DePaul University

Weekly Notes

CHICAGO - The DePaul men’s soccer team steps out of conference play for a Wednesday afternoon match against Illinois-Chicago before traveling to No. 4/3 St. John’s in BIG EAST action on Saturday.  Kickoff with the Flames is set for 3 p.m. at Wish Field in the final non-conference match of the season.  With the rescheduled match at Villanova on Oct. 31, the Blue Demons play three of their final four league matches on the road.

Make-Ups: The match at Villanova that was postponed on Oct. 8 due to poor field conditions has been rescheduled for Monday, Oct. 31.  Kickoff in the regular-season finale is set for 1 p.m. EST.

Looking at the Blue Demons: DePaul has allowed three goals in back-to-back matches and in three of the last four games... prior to that four-game span, the team allowed more than two goals just once this season... the 1-0 win over Syracuse snapped a four-match streak without a victory for the Blue Demons... the victory over the Orange was also the first DePaul in BIG EAST play... Jeff DeGroot, Adam Hermsen and Anthony Minniti lead the club with three goals apiece... the back-to-back shutouts on the road at Pittsburgh and West Virginia marked the first time this season that the team has been blanked in two straight matches... the 4-3 overtime loss to then-No. 21 Georgetown on Sept. 16 snapped a three-match unbeaten streak... it was the longest since a pair of three-game runs without a lost in 2003... the three goals against the Hoyas were the most in a match for the Blue Demons since a 3-1 win against UW-Green Bay on Sept. 8, 2002... the five combined goals in the two matches against Georgetown and Seton Hall are the highest two-game total in the Craig Blazer era... it marks the most in back-to-back matches since seven goals were scored at Northwestern (W, 3-1) and at Memphis (W, 4-3) on Oct. 13 and 17, 1999... the program’s last four-match unbeaten streak occurred with four wins in 1995... the longest unbeaten streak in school history was in 1994 with eight straight games... the five players that have scored a goal this season did not score in 2004... 15 of the student-athletes are either sophomores or freshmen... John Partyka and Brian Visser were named to the Holiday Inn City Centre Classic All-Tournament team... the Blue Demons played in eight overtime matches (1-4-3) in 2004 and 12 games were decided by one goal (2-10)... the 2005 season has seen three overtime matches (0-1-2) and four games decided by a goal (2-2)... head coach Craig Blazer is in his fifth season at DePaul.

Best for Last: Adam Hermsen shares the team lead with three goals and an assist after totaling a goal and an assist against Georgetown and Seton Hall.  Hermsen scored in dramatic fashion in both games with headers off passes from the opposite sideline to tie each match in the final minutes of regulation.  The senior midfielder did not score a goal in 2004 and entered his senior season with three career goal and five assists.  Entering this week, the senior needs just three points to move into the top 25 in school history.  Through 63 career matches, he has 18 points on six goals and six assists.

Noting UIC: The Flames stand at 7-3-2 overall and 2-2-1 in Horizon League action.  UIC is 3-0-1 since dropping three straight matches at the end of September.  Last weekend, the Flames played UW-Milwaukee to a 0-0 tie and knocked off Butler, 1-0.  They have scored 21 goals this season while allowing their opponents to find the net on 11 occasions.  Pavle Dundjer leads the team with 16 points on four goals and eight assists while Tonci Skroce has totaled 13 points on five goals and three helpers.  Jeff Engelbrecht and Roman Tulis have combined for a 0.87 goals against average with five shutouts.  Head coach John Trask is in his first season as head coach of the Flames.

Checking On St. John’s: St. John’s hosts Hartwick in non-conference action on Wednesday before taking on DePaul this weekend.  The Red Storm is 7-2-4 overall and 5-1-2 in BIG EAST play.  They are second in the Red Division with 17 points.  A 1-0 loss at USF last Saturday snapped a nine-match unbeaten streak for St. John’s.  Matt Groenwald leads the club with 14 points on five goals and four assists.  Chris Moore adds nine points with three goals and three assists while Jason Landers and have combined for a 0.50 goals against average.  Head coach Dave Masur is in his 13th season with the Red Storm.

Record Book Watch: DePaul senior Luke Rojo is closing in on the all-time top 10 scoring list.  Rojo, who missed last season with an injury, has scored two goals this season for 40 career points on 14 goals and 12 assists.  He is ranked 11th all-time and needs five points to pass 10th-ranked Dusan Colakovic and tie Shane Hudson for ninth all-time.  On the goals chart, Rojo needs eight goals to move into a tie for sixth and two more assists to tie the fifth spot all-time.  The senior has played in 65 career matches.

Looking Forward:  DePaul finishes the regular season with three of the final four matches on the road.  Following this weekend’s match at St. John’s, the Blue Demons go to Cincinnati on Oct. 26.  Senior Day is set for Oct. 29 at Wish Field against the Louisville Cardinals followed by the rescheduled match with Villanova on Monday, Oct. 31.  The BIG EAST Tournament starts on Nov. 2 on campus sites.