Oct. 28, 2009
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LEWISBURG, Pa. -- One of the most-antcipated dates on Bucknell's 2009 schedule finally arrives on Friday, when Bucknell hosts Patriot League rival Lafayette in a match that will be televised live on Fox Soccer Channel. Game time is 8 p.m. at Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium.
While the arrival of FSC's cameras should attract a large crowd to Emmitt Field, this game has even more significance in terms of the Patriot League playoff chase. The Bison, whose 13 victories are tied for the program record and are second-most in the nation behind only No. 1 Akron, are 4-1 in Patriot League play and trail first-place American (4-0-1) by just one point on the conference table. Lafayette is 9-5-2 overall and 3-2 in the league, and the Leopards are alone in third place with nine points. With just two games remaining in the regular season, Bucknell can clinch one of the four Patriot League Tournament spots with one more point. For Lafayette, a victory would help solidify its postseason position.
An "Orange Out" has been declared for Friday's game, as Bucknell hopes to break a school attendance record. The most fans to see a men's soccer game at Emmitt Field was 1,202 for the Navy game in 2008, while the overall facility record is 1,382 for a women's game against Penn State in 2007. A crowd of more than 1,100 was on hand the last time Fox Soccer Channel came to Bucknell for the 2007 Lehigh game.
Bucknell vs. Lafayette
This will be the 60th meeting between Bucknell and Lafayette. The two Pennsylvania programs first met in 1931, and they have clashed annually since 1960.
Bucknell holds a 27-25-7 series lead.
Although it officially went in the books as a tie, Bucknell topped Lafayette in penalty kicks in the 2006 Patriot League championship match. The two teams have met one other time in the postseason. In the 1990 Patriot League semifinals, the Leopards won 2-0 in overtime on Bucknell's home field.
Bucknell is 17-10-2 against Lafayette at home.
Last season in Easton, Corey Dempsey snapped a 1-all tie in the 73rd minute, sending Lafayette to a 2-1 win over the Bison. After the Leopards opened the scoring on Steve Ference's penalty kick in the 11th minute, Conor O'Brien tied the game 12 minutes into the second half. The loss proved costly for Bucknell, which finished three points behind Lafayette for the final playoff spot.
About Lafayette
On Oct. 16, Lafayette gave up two goals in the last 15 minutes in a 2-1 home loss to Colgate, but the the Leopards have not allowed a goal in three games since. After the Colgate game they played to a scoreless tie with Cornell, beat Army 2-0 on the road, and on Tuesday night edged Columbia 1-0 at home.
The Leopards are 9-5-2 overall, 6-1 at home and 3-3-2 on the road this season.
Junior B.J. Glenn, who had the game-winner against Columbia on Tuesday, leads the team with six goals and 13 points. In his last appearance at Emmitt Field, Glenn scored both Lafayette goals in a 2-1 win over the Bison in 2007.
Freshman Sean Peckham has five goals and two assists for 12 points, while freshman Josh Brown has a pair of goals.
Senior goalkeeper Phillip Nelson leads the Patriot League in shutouts (8) and goals-against average (0.60).
Lafayette has outscored foes 16-14 in 16 matches this season.
Senior Chip Aronica, who had an assist against Bucknell in the 2007 game, was a classmate of Bucknell's Conor O'Brien at St. Anthony's High School on Long Island.
Bucknell on TV
This will be the third straight season that Bucknell has had a men's soccer game nationally televised, and it won the first two.
In 2007, Bucknell hosted Lehigh in a Fox Soccer Channel broadcast at Emmitt Field. Conor O'Brien scored just 1:45 into the game to send the Bison on their way to a 3-1 win. Alex Russo and Ross Liberati also scored for Bucknell, which led 3-0 until Lehigh scored in the 88th minute.
Last season in State College, Bucknell downed Penn State 2-0 on the Big Ten Network. Mark Schmiegel and Chris Hennings scored for the Bison, who snapped a 25-game losing streak to the Nittany Lions.
Bucknell Equals Program Record for Wins in a Season
Tuesday's win at NJIT was Bucknell's 13th of the season, equaling the program record for wins in a season. The 2002 team also won 13 (13-5-1).
Bucknell has reached double figures in the victory column for the 11th time in program history.
