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Indiana vs. North Carolina - The last time these two faced each other in a crucial NCAA Tournament game Bobby Knight and Dean Smith were at the helm and the sport was roundball not soccer. Indiana will travel for the third weekend in a row this time to Chapel Hill to face the Tarheels at Fetzer Field on Saturday December 2. Indiana has definitely been racking up the frequent flyer miles as they traveled to San Diego to face San Jose State in the first round and then to Seattle to face the University of Washington in the second round. During the last week of the regular season Indiana also made a trip out west to face Stanford and California. Since they had lost three straight coming into the NCAA Tournament it appeared that Indiana might not survive their first round match with St. Jose State. The Hoosiers won that one going away by a score of 4-0. Indiana then traveled to Seattle to face the University of Washington. The Huskies from Washington jumped out in front early in that one but Indiana responded immediately to tie the score and added another goal to win that match 2-1. Indiana is not just surviving they seem to be thriving. Prior to the start of the 2000 season, some thought that this might be a down year for Indiana. After starting the year with two losses they rebounded and have had a very successful year. However, they finished the year with losses on the road to Stanford and California and then were defeated in the early going in the Big Ten Tournament by Ohio State. The result was no seed for the Hoosiers in NCAA Tourney play and that put them on the road to play the first two rounds out west. They have put to rest any premature ideas that this might be a down year for the Hoosiers. They are definitely in the hunt for a third national championship and are the team to beat. The Hoosiers are currently looking and playing like the two time defending NCAA National Champions that they are. The road to the national championship does not include a detour around Indiana and anyone who hopes to take the title away from the Hoosiers is going to have to beat them on the field. Indiana is lead by Ryan Mack, Big Ten Player of the Year, senior forward Matt Fundenberger, and sophomores Pat Noonan, Michael Bock, Phil Presser, and John Swann. Indiana is strong in the goal with either T.J. Hannig, who has been out some this year due to injuries, or backup Colin Rogers who is a very capable net minder. Indiana coach Jerry Yeagley, who is in his 28th season at Indiana, is well acquainted with NCAA Tournament play and he will have the Hoosiers prepared to play when they arrive in Chapel Hill. This has been a great year for the North Carolina Tarheels and their head coach Elmar Bolowich who was recently selected as the ACC Coach of the Year. The Tarheels were initially predicted to finish in fourth place in the Atlantic Coast Conference by a vote of the leagues seven head coaches. By all measures the Heels have exceeded expectations and then some. The Tarheels, like Indiana, are a very balanced team. They won the regular season ACC race as well as the ACC Tournament. The Tarheels only losses of the year came to UAB in the second game of the year and the University of Virginia midway through the season. The Tarheels have had big wins over Duke, Virginia, Clemson, Maryland, and Wake Forest. They defeated William and Mary in the first round of NCAA Tournament play and Rhode Island in the second round. Both are talented teams but neither has Indiana’s experience and there is no doubt that Indiana poses a much more difficult challenge for the Tarheels than either of those teams did. North Carolina is lead by Chris Carrieri (25g 14a) , senior forward Caleb Norkus (15g, 3a), senior midfielder Michael Bucy (9g, 5a), and freshman midfielder Logan Pause (4g, 5a). Defensively they are lead by Danny Jackson and by keeper Michael Ueltschey. The Tarheels have the talent to defeat Indiana and advance to the College Cup in Charlotte but in order for that to happen they are going to need to play a solid 90 minutes without a drop in the level of their play. This will require disciplined yet resourceful and confident play. The Tarheels have outscored opponents 31 to 3 in the first half of play, 41 to 14 in the second half, and 2 to 0 in overtime. Overall they have scored 74 goals compared to 14 for their opponents. Indiana has scored a total of 40 goals and their opponents have scored a total of 20. Indiana has scored 15 goals during the first half of play and allowed 12. Soccer is definitely a team sport and it will take a solid team effort for either team to win. However, if Carrieri and Norkus have a big afternoon for the Tarheels they will likely prevail. On the other hand if the Tarheels allow Mack, Noonan, and Fundenberger to take control of the match then it is very likely that the Hoosiers will come out on top. Count on this one being a great college soccer match.
Brown vs. Connecticut - This match is scheduled for Sunday December 3. Connecticut has a 17-3-2 record. Brown has a record of 13-5-1. Connecticut defeated Clemson 2-1 in O.T. to advance and Brown defeated Duke 1-0 to advance. The Huskies are loaded with talent and are among the strongest teams in the country from top to bottom. They are lead by freshman forward Cesar Cuellar (14g, 5a), senior forward Darin Lewis (8g, 7a), junior defender Chris Gbandi (5g, 4a), senior defender Max Zieky (1g, 5a), senior midfielder and team quarterback Brent Rahim (1g,4a), senior defender Roberto Vargas (5g, 11a) and junior midfielder Mansour Ndiaye (2g, 3a). Bryheem Hancock gives the Huskies talent and experience in the goal. The Huskies have scored 44 goals this year as compared to only 13 for their opponents. Brown has had a great year going undefeated in Ivy League play. They have scored 28 goals and held their opponents to 18. Defender Cory Gibbs, forward Scott Powers (6g, 8a), senior Christian Martinez, sophomore Dustin Branan, and freshman defender Scott Felluss lead Brown. If Brown can hold Connecticut to one goal or less they have a chance to win but if the Connecticut attack gets rolling the Huskies will easily advance to the College Cup.
Creighton vs. Virginia - The Bluejays come to Klockner Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia to face the Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday December with the winner advancing to the College Cup in Charlotte, North Carolina. These two teams tied 3-3 the only other time they faced each other which was on September 7, 1991. This game could be high scoring as both teams like to attack and have players that are very effective finishers. Both of these schools are not strangers to NCAA Tournament action. Creighton has reached the third round of play 3 times in the past 5 years. Virginia won national championships in 91, 92, 93, and 94. This year’s appearance in the NCAA Tournament is Virginia’s 20th in a row. Last year the Cavaliers made it to the third round where they lost at Klockner Stadium to U.C.L.A. Creighton is lead by sophomore forward Mike Tranchilla (17g, 8a), senior forward Brian Mullan (15g, 11a), junior midfielder Keith Sawarynski (7g, 2a), senior midfielder Ishmael Mintah (3g, 10a), senior defender Peter Henning (4g, 4a). Junior Mike Gabb has been solid in goal all year for the Bluejays. Creighton has shown that they can win the big games this year with wins over Washington, Indiana, S.M.U., and Bradley. They won the very competitive Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Creighton has scored 20 goals the first half to 8 for their opponents and 29 goals in the second half to 16 for their opponent. Overall Creighton has scored 52 goals as compared to allowing their opposition to score only 24 goals. Coach George Gelnovatch’s Cavalier squad has as much talent as any team in the country and they are playing well together as a team. They have also shown the ability to win the big games with wins over North Carolina, James Madison, Clemson, Duke, and most recently St. John’s to advance to the third round. The Virginia midfield is one of the best in the country. Creighton likes to play three players up top and they can be a very difficult team to defend. Both teams will seek to find the others weaknesses and will attack it. Look for the winner to be the team that plays solid team defense. If either team is
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