Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Travels East for Lafayette Classic
9/4/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 4, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. -
Northwestern, ranked No. 16 by the NSCAA, hits the road for the first time during 2008 regular season as it travels to Easton, Pa., to take part in the Lafayette Classic. The Wildcats are off to a 2-0 start for the fourth consecutive season and open the Classic by taking on Iona at 3:30 p.m. Central time Friday. NU concludes the event Sunday by facing host Lafayette at 11 a.m. Central.
Scouting Iona
The lone contest so far this season for the Gaels (0-1-0) is a 3-1 loss to Quinnipiac last Friday. Ben Williams tallied Iona's lone goal to put the team up 1-0. However, Quinnipiac posted the final three goals of the contest. The Gaels had a record of 8-10-2 a year ago. Senior midfielder Aly Lo paced the team with 10 goals and 22 points last season. Head coach Fernando Barboto was an assistant under NU head coach Tim Lenahan at Lafayette for two years. Barboto, now in his sixth season, has a 31-52-12 record at the helm of the Gaels.
Scouting Lafayette
The Leopards (1-1-0) opened their season with a bang last Friday, posting a 1-0 upset win over then-No. 15 West Virginia behind sophomore Stephen Macurdy's goal just under nine minutes into the contest. Lafayette then dropped a 2-1 decision Binghamton on Sunday. The Leopards' lone goal came with only three seconds left in the match. Defense was a strong point for Lafayette a year ago as it finished the season ranked seventh in the nation with a 0.56 goals-against average and fourth in save percentage (.871). Dennis Bohn is in his eighth season as the head coach of the Leopards and has a 74-36-22 record.
Series Information
This weekend marks the first time ever that Northwestern will have played either Iona or a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). This will also be the first meeting between the Wildcats and Lafayette. NU's only previous matches against Patriot League schools came last season when it opened the season with a 3-0 win over Colgate followed by a 2-1 overtime victory over Bucknell.
Lakeside Classic Review
Northwestern opened its 2008 campaign with a pair of wins at its own Lakeside Classic. The victories ran the Wildcats' winning streak in the event to eight straight games. NU opened the regular season with a 1-0 victory over San Francisco on Friday thanks to sophomore Piero Bellizzi's goal in the 75th minute. The 'Cats limited the Dons to just four shots in the contest. Northwestern wrapped up the Classic with a dominating win over IUPUI on Sunday, out-shooting the Jaguars 29-7 in a 2-0 victory. Matt Eliason and Eamon O'Neill dented the scoreboard for NU. The two shutout wins marked the first time ever Northwestern has opened a season by blanking consecutive opponents. Bellizzi, defender Drew Ratner and goalkeeper Misha Rosenthal were each named to the all-tournament team.
Lenahan Homecoming Tour Continues
There aren't any plans to have t-shirts made up, but Northwestern head coach Tim Lenahan continues his "homecoming" tour this weekend as the Wildcats travel to Lafayette. During the exhibition season, the Wildcats took on St. John's at Richard Stockton College which is Lenahan's alma mater and the school he coached at for eight seasons. He left that post to head Lafayette from 1998-2000, where he guided the Leopards to consecutive Patriot League tournament titles and NCAA tournament appearances his first two seasons. This weekend there will be a 10-year reunion of the 1998 squad which won both the regular season and tournament Patriot League crowns.
Looking Ahead
Northwestern remains within the state of Illinois next weekend as it makes the short trip west to DeKalb for the NIU adidas/Baymont Inn Invitational. The Wildcats take on Eastern Illinois at 11:30 a.m. Friday before facing Xavier at noon Sunday.