Only the 2009 (13), 2002 (13), 1974 (12), 1982 (12) and 1990 (12) teams have won more than 11 games.
Earlier in the season the Bison had a six-game winning streak, their longest since 1983. The streak was snapped by Penn State on Oct. 21, but Bucknell has won twice more since then, making it eight wins in the last nine outings.
Bucknell Recently
Since dropping a 2-1 heartbreaker to Penn State, the Bison have bounced back with two straight wins, including a dramatic one on Saturday night at Colgate.
In Hamilton, N.Y., on Saturday, the Bison stunned the defending Patriot League champs by scoring twice in the last nine minutes to steal a 2-1 win. First it was freshman Josh Plump flicking in Conor O'Brien's pass in the box to make it 1-all in the 81st minute. Then with 1:52 remaining, defender Andrew Powell intercepted a clearing attempt near the left sideline, dribbled to the middle and fired a 25-yard shot into the right side of the net forwhat proved to be the game-winning goal.
Tuesday night in Newark, N.J., Bucknell played its final non-conference game of the regular season and came home with a 2-0 win over NJIT. Both goals came on headers just 3:26 apart in the second half. In the 57th minute Luke Joyner headed in a corner kick, and moments later a nice series of one-touch passes from O'Brien to Joyner to Plump resulted in the insurance marker. Senior keeper Will Byrne, in his first start of the season, made three saves en route to the shutout.
Bison Rarely Blanked
On Oct. 28, 2008, Bucknell suffered a 1-0 loss to eventual Patriot League champion Colgate. That ended a run of 28 straight games with a goal, the longest such streak in Division I soccer at the time. The Bison immediately started a new national-best streak. Since that Colgate game, they have scored in 22 games in a row, including all 17 this season. That is the longest active streak in the nation. The Bison have scored at least once in 50 of their last 51 games dating back to the 2007 season. Most Consecutive Games with a Goal, Division I: 1. Bucknell 22 2. San Diego 18 3. Green Bay 17 4. Akron 15 5. UAB 13
Bison Stellar On Both Offense and Defense
Bucknell leads the Patriot League in scoring offense (1.71 goals per game), and defensively its goals-against average (0.87) ranks second in the league behind only Lafayette (0.83). Bucknell's eight shutouts also rank No. 2 in the league behind Lafayette's 10.
Not Good for the Fingernails
Bucknell has eight shutouts in 2009, the first six of which came by 1-0 scores. That trend ended on Oct. 17 when the Bison scored three times in a clean sheet against Army. Ten of the team's 12 victories this season have come by one goal.
Road Warriors
Bucknell is 6-1 in true road games and 8-1 away from home (including two neutral site games) in 2009. This coming just one year after the Bison went 3-7-1 on the road. The eight away/neutral site wins are a program record, while the record for most true road wins in a season is seven, set in 2003.
No Shame in the Losses
Bucknell has suffered only four defeats in 2009, and all of them have come against top-of-the-table opponents:
On Sept. 4, Bucknell lost 2-1 at New Hampshire, which is 9-5-2 and has clinched the America East regular-season title.
On Sept. 20, Bucknell lost 3-2 to then-No. 24 College of Charleston. The Cougars are 9-8 and tied for second in the Southern Conference.
On Sept. 26, Bucknell lost 3-1 to American (8-3-1), which is in first-place in the Patriot League and ranked No. 2 in the Middle Atlantic Region.
On Oct. 21, Bucknell lost 2-1 to Penn State, which is 9-4-2 overall and is just two points off the lead with a game in hand in the Big Ten.
The combined record of the four teams that have beaten Bucknell this season is 35-25-5.
Brendan Nash Nets 100th Win
Bison head coach Brendan Nash is in his 11th season at Bucknell, and he recorded his 100th career victory with a 3-0 result at Army on Oct. 17. Nash is currently 102-80-28, and he ranks No. 2 on Bucknell's all-time wins list , trailing only Craig Reynolds (238). Nash was the Patriot League Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2003, and he led the Bison to the 2006 Patriot League title.
Coaching Stability
Bucknell has had only two head coaches since 1967. Craig Reynolds had the reins from 1967-98, and when Reynolds retired following the 1998 season, he turned the playbook over to his assistant coach Brendan Nash, who has manned the Bison sideline ever since.
