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Duke Claims Top Seed In NCAA Tournament, Will Play Winner of Brown-Adelphi Match
11/7/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
DURHAM, N.C. - Duke (16-3-1) claimed the number one seed in the NCAA Men's Division I Soccer Tournament, announced Monday afternoon on ESPNews. With the top seed, the Blue Devils gained a first round bye in the tournament and ensured that they would host their matches up until the Final Four in St. Louis, Mo. Duke will face the winner of Brown (10-4-3) and Adelphi (11-6-1) on Wednesday, Nov. 15 at 7:00 p.m., in Koskinen Stadium. It is the Blue Devils third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, and sixth in the last eight years.
The Week in Review: Duke is now the top-ranked team in the nation after winning the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season and tournament titles. The Blue Devils defeated then No. 1 Wake Forest 1-0 on Sunday in overtime. Sophomore forward Mike Grella scored his second career ACC Tournament-clinching goal in the 97th minute of play. Last year, Grella scored in the sudden death round of penalty kicks against North Carolina to help Duke claim the title. Duke also defeated N.C. State 2-1 and Maryland 1-0 this year on their way to their third ever tournament trophy. The last time the Blue Devils won both the ACC regular season and tournament crowns was in 1999.
Awards, Awards, and More Awards: The Blue Devils have claimed numerous awards as the regular season and tournament portions of the year have come to an end. Five Blue Devils were named to the three All-ACC teams, and four to the top two teams, which tied Duke with Virginia for most players honored this year on the first and second teams. Named to the first team were junior midfielder Michael Videira and Grella. Senior defender/captain Kyle Helton and junior forward Spencer Wadsworth were selected to the second team, while freshman midfielder Joshua Bienenfeld was named to the All-ACC Freshmen Team. It was the highest number of Blue Devils selected to All-ACC teams since 2000, and was the third year in a row that Videira has been named All-ACC.
Junior midfielder Joe Germanese, junior defender/captain Tim Jepson, Videira, and Wadsworth were all named to the All-ACC Tournament Team, with Videira taking home Most Valuable Player honors. For Wadsworth, 2006 marks the second straight year in which he was qualified for the All-Tournament Team. The four Blue Devils were accompanied on the ACC All-Tournament Team by Ronnie Bouemboue (N.C. State), El Hadj Cisse (N.C. State), Sam Cronin (Wake Forest), Brian Edwards (Wake Forest), Patrick Nyarko (Virginia Tech), Yannick Reyering (Virginia) and Graham Zusi (Maryland).
Devil Defense: Duke's defense has allowed only nine goals in its last 15 games, recording six shutouts in that time and not allowing more than one goal in any of those games. The Blue Devils have only allowed 16 goals in 20 games the entire season, and only twice has more than one goal been scored against them. Junior goalkeeper Justin Papadakis has been a major reason behind this success, with a .774 save percentage, 48 saves, and six shutouts. Jepson has anchored the defense with his leadership, strong work ethic, and team best 1706 minutes played. Helton has logged 1538 minutes on a defensive unit that has also added to Duke's scoring totals with three goals and seven assists. Sophomores Darrius Barnes and Graham Dugoni have also seen increased playing time, combining for over 2650 minutes.
Middle of the Field: One of the strongest and deepest assets for the Blue Devils is their midfield. They are led by Videira with six goals and six assists. Senior captain Chris Loftus has played a combination of forward and midfield while recording four goals and three assists in his last campaign. Others contributing in the middle include juniors Tomek Charowski (two goals and three assists), Germanese (four goals and five assists) and Zach Pope (1 goal and nine assists). Sophomore Pavelid Castaneda has been the workhorse for the Blue Devil midfield, recording 1578 minutes at the most physically taxing position on the field. Bienenfeld has become a key contributor as well, with a goal and an assist in 725 minutes played.
Up Front and Personal: While Germanese and Loftus have spent time playing forward this season, the Blue Devils only play two true strikers. This has not resulted in a lack of scoring, as Duke has tallied 43 goals on the season, including 23 in their last ten games. Their very balanced attack has resulted in 14 different players scoring this year. Duke's number one goal scorer is Grella, with 11 goals and four assists. Wadsworth is the other true forward, and has accumulated six goals and an ACC best 13 assists. Wadsworth is also third in NCAA Division I for assists.
Rennie Sets Records: Coach John Rennie is now the winningest coach in ACC history. Rennie has 397 career victories at Duke, and 91 wins in ACC play. Rennie overtook former Clemson coach I.M. Ibrahim in both categories. Rennie also is in fifth place for Division I coaches with 441 overall wins. Rennie has taken Duke to the NCAA Tournament in 19 of his 28 years as head coach.
A Look Ahead: The NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament runs from Nov. 10 through Dec. 3. If Duke should win their second round game, they would play at home in the third round on Nov. 18 or 19. That match would be against either No. 16 Lehigh (15-1-2), Rutgers (10-6-2), or Rhode Island (12-5-4). Lehigh has the bye in that part of the bracket and will host the winner of the Rutgers-Rhode Island match on Nov. 15. The 2006 Men's College Cup takes place in St. Louis on Dec. 1 and 3, with the final game being televised on ESPN2 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
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