University of Delaware Athletics
CAA Semifinals Rematch On Tap For Saturday Night With Wm. & Mary (Oct. 21, 2011)
10/21/2011 3:32:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Last season, the Tribe outlasted Delaware in double overtime to secure a spot in the tournament finals after edging the Hens 1-0 with just 24 seconds left in double overtime.
"We are looking forward to a good crowd this Saturday night against another CAA team ranked in the top 20 in the latest NCAA RPI. We gave a super crowd a very entertaining match last year in the semifinal against William and Mary before falling in the last 30 seconds of double OT at their home venue,” said Delaware's sixth-year headman Ian Hennessy. “To be fair that is not on our minds at the moment. That William & Mary team went on and represented the conference very well and they deserve all the credit in the world for a great NCAA run. They certainly earned and deserved it.”
Saturday's rematch will kick off at 7 p.m. at Delaware Mini-Stadium as both teams look to continue to push for the postseason.
Media:
A live statistical feed will be available for Saturday's game on BlueHens.com. Please navigate to the men's soccer home page and select Schedule/Results in the Related Links on the right side of the page. The Live Stats link is located in the Multimedia column of the schedule.
Fans can also follow the action on Twitter and Facebook.
Promotions:
Saturday's game will be a cockpit game for UD students. Help pack Delaware Mini-Stadium and cheer on your Blue Hens classmates as they take on William & Mary! Be sure to visit the Cockpit Check-in table with your punch card to receive credit for attending the match, and get closer to earning great rewards exclusively for UD students. For more information, visit the Cockpit on BlueHens.com
Cardiac Kids Do It Again:
Senior midfielder Kyle Ellis scored his second-straight overtime goal to give Delaware its second-straight overtime win in the fourth consecutive overtime game the Hens played.
But Ellis' late goals seem to be a new trend for the Hens, who have six goals in the last five minutes of regulation or overtime this season. Three of those goals have been game-winners, two from Ellis and one from Roberto Giménez, while another two have been to tie a game and force overtime. Tobias Müller tallied one while Giménez scored the second.
Since Ian Hennessy took over time 2006, Delaware has scored 17 goals in the final five minutes or overtime of a game. The latest goal scored for Delaware in overtime was last season when senior captain, now assistant coach, Jon Scheer put away a game-winning penalty kick against Old Dominion at the 103:24 mark.
Ellis' two goals are the second and third latest goals scored under Hennessy. The first was at 100:59 against Hofstra and the other at 97:16 versus George Mason.
The Cardiac Kids enjoy scoring late in front of the home crowd, with 10 of their 17 last-minute goals coming at Delaware Mini-Stadium, including the last four.
Among the Tops in the Country:
In this week's NSCAA South Atlantic Regional Polls, the Hens maintained their lock on the No. 9 spot. The CAA controls six of the top 10 spots, with Old Dominion in No. 2, William & Mary tied at No. 4, James Madison in the No. 7 spot, Georgia State in No. 8, and VCU in No. 10. Northeastern and George Mason received votes.
In the most recent edition of the RPI, Delaware was ranked 45th out of 203 teams NCAA Division I teams in the country, keeping them in the 20th percentile. The CAA had nine of its 12 teams in the top half of the RPI.
Bonus Soccer:
So far this season, Delaware has been a part of five overtime games this season. The Hens have played in the most overtime games in the CAA so far this season and hold a 2-2-1 record in games with extra play.
With all the extra periods, Delaware has amassed 65 minutes of bonus soccer so far this season.
Home, Sweet Home:
Delaware Mini-Stadium has been a place of comfort for the Blue Hens over the last two seasons, where Delaware has a combined 9-1-0 record in conference action. Overall in the last two seasons, Delaware is 12-4-0 at home, including both CAA and non-conference games.
Scoring comes naturally at Delaware Mini-Stadium as the Hens have tallied 16 goals in home conference games the last two years, averaging 1.6 goals per game. Senior Evans Frimpong has four goals and a helper in CAA games the last two seasons while fellow senior Kyle Ellis has two goals and three assists for seven points.
The Hens held the honor of being the only CAA team in 2010 to go undefeated and untied at home, posting a 5-0-0 record at Delaware Mini-Stadium. No other team in the CAA has logged as many wins in conference games as Delaware over the last two seasons. Old Dominion and Georgia State are tied for second in total wins at seven.
The Series:
Saturday's game with be the 15th meeting all-time between Delaware and William & Mary. The two schools first met in 1987 as part of the Met-Life Classic, hosted by Old Dominion.
The Tribe have controlled the series, holding a 12-1-1 record against Delaware, including a pair of wins last season in Williamsburg, Va. In 2010, the Tribe edged Delaware 2-1 in the regular season and 1-0 in the CAA semifinals.
Each of the last three meetings with William & Mary have been decided by one goal, including a 3-2 overtime thriller in Newark during the 2009 season. At the time, the Tribe were ranked No. 25 in the nation.
“Saturday's game is about the present and it has a different significance. We are looking to continue a very strong showing at home and to position ourselves with an opportunity to reach the CAA playoffs with a win and a little closer to an at-large NCAA bid,” said head coach Ian Hennessy. “This is what I want the players mind focused on in this very important game for our school.”
Scouting the Hens (as of 10/19/11):
The Hens improved to 9-3-1 overall and 4-3-0 in the CAA after winning their second-straight overtime game on Wednesday against George Mason. Kyle Ellis scored the game-winner in both contests.
The win assured Delaware its first winning season since 1996 when the squad went 9-8-1 under Marc Samonisky. This season's nine wins mark the highest under current headman Ian Hennessy. His previous high was seven in 2009.
Evans Frimpong and Roberto Giménez have each tallied a team-high 22 points, each scoring nine goals with four assists. They are the first pair to surpass the 22-point mark since 1977 when John McCloskey had 27 points (10g, 7a) and Dave Ferrell finished with 24 points (9g, 6a).
Frimpong and Giménez are among some of the top offensive players in the country, according to the NCAA statistic rankings for games through Oct. 16. Giménez ranks eighth in points per game (2.22), 26th in total points, 10th in goals per game (0.89), 25th in total goals, 43rd in assists per game (0.44), and 93rd in total assists (4.0). Frimpong is 16th in points per game (1.75), 22nd in total points, 18th in goals per game (0.75) and 19th in total goals.
Kyle Ellis, Delaware's third leading points getter with 13 (6g, 1a) is also among the tops in the nation, ranking 101st in total goals and goals per game (0.42).
In goal lately for the Hens has been Kris Devaux, who is ranked 91st in goals against average (1.124). He has a save percentage of 75.0 percent, good enough for 105th nationally and is 131st in saves per game (3.43).
Scouting the Tribe (as of 10/19/11):
Coming off the CAA title in 2010, William & Mary sits at 8-6-0 overall and 5-3-0 in the CAA, coming off of a tough 1-0 loss to James Madison on Wednesday.
At one point in the season, the Tribe rattled off four straight wins, not allowing a goal in that span in putting in six goals of their own.
The Tribe's scoring efforts are led by Nicolas Abrigo's 13 points (6g, 1a) while John Ciampa and Ben Anderson have six points on two goals and two assists apiece.
Between the pipes for William & Mary, Colin Smolinsky has logged 1,170 minutes in 13 games this season. He allows less than a goal per game (0.92), stopping 53 opponent attempts. He carries a save percentage of 81.5 percent and has seven shutouts on the year.