Turning 1,000
The Oct. 10, 1-0 win over Holy Cross came in the 1,000th game in program history. The Bison are now 442-468-95 all-time, dating back to the program's inception in 1929.
Keep an Eye on O'Brien
Bucknell senior Conor O'Brien was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year in 2008, and he has designs on winning it again this year. Here are some season and career highlights for O'Brien:
O'Brien in 2009:
Named to the Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch List prior to the season. It was his second straight year on the Watch List.
Leads the Patriot League in goals (10), assists (7) and points (27). Ranks 16th nationally in points per game and 17th in points per game.
Has a league-high six game-winning goals. Scored the lone goal in three of Bucknell's six 1-0 wins.
Has two-goal games against La Salle and St. Peter's and a two-assist game against Vermont.
Had his school-record points streak snapped at 11 games on Sept. 23 against Saint Francis (Pa.). Currently has a point in 19 of his last 22 games, including 14 of 17 games this season.
Patriot League Offensive Player of Week on Sept. 6.
O'Brien in his Career:
2008 Patriot League Offensive Player of Year.
2008 First Team All-Patriot League; 2007 Second Team All-Patriot League.
2007 and 2008 Second Team NSCAA/adidas All-Mid-Atlantic Team.
On Bucknell's career lists ranks ninth in goals (25), second in assists (23) and seventh in points (73).
Only Dave Domsohn (1985-88) has had more assists (34) than O'Brien in a Bucknell uniform.
O'Brien in Rare Company
Conor O'Brien is currently one of only three Division I players in the nation leading his conference in both goals per game and assists per game. The other two are Irving Garcia (7-7-21) for UC Irvine of the Big West Conference and Charlie Reiter (9-7-25) for Davidson of the Southern Conference.
Selwood a Rock on "D"
Senior co-captain Patrick Selwood has developed into one of the Patriot League's steadiest defenders and should be a candidate for the league's defensive player of the year award this season. Some of Selwood's career highlights:
2008 Second Team All-Patriot League.
2008 Days' Inn Classic MVP.
2008 ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District and NSCAA Scholar All-East Team.
Has 59 career starts, including all 36 since the start of last season.
Same Captains in 2009
Bucknell's 2009 co-captains -- senior midfielder/forward Conor O'Brien and senior defender Patrick Selwood -- were also co-captains as juniors in 2008.
Getting it Done on Time
Last season, Bucknell broke a school record by playing eight overtime games (2-3-3). This season, however, the Bison have played just one overtime contest, that coming at Marquette on Oct. 13. The 2-1 win over the Golden Eagles marked Bucknell's first road win in overtime since the 2006 NCAA Tournament at George Mason.
Owning the Second Half
Bucknell has outscored opponents 20-7 in the second half of games this season, including 15-1 in its 13 victories.
Shutout Trio
In something of a rarity, Bucknell has had three different goalkeepers post shutouts this season. Starter Tommy Caso has six, while Will Byrne (NJIT) and Marc Hartmann (Saint Francis) recorded clean sheets in spot starts.
Three Freshmen Honored in Last Two Weeks
Bucknell had two freshmen earn Patriot League weekly honors last week. Brendan Burgdorf was named the PL Offensive Player of the Week after producing two goals and an assist in wins over Marquette and Army. CK Kumah earned rookie of the week honors based on his three-point game against Marquette that included the OT goal. This week, Josh Plump was named rookie of the week after his late goal tied up the Colgate game on Saturday.
Freshman Influence
Over the summer, Bucknell's 2009 freshman class was ranked No. 30 in the nation by College Soccer News, and a number of those newcomers have already played prominent roles.
The most visible freshman has been forward Brendan Burgdorf, who has started every game at forward and has six goals and two assists for 14 points. His goal and point totals are tops among Patriot League freshmen.
Accra, Ghana native CK Kumah has also started every game, and he recently scored game-winning goals in back-to-back wins over Holy Cross and Marquette. Kumah also scored against Penn State and has four tallies on the season.
Jermaine Jarrett missed three games due to illness, but otherwise has been a regular on the back line.
Last year's New Jersey Player of the Year, Josh Plump, has started two games up front, and has been a prominent sub in all other games. He has two goals this season, one in each of Bucknell's last two games. Plump also has three assists for seven total points.
