Oct. 18, 2011
Contact: Tim Ertle
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Match 14
IUPUI (4-8-2, 1-1-1 SL) at Cleveland State (6-6-1, 3-1-1 HL)
Date: Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Site: Krenzler Field (2,000) - Cleveland, Ohio
Series: IUPUI leads, 2-0-1
Last M'tg: @ IUPUI 2, Cleveland State 1 (10/17/10)
Match 15
Green Bay (6-5-1, 2-2 HL) at Cleveland State
Date: Saturday, October 22, 2011
Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
Site: Krenzler Field (2,000) - Cleveland, Ohio
Series: Green Bay leads, 17-15-3
Last M'tg: @ CSU 3, Green Bay 1 (10/1/10)
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SETTING THE SCENE: The Vikings, now alone in first place atop the Horizon League standings after a road win over UIC on Friday (Oct. 14), return home for a pair of matches this week. First up is a non-league contest with IUPUI at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday (Oct. 19). Cleveland State will then resume league play when Green Bay visits Krenzler Field at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday (Oct. 22). The Vikings will be looking to continue their four-match winning streak while IUPUI is trying to get back in the win column after a 1-0 overtime loss to Western Illinois last weekend. The Jaguars have struggled to score all season, finding the back of the net just nine times in 13 matches this season. Green Bay has a non-league game on Wednesday (Oct. 19) against Wisconsin, but they'll come to Krenzler Field with a 2-2 record in the league and will be presented with an opportunity to pull within a point of Cleveland State with a win.
REVIEWING LAST WEEK: Cleveland State only had one match last week, but it was a big one. UIC had an opportunity to cause a four-way tie for first place in the Horizon League, but the Vikings escaped to stand alone. Below is a quick recap of the match:
Match 13: Cleveland State 2, UIC 1 (Oct. 14, Chicago, Ill.) Aaron Adkins scored his team-best sixth goal in the 16th minute of the match to give CSU a 1-0 lead. Early in the second half, Admir Suljevic tied Adkins with his sixth goal of the year. The Flames cut the deficit in half with a goal in the 62nd minute, but Brad Stuver turned away shot after shot, ending the game with 11 saves to help Cleveland State move into first place.
2011 SEASON PREVIEW: When looking at the Vikings 2011 roster, you'll notice a lot of familiar names. The 2010 team finished 9-10-1, but expectations are high this season with nine of the team's top 10 scorers returning from last season. Junior Brad Stuver (6-5-1, 54 saves) is arguably the best goalkeeper in the league. He was named Horizon League 'Goalkeeper of the Year' last season when he had three shutouts and 87 saves - 14 more than the second place finisher. An experienced backline is led by senior Brian Donnelly who has started nine of 13 matches this season, as has sophomore defenseman Cameron Eisses. Sophomore Zach Ellis-Hayden (one goal, two assists) has started all 13 games in the back, and the defense has received major contributions from Al James and Justin Mancine, both of whom have started 10 matches. Sophomore Justin Cree (five starts), junior John Gulden (two starts) and senior Chris Koy (two starts, one assist) have added experience and depth. Seniors Manuel Conde (two assists) and John Wargo, first and second on the 2010 team in points, will lead the charge in the middle. Wargo has battled injuries and only appeared in three games, but when healthy that duo teams with Aslinn Rodas (one goal, three assists) to make up the trio that combined for 51 starts and 27 points (nine goals, nine assists) last season. In Wargo's absence, freshman Mike Derezic (one goal) has started the first 11 games of his college career and the coaches are high on the rookie. The Vikings forwards have scored 15 goals in the 2011 season, with Admir Suljevic and Aaron Adkins each scoring a team-best six goals in addition to Jordan Hart (twice) and Cazz Warren finding the back of the net. Adkins and Suljevic, tied for fourth in the league in goals, are the most well known of the bunch but Caleb Eastham (four starts) and Hart (eight starts) are also very experienced for sophomores at the forward spot for the Vikings.
GOING STREAKING: With four consecutive wins, the Vikings are one win shy of tying the longest winning streak under head coach Ali Kazemaini. During the 2008 season, the Vikings went through a stretch from Oct. 5 - Oct. 17 in which they won five consecutive matches. The program has a four-match unbeaten streak under the eye of coach Kazemaini in 2009, but this is only the second time under Kazemaini they've won four consecutive matches since he took over in 2006.
RPI RANKINGS: Despite leading the league with 10 points, the Vikings are third in the Horizon League when it comes to the initial RPI rankings released by the NCAA on Oct. 18. UIC tops the group at 44th, while Wright State is 79th. The Vikings came in at 103rd, one spot ahead of Saturday's opponent, Green Bay. Milwaukee is 131st, nine spots ahead of 140th Butler. Valparaiso is 156th, while Loyola and Detroit round out the league at 177th and 178th, respectively.
TWO IN A ROW: After not having a player receive the award through the first six weeks of the season, the Vikings have had a player earn the Horizon League 'Player of the Week' award each of the last two weeks. Aaron Adkins was named the winner on Oct. 10 after he scored a hat trick against Loyola on Oct. 8. Brad Stuver is the winner this week after his career-high 11 stops helped Cleveland State beat UIC on Oct. 14. It is the fourth time in his career that Stuver won the weekly award.
WELCOME, JAGUARS: This will be the fourth meeting between IUPUI and Cleveland State, but the Jaguars have never played in Cleveland. The two teams first met at the Michigan State Tournament in 1999, and then played in Indianapolis each of the last two years. The match went into overtime in both 2009 and 2010.
DYNAMIC DUO: With six goals each, Aaron Adkins and Admir Suljevic are tied for fourth in the Horizon League in that category. The pair has combined to form one of the most formidable duos in recent school history. Josh Williams and Slavisa Ubiparipovic scored six goals apiece during the 2009 season, but before that you would have to go back to the 2003 campaign to find the last time a duo scored more than 12 goals in a season. In 2003, Stephen Ademolu (12) and Spencer Lappin (five) combined for 17 goals.
GOOD OMEN: In each of the last five meetings between Cleveland State and Green Bay, the home team has been victorious. The last time the road team won was in 2006.
NEXT UP: The Vikings have a league game at Butler on Wednesday (Oct. 26) night. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. in a match that features the Bulldogs and Vikings, the two clubs picked to finish first and second, respectively, in the league's preseason poll. Cleveland State will then host Canisius in their non-league finale at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday (Oct. 30). CSU closes out the regular season by hosting Detroit on Nov. 4.
