Goalkeeper Sperry Earns Big Ten Weekly Laurel
10/30/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
PARK RIDGE, Ill. -- Sophomore/freshman Patrick Sperry (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central HS) of the University of Michigan men's soccer team was named Big Ten Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Monday (Oct. 30). Sperry received the first conference honor of his career after grabbing six saves in a 1-0 victory over Penn State (Oct. 28), earning his fourth shutout of the year.
Sperry
Sperry is the first Wolverine to receive Defensive Player of the Week honors in the 2006 season, and the third goalkeeper in program history to earn the accolade, joining Peter Dzubay and Joe Zawacki.
Sperry made six saves versus the Nittany Lions, giving him 70 on the season, and putting him two stops away from Dzubays 2005 total, which ranks second on U-Ms all-time single-season saves list. The Hinsdale, Ill., native also earned his fourth clean sheet of the season, equaling the most shutouts by a Wolverine goalkeeper in a debut season. Sperrys four shutouts also tie for third on the U-M all-time list with Zawacki and Dzubay.
Sperry has started 18 matches this season, posting a 1.16 goals against average. In the Big Ten, Sperry is tied for first in saves (70) and saves per game (3.89), while ranking sixth in shutouts (4).
Sperry and the Wolverines travel to Columbus, Ohio, Thursday through Sunday (Nov. 2-5), to compete in the Big Ten Championship. The Maize and Blue are the No. 6 seed, set to face No. 3 seed Wisconsin on Nov. 2 at 1:30 p.m.
Contact: Joseph Conrad (734) 763-4423