Tournament Success
Backed by 1-0 wins over Hartwick and Syracuse, Bucknell won the Mayor's Cup earlier this season in Oneonta, N.Y. That was the team's third tournament title in the last two seasons. A year ago, the Bison defeated Penn State (2-0) and tied No. 10 Ohio State (1-1) to claim the Penn State Classic, and they also won their own Days Inn Bison Classic with a win over Cornell (3-0) and a draw with Hartwick (2-2).
First-Time Starters on Defense
Bucknell has three first-year starters on the back line, and all three have been rock solid. On the outside, junior Travis Rand and sophomore Andrew Powell have been starters since day one (both have missed one game due to injury). Running alongside senior co-captain Patrick Selwood at center back has been freshman Jermaine Jarrett, a native of Kingston, Jamaica. The emergence of the three new starters has allowed coach Brendan Nash to move talented junior Ross Liberati up into the midfield, although Liberati does still play some on the back line.
Strong in the Air
Sophomore defender Andrew Powell has provided a strong presence in the air for the Bison, and it's easy to see why when you see what he does after the soccer season ends. Powell moonlights as a high jumper and decathlete for the Bucknell track and field team. Last season he placed third in both the high jump and heptathlon at the Patriot League Indoor Championships, and outdoors he was third in the high jump and fourth in the decathlon. His top high jump of 6-8 1/4 ranks No. 8 in program history.
A Flair for the Dramatic
Andrew Powell has two career goals, both coming this season, and both snapping tie scores in the 85th minute or later. On Sept. 23 against Saint Francis (Pa.), Powell scored with 5:59 remaining to give the Bison a 1-0 win. Then this past Saturday at Colgate, it was 1-1 until Powell blasted home a 25-yard shot with just 1:52 left in regulation. Powell was named this week's Damon's Bison Athlete of the Week for his heroics over the weekend.
Strong in the Air, Part II
Junior Ross Liberati has five career goals, all of them coming on headers. This season, one of Liberati's two assists came when he headed the ball to Andrew Powell, who headed it into the net for the game-winning goal in a 1-0 win over Saint Francis (Pa.).
Caso in Cage
Sophomore Tommy Caso is a two-time Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week in 2009. Earlier in the year Caso was named the Garth Stam Defensive Most Valuable Player at the Mayor's Cup. Caso has five shutouts this season and has given up only 14 goals in 15 games for a 0.97 goals-against average, the second-best mark in the Patriot League.
Last Time in the NCAAs
Bucknell's last NCAA Tournament appearance came in 2006. After winning twice in penalty kicks in the Patriot League Tournament, the Bison traveled to George Mason for the first round of the NCAAs and won 1-0 in overtime on Mark Schmiegel's golden goal. Bucknell was eliminated by No. 4 Virginia, 4-0, in the second round.
Bison Get it Done in the Classroom Too
In the spring 2009 semester, the Bucknell men's soccer team combined for a 3.32 grade-point average. Last season, three Bison -- Patrick Selwood, Chris Hennings and Jason Soto -- were named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District Team. Hennings went on to make the national Academic All-America Team, while Soto won an Arthur Ashe Sports Scholar Award.
Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium
Bucknell plays its home soccer games at Emmitt Field, a natural-grass, soccer-only facility on campus. The Kentucky Bluegrass pitch has been in use now for five seasons, and in 2007 the Holmes Stadium facility was completed. Holmes Stadium features a covered grandstand with chairback seating, locker room facilities, press box and VIP suites and concessions and merchandise shops.
On the Horizon
After the Lafayette contest, Bucknell will close out the 2009 regular season at home next Friday night against Lehigh. It will be Senior Night at Emmitt Field. The Mountain Hawks currently sit in the all-important fourth position in the Patriot League standings with seven points, and they host last-place Army this Friday.
It's Not Just the Men
While the Bison men are in the midst of an outstanding season, their Emmitt Field sisters are also enjoying a terrific campaign. The Bucknell women's soccer team is 10-6-1 overall -- its fifth straight 10-win season -- and at 5-1 in league play sit alone atop the Patriot League standings. The Bison women can clinch the regular-season title and the right to host the league tournament with a win or a tie at Colgate on Saturday.
