Nov. 6, 2008

Game Notes in PDF Format

The University of Dayton men's soccer squad hits the road to play in its last regular season match against A-10 in-state rival Xavier. The two teams will battle Saturday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. at the Xavier University Soccer Complex.

FLYER NOTES
• Dayton is heading into week five of Atlantic 10 play with only one loss to note. At 12-3-2 and 6-1-1 in A-10, the Flyers are in first place in the conference with 19 points.
• UD is first in the Atlantic 10 conference in points (123), goals (40) and assists (43).
• A two-time A-10 Player of the Week, junior Alex Torda leads the Flyers in scoring with 10 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 seventh in the conference.
• Two UD players have dished out a team-high five assists this season: senior Florian DeCamps, sophomore Tommy Watkins, tied for sixth in the A-10. Juniors Ben Murray and Zach Weiss have dished four assists each. The Flyers have threats all over the field as 17 different UD players have been credited with an assist this season.
•Senior Florian DeCamps has scored four game-winning goals, fourth in the conference, and 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 fourth in the A-10. He owns a 1.22 goals against average (fifth in the A-10) and a 10-1-1 record with five shutouts.
• 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 .350 shutout percentage, ranked 65th 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 13 of their 17 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 seven goals against Saint Joseph's (Oct. 2) was a season high. The last time Dayton scored seven or more goals was a 9-0 win over Northern Illinois on Sept. 17, 1994. The Flyers have scored three or more goals in nine of their 17 games. They are ranked 3rd in the country in scoring offense with 2.35 goals per game.

SERIES INFO
• The Flyers lead the series 18-15-2 against Xavier. The last meeting, in 2007, resulted in a 0-0 double overtime tie. The last time the Musketeers were victorious was in 2006, defeating Dayton, 2-1.

SCOUTING XAVIER
• Xavier is 2-12-3 overall and 1-5-2 in the A-10. The Musketeers are 1-3-2 at home this season, while the Flyers are 2-2-2 on the road.
• Time in the net has been split between senior Adam Sokolowski and freshman Ryan Engelmann. Sokolowski has been in goal 1089 minutes posting 51 saves (.797), while Engelmann has been in goal for 520 minutes posting 27 saves (.659).
• Sophomore Andi Dimbi leads Xavier's offense with three goals and two assists. Junior Ricardo Sutherland also has three goals on the season.
• Former UD head coach, Dave Schureck, is in his fourth season as head coach at Xavier. His overall career record is 78-75-9.

UD SCORING MACHINE
Dayton has scored 40 times in 117 games this season and its 2.35 goals per game is ranked 3rd in the NCAA Men's Soccer National Ranking Summary.Thirteen different Flyers have scored this season and seven have scored multiple goals. Junior Alex Torda leads the way with 10 goals.

WAY TO WIN
UD owns a 12-3-2 overall record and its .765 winning percentage is the 11th best mark in the nation.

GETTING NOTICED
The University of Dayton men's soccer squad rocketed to 26th in the second posting of the 2008 NCAA Men's Soccer RPI, after being 104th in the first RPI. After a disappointing loss to Temple (4-2) UD moved to the No. 2 spot in the NSCAA/adidas® Middle Atlantic Region rankings. Dayton (12-3-2) is ranked as high as No. 16, which is where it appears in the TopDrawerSoccer.com 2008 Men's Tournament 48 Ranking.UD fell out of the NSCAA national ran kings, but has received 15 votes.

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.

ATLANTIC 10 ACCOLADES
• Junior Alex Torda was named Atlantic 10 Men's Soccer Co-Player of the Week for Oct. 27 after scoring two goals against La Salle and dishing out the game-winning assist against Fordham as the Dayton Flyers improved to 11-2-2 overall and stayed unbeaten in the A-10 at 5-0-1. The midfielder was also named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week for his efforts Torda has been a scoring machine in A-10 matches. In conference games, he has scored a league-high five goals and 12 points.The Hermann Trophy Watch candidate leads the Flyers in points (19) and goals scored (8) this season. It's his second A-10 honor this season.
• Alex Torda was named the Atlantic 10 Men's Soccer Player of the Week for Oct. 13 for his outstanding performance in the opening weekend of conference play. Torda led all league players with seven points, amassing three goals and an assist as the Dayton Flyers improved to 8-2-1 overall and 2-0-0 in the A-10. The Hermann Trophy Watch candidate scored two goals in Dayton's 4-3 win against Richmond. He followed that performance with a goal and the game-winning assist in the Flyers' 3-1 victory over George Washington.
• Senior Florian DeCamps and Tyler Picard were selected to the Atlantic 10 Fall Sports Honor Roll on Sept. 22 for their stellar play in the Dayton Flyer Courtyard by Marriott Tournament. It marks the first time that two UD players have ever been honored in the same week. It's the second A-10 honor for DeCamps, who was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week in 2006. Picard earned the honor for the first time in his career.
• Picard earned his second Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week for Oct. 20 for posting two shutouts against two nationally ranked teams. He finished with 11 saves on the weekend and since he has been named starting goalkeeper, the Flyers are on an eight-game unbeaten streak (8-0-2). He made a career-high eight saves in 110 minutes of scoreless action against the 49ers, the A-10 leaders in goals scored. He went on to post three saves in a 1-0 shutout upset over No. 15 Saint Louis. Picard also earned national recognition for his performances this weekend against the 49ers and Billikens. He was named to the College Soccer News and Top Drawer Soccer National Teams of the Week.

EARLY A-10 SUCCESS
This season is the first time Dayton has opened A-10 with a 2-0 record since 2000. It marks just the second time Dayton started off conference play at 2-0. During the 2000 season the Flyers finished with an 8-1-1 mark in the A-10 and started conference play with a 3-0-0 record.

DAYTON ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS
Dayton Flyer Marriott Invitational All-Tournament Team
• Zach Weiss - Tournament MVP
• Florian DeCamps, Jack Pearson, Alex Torda and Zach Weiss Middleton Sports & Fitness Invitational All-Tournament Team
• Alex Torda and Zach Weiss UNCW Courtyard by Marriott Invitatonal All-Tournament Team
• Randy Dennis, Isaac Kissi and Alex Torda Dayton Flyer Courtyard by Marriott Classic All-Tournament Team
• Florian DeCamps - Tournament MVP
• Florian DeCamps, Ryan Handbury, Ben Murray, Tyler Picard and Randy Dennis

400 CONQUERED
The Flyers reached their 400th victory in the history of the program when they knocked off Robert Morris, 5-0, on Sept. 21 at Baujan Field.

SEASON OPENER STATS
The Flyers were off to a 2-0 start for the second consecutive season. UD has started its season with a 2-0 mark or better in seven seasons, two of those under current Head Coach Dennis Currier. Currier is 3-1 in season openers at UD. The Flyers are now 23-24-6 all-time in their season openers after downing Denver, 3-1, in their first game of 2008.

FIFTH DIMENSION
Dayton was selected to finish fifth in the Atlantic 10 in a preseason poll of the league's head coaches conducted by the A-10. Last season The six-team A-10 Men's Soccer Championship will be held Nov. 13-16 at Rooney Field on the campus of Duquesne University.