Oct. 30, 2008
Complete Game Notes 
The University of Dayton men's soccer team rides its 10-game unbeaten streak into Philadelphia for two Atlantic 10 battles this weekend. The No. 22 Flyers will face off with Temple Friday, Oct. 31 at 3 p.m. at Ambler Field and stay for an A-10 matchup against Saint Joseph's Sunday, Nov. 2 at noon at Finnesey Field. Dayton is currently atop the A-10 standings, but the Owls (7-4-3, 3-1-1 A-10) are a close second. With three games remaining on their schedule, the Flyers are unbeaten in conference action.
FLYER NOTES
• Dayton is heading into week four of Atlantic 10 play still unbeaten, the only men's soccer team in the conference without an A-10 loss. At 11-2-2 the Flyers own the eighth-best NCAA men's soccer winning percentage (.800).
• UD is second in the Atlantic 10 in points (99), goals (31) and ranked first in the conference for assists (37).
• A two-time A-10 Player of the Week, junior Alex Torda leads the Flyers in scoring with eight goals, fourth in the Atlantic 10 for goals scored. Also named A-10 Player of the Week this season, senior Florian DeCamps is second on the squad with six goals, tied for sixth in the conference.
• Four UD players have dished out a team-high four assists this season: senior Florian DeCamps, junior Ben Murray, sophomore Tommy Watkins and junior Zach Weiss have dished four assists each, tied for eighth in the conference. Weiss is fourth in the A-10 for assists per game (.36). The Flyers have threats all over the field as 16 different UD players have been credited with an assist this season.
•Senior Florian DeCamps has scored four game-winning goals, tied for third in the conference, while freshman Jack Pearson has scored three game winners, all off headers, for the Flyers.
• Redshirt freshman Tyler Picard is having a stellar rookie season in goal for the Flyers. He posted two shutouts in his first full week of action, missing the start of the season due to injuries. He has twice been named A-10 Rookie of the Week. The second time he earned the honor he posted back-to-back shutouts against nationally-ranked opponents (No. 26 Charlotte and No. 15 Saint Louis. His five shutouts are tied for third in the A-10. He owns a 0.78 goals against average (second in the A-10) and a 9-0-1 record.
• The Flyer defense comprised of juniors Randy Dennis, Ryan Handbury and Sonny Renner, sophomore Tommy Watkins and freshman Jack Pearson have helped UD post a .400 shutout percentage, ranked 47th in the country. At one point the Flyers didn't allow a goal in more than 370 minutes of action. Dayton has posted six shutouts this season and in 12 of their 15 games has allowed one goal or less.
• The Flyers finished the regular season 9-0-0 at Baujan Field this year and have a 20-game unbeaten streak (17-0-3) at home dating back to Oct. 28, 2006.
• Dayton's five goals against Robert Morris (Sept. 21) was a season high. The last time Dayton scored five or more goals was a 6-1 win over Duquesne on Nov. 11, 2007. The Flyers have scored three or more goals in eight of their 15 games. They are ranked 19th in the country in scoring offense with 2.07 goals per game.
SERIES INFO
• The Flyers lead the series 8-4-1 against Temple. The last time they met the Flyers escaped with a 1-0 victory at Baujan Field with Jeff Popella scoring the game winner. The last time the Owls beat UD was Nov. 6, 2005, with a 1-0 setback snapping a six-game Flyer unbeaten streak.
• UD leads the series against Saint Joseph's 9-1-2. Last year Dayton posted a 4-1 win against the Hawks at Baujan Field. Jeff Popella, Simeon Zapryanov, Joe Olwig and Florian DeCamps each scored in the match. The only time the Flyers have suffered a loss to SJU was a 2-0 setback in 1995, the Flyers' first year in the A-10. After that UD has outscored the Hawks, 38-10 in their last 11 meetings.
SCOUTING TEMPLE
• Temple is 7-4-3 overall and tied for second in the A-10 standings with a 3-1-1 mark. The Owls own a 3-1-0 record when playing at home.
• Freshman Tyler Witmer leads Temple in scoring with six goals this season. Junior J.T. Noone has added five goals, and only two other Owls have scored multiple goals; junior Francois Sagna and senior James Suevo have two each.
• Noone leads the Owls in points (18) and assists (8). His 18 points are fifth-best in the conference and his eight assists lead the A-10.
• Temple's redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Bret Mollon has seven shutouts to lead the A-10, along with a .89 GAA, third in the conference behind Dayton's Picard and Saint Louis' Pat Disbennett.
• David MacWilliams is in his ninth season as head coach of the Owls. He has accumulated a record of 60-90-15 at Temple.
• Temple is ranked No. 10 in the NSCAA/adidas® Middle Atlantic Region Poll.
SCOUTING SAINT JOSEPH'S
• Saint Joseph's is 3-6-2 overall and still looking for its first A-10 win, standing at 0-4-1. The Hawks are 1-1-0 at home this season.
• SJU sophomore Colin Baker leads the Atlantic 10 in shots per game (3.82). Baker, senior Michael McInaw and sophomore Giacomo DiLisi each have scored two goals to lead the Hawks.
• Senior Nick Pozzessere leads the Hawks with three assists.
• Tom Turner is in his 22nd season as head coach at Saint Joseph's. His record at SJU is 122-249-30.
UD SCORING MACHINE
Dayton has scored 31 times in 15 games this season and its 2.07 goals per game is ranked 19th in the NCAA Men's Soccer National Ranking Summary. Eight different Flyers have scored this season and six have scored multiple goals. Junior Alex Torda leads the way with eight goals.
WAY TO WIN
UD owns an 11-2-2 overall record and its .800 winning percentage is the eighth best mark in the nation.
GETTING NOTICED
The University of Dayton men's soccer team cracked the NSCAA/adidas® Top 25 National Poll and is ranked 22nd in the most recent edition on Oct. 28. The Flyers, currently riding a 10-game unbeaten streak, also rocketed to 26th in the second posting of the 2008 NCAA Men's Soccer RPI, after being 104th in the first RPI. After wins against Fordham (1-0) and La Salle (3-1) UD vaulted to No. 1 in the NSCAA/adidas® Middle Atlantic Region rankings. Dayton is the only unbeaten team in the A-10 men's soccer standings at 5-0-1. Dayton (11-2-2) is ranked as high as No. 14, which is where it appears in the TopDrawerSoccer.com 2008 Men's Tournament 48 Ranking. The Flyers moved up from No. 20 to 18 in the Soccer America Top 25 Poll. UD also moved up seven spots from 29 to No. 22 in the College Soccer News Top 30 National Poll.
UD ALL-ACADEMIC ALL-STARS
Two University of Dayton soccer players have been voted as 2008 CoSIDA ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 4 selections. Junior Alex Torda and sophomore Tommy Watkins were both named to the First Team Academic All-District Men's Soccer Team for the Flyers. Named to the 2008 Hermann Trophy Watch List, Torda carries a 3.63 GPA in his entrepreneurship/finance major and was named to the 2007-08 A-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll. Watkins, of Richmond, Va., is part of the Flyer rock solid defense that didn't allow an opponent goal in more than 370 minutes of play. He is majoring in pre-physical therapy and has a 3.69 GPA. He leads all UD defenders with four assists this season, which is tied for eighth in the A-10.
