Northwestern University Athletics
No. 6 Wildcats Welcome Local Rival DePaul Wednesday
10/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 9, 2007
NU Men's Soccer Game Notes vs. DePaul in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
EVANSTON, Ill. -
No. 6 Northwestern takes a break from Big Ten Conference men's soccer play Wednesday as it faces local rival DePaul at Lakeside Field. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. The Wildcats are coming off a 3-0 win over Wisconsin Saturday while the Blue Demons will try to respond falling a 1-0 loss at Cincinnati the same day. Northwestern is ranked No. 2 in the Great Lakes Region while DePaul is No. 6.
Series History
Northwestern leads, 12-6-1. The Wildcats have won the last three meetings, all by one goal. The first two of those victories came in overtime.
Last meeting: The Wildcats posted a 1-0 win at DePaul Sept. 20, 2006. Geoff Fallon's first career goal in the 73rd minute was the game-winner.
Scouting DePaul
The Blue Demons (6-3-0, 2-3-0 Big East) have used defense as their calling card this season as all six of the victories have come by virtue of shutting out their opponent. DePaul ranks seventh nationally with a 0.43 goals-against average while goalkeeper Brian Visser ranks eighth individually in the category. The team's biggest win came at home Sept. 23 when it took down then-No. 2 Connecticut 1-0. Neither the Blue Demons nor their opponents have scored more than two goals in a match. Alex Mangan has scored four of the team's nine goals and leads the way with nine points.
Northwestern Bounces Back in 3-0 Win Over Wisconsin
The Wildcats responded from their first loss of the season one week earlier by defeating Wisconsin 3-0 at Lakeside Field Saturday afternoon. Mark Blades got Northwestern out to an early lead by scoring at the 3:27 mark. Geoff Fallon added a tally at 24:38 increased NU's lead to 2-0, an advantage it would carry into the intermission. David Roth put the game away nine minutes into the second half as he drew a foul at the top of the 18-yard box and scored on the ensuing direct free kick to finish off the match's scoring. The Wildcats out-shot the Badgers 8-2 in the decisive first half, but Wisconsin finished with an 11-10 edge for the match. Misha Rosenthal made four saves to tie the school single-season record with his seventh shutout of the year.
Things Are Looking Rosey
Goalkeeper Misha Rosenthal tied J.D. Martin's school single-season record for shutouts with his seventh of the season in the win over Wisconsin Saturday. Martin originally set the standard in 2002. Rosenthal's 0.39 goals-against average ranks fourth in the country while his .879 save percentage ranks 10th. The Wildcats are just one shutout shy of the school single-season record of eight set in 2006. Northwestern posted five consecutive shutouts from Sept. 9-26 to set a program record. The 1981, 1985 and 1988 teams each recorded four straight shutouts to set the previous mark. NU and Rosenthal saw their streak of holding their opponents scoreless end at an impressive 536 minutes and 25 seconds against Penn State Sept. 29.
Wildcats Inch Back Up National Rankings
Northwestern had taken a slight drop in the national polls following its loss at Penn State Sept. 29, but the team began its climb back up the rankings with Satuday's win over Wisconsin. The Wildcats moved up one spot to No. 6 in the NSCAA top 25, and remained ranked second in the Great Lakes Region behind only Notre Dame. NU is also sixth in the SoccerTimes.com rankings after being No. 8 last week. Northwestern held steady at No. 5 in the College Soccer News poll.
