Oct. 28, 2004
Ohio State/UIC Game Notes in PDF Format
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- Riding a four-match winning streak and a five-match unbeaten streak, No. 25 Northwestern will host Ohio State with second place in the Big Ten standings on the line. The match is set to begin at 3 p.m. Friday and is Senior Day for the Wildcats.
In the midst of its most successful season in program history, the Wildcats are currently in unchartered territory in third place in the conference. NU has seven points on the strength of two wins and a tie in Big Ten play while Ohio State enters Friday's match in second place with a 3-1-0 record and nine points. With a win, Northwestern would overtake the Buckeyes with only one Big Ten match against seventh-place Wisconsin remaining.
Northwestern won a pair of 2-1 decisions last week, defeating Loyola with two second-half goals and downing Michigan on a overtime match-winner by Brad Napper (Dallas, Texas/Jesuit College Prep). For his play last week, Napper was named to the Soccer America and College Soccer News Teams of the Week.
NU sophomore Gerardo Alvarez (Aurora, Ill./Marmion Academy) tallied one assist last week to extend his Big Ten-leading point total to 26. He also remains atop the conference in goals with 10. Not to be outdone, freshman David Roth (St. Louis, Mo./Chaminade) leads the conference with eight assists, still just one shy of setting the Northwestern single-season record.
In the Buckeyes, NU will face the stingiest defense in the Big Ten. In conference matches, OSU is surrendering only 0.25 goals per game with three shutouts. Just like the Wildcats, Ohio State has earned three Big Ten Player of the Week honors, with two of those nods going to junior goalkeeper Ray Burse, Jr.
Ohio State is coming off a 1-0 loss to Indiana in its final home match of the season. Prior to that loss, the Buckeyes had been the only unbeaten squad remaining in Big Ten play. OSU boats the conference's second-leading scorer behind Alvarez in Justin Cook, who has 22 points on nine goals and four assists.
The Buckeyes are ranked seventh in the NSCAA Great Lakes Region, while the Wildcats are rated third in the poll.
Friday's match marks NU's final home action of the season and Senior Day. The Wildcats will honor their two seniors, Brett Grob (Stonington, Conn./St. Stephen's) and Derek Schneider (Menomonee Falls, Wisc./Marquette University H.S.), before the match.
After its tilt with Ohio State, Northwestern will travel to Illinois-Chicago for a midweek matchup with the Flames. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. in Chicago. UIC enters the weekend with a 4-9-2 record. Evanston native Kenneth Nightingale was named Horizon League Player of the Week last week.