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Saint Louis - The Billikens also entered the 2001 season under a new head coach. Former assistant Dan Donigan took over the reigns after Bob Warming returned to Creighton to take the position vacated when Bret Simon took the head coaching job at Stanford. Under Donigan in 2001 Saint Louis was 10-0-0 before losing 1-0 to UAB. The Billikens won the Conference USA regular season and tournament titles. St. Louis is 16-1-0 overall and 9-1-0 in Conference USA. The Billikens lone loss of the season was a 1-0 defeat against conference foe UAB. St. Louis has as much talent as any team in the country and they are capable of winning it all. They have scored 48 goals and allowed only 12. St. Louis has an explosive attack. Senior forward Dipsy Selolwane leads the nation in goals per game at 1.41. Junior forward Jack Jewsbury and sophomore midfielder Brad Davis are extremely talented players who can hold their own with anyone. Midfielders Mike Hill and David Beck have played well all year. The St. Louis defense is among the best in the country. Defensively they are lead by senior keeper John Politis, sweeper Marty Tappel, senior Tim Sartori, and junior Jason Cole. St. Louis has excellent overall team balance. Whether St. Louis will earn a ticket to the College Cup remains to be determined on the field of play.
North Carolina - The Tar Heels are 16-4-0. They were defeated by Clemson 2-1 in a semifinal match in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament. Their other three loses were to St. Louis 2-1, Virginia 2-0 and Wake Forest 4-2. Carolina has tallied 54 goals while allowing 15. The Tar Heels went into the season knowing that they would have a strong back line but uncertain about the effectiveness of their attack. The attack has exceeded expectations primarily due to the play of freshman forward Marcus Storey (9g, 8a), transfer David Testo (10g, 5a) and Ryan Kneipper (9g, 5a). The Carolina defense is lead by keeper Michael Ueltschey, Danny Jackson, Chris Leitch and David Stokes. The Tar Heels have now received NCAA Tournament berths for three years in a row. A great turn around for a program that was struggling somewhat a few years back. However, don’t expect North Carolina to make it to the College Cup this year as they do not have the overall team strength needed to accomplish that. In addition, Virginia is in their bracket and it is very unlikely that the Heels can get past the Cavaliers should the two teams meet in the quarterfinals.
St. John’s - The Red Storm is in the NCAA Tournament for the 10th straight year. They defeated Connecticut 1-0 to win the Big East Conference Tournament. The Red Storm are 14-2-3 overall this year. They have tallied 36 goals and allowed 12. Their two losses were to Ohio State 3-2 and Connecticut 2-1. The Red Storm tied Rutgers 1-1, Pittsburgh 1-1, and Virginia Tech 1-1. St. John’s will face Atlantic Ten Conference Champion Massachusetts who defeated Creighton 1-0 in a first round match played Friday. St. John’s is always tough come NCAA Tourney time. They have a young team this year but you can count on Coach Dave Masur’s team being prepared to play just as tough and skillful as in prior years. The Red Storm attack is lead by senior forward Shalrie Joseph, senior midfielder Jeff Matteo and sophomore forward Angel Rodriguez. Joseph has seen action at sweeper this year to shore up the Red Storm defense. Chris Wingert and goalkeeper Guy Hertz have lead St. John’s defensively. The Red Storm have recorded 10 shutouts so far this year. Unless they falter, St. John’s should advance to the quarterfinals to face Southern Methodist University for the right to advance to the College Cup.
Connecticut - The Huskies are the defending National Champions. They are currently 15-4-2. In The Huskies earned their fifth straight NCAA tourney berth this year. Connecticut won the regular season Big East Conference title with a record of 9-1-0 but lost to St. John’s 1-0 in the final of the Big East Conference Tournament. Connecticut has tallied 34 goals so far this year while allowing 20. The Huskies are lead by defender Chris Gbandi, midfielder Anthony Curtis, goalkeeper Bryheem Hancock, and forwards Damani Ralph and David Castellanos. Connecticut will have to get by Indiana and most likely Clemson to return to the College Cup this year. If they are clicking the Huskies are very capable of winning it all. Don’t count them out.
Loyola (MD) - The Greyhounds won the regular season and the tournament title of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Loyola is currently 16-1-2. This is Loyola’s first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1993. Regardless don’t count the Greyhounds out of it. Coach Mark Mettrick’s Greyhounds have all the ingredients to make a serious run for the National Title. Rob Beatty is an outstanding goalkeeper. Niall Lepper, Mike Nelson and Bobby von Bremen anchor a very solid back line that has recorded 10 shutouts this year. Forward Graham Marchant has lead the Loyola attack. Loyola will have to get by the winner of the Maryland vs. Notre Dame match to make it to the third round but they are very capable of doing that. Loyola defeated Maryland 1-0 in College Park on September 19. Keep an eye on the Greyhounds, if they get a good start they could be a very difficult team to beat.
South Carolina - The Gamecocks are 12-4-2. However they have played one of the most difficult schedules in the country. They have played everyone tough. South Carolina has scored 42 goals and given up 19. Their four losses are to SMU 3-2, Clemson 2-1, Maryland 1-0, and North Carolina 1-0. Ryan Daley (9g, 8a), Jordan Quinn (12g, 3a) and Joey Worthen (6g, 5a) are all very capable finishers. They also have the advantage of playing their first match at home. Coach Mark Berson’s team is very capable of a run.
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