coach Steve Burns is 52-39-8 in five seasons as the leader of Michigan's varsity program. Last season Burns guided the Wolverines to an overall record of 11-8-4, and their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Since his taking the helm in 2000, Burns' Wolverines have bettered their record in each of his first five years. Prior to Michigan soccer being granted varsity status on March 26, 1999, Burns was the head coach of the Michigan club team since 1993. Under his leadership, Michigan posted a 121-51-26 mark (.677 winning percentage) and made six consecutive appearances in the national club championship tournament. The team won back-to-back national championships in 1997 and 1998.

On the Horizon
The following week the Wolverines will host Northwestern on Sunday (Sept. 25) at 2 p.m. on U-M Soccer Field.

Contact: Joseph Conrad (734) 763-4423