Men's Soccer Prepares for Home Opener
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September 8, 1998
THE GAMES: Lehigh (2-0-0) at No. 7 Virginia (1-0-1)
Kloeckner Stadium * Sept. 9, 1998 * 7:00 p.m.
THE SERIES WITH LEHIGH: The Cavaliers and the Engineers will be meeting for the first time ever this evening. Virginia stands 4-10-0 all-time against members of the Patriot League (1-0-0 vs. Army and 3-10-0 against Navy), but does have a 2-0-0 record against the conference in the 1990s. Against schools from the state of Pennsylvania the Cavaliers have an all time record of 6-0-0, with two wins against both Penn and Penn State and one victory each against Pittsburgh and Philadelphia Textile.
UVA IN HOME OPENERS: The Cavaliers, who are playing their first home game of the season against Lehigh tonight, have an impressive record in home openers. Virginia is 37-14-3 all-time in its first home game of the season, with a 21-1-1 mark over the past 23 seasons. During that span, the Cavaliers one loss came against Boston University in 1994, with the tie being against Creighton in 1991. This year marks only the second time since 1989 and the second year in a row that UVa’s home opener is not also its season opener.
THE FILA CLASSIC: The Cavaliers posted an overall record of 1-0-1 to finish in second place in last weekend’s Fila Classic, held at Titan Stadium in Fullerton, Calif. Virginia posted a 1-0 victory over San Diego in its opening game, with sophomore forward Ryan Trout knocking home a pass from freshman forward Sheldon Barnes for the only goal of the game. Senior Brock Yetso made two saves while recording a shutout in goal for the Cavaliers. UVa then played to a 1-1 tie against Cal State Fullerton, with freshman midfielder Steve Totten scoring the Cavaliers’ lone goal. Virginia and Cal State Fullerton both posted records of 1-0-1 in the tournament, but the Titans claimed the title based on a +2 goal differential.
TROUT LEADS TEAM IN SCORING: Sophomore forward Ryan Trout has been a key part of the UVa offense in the first two games, scoring one of the Cavaliers’ goals and assisting on the other. Against San Diego Trout took a pass from Sheldon Barnes and chipped a shot over the goalkeeper from 25 yards out in the center to record the game-winning goal. Then in the Cal State Fullerton game he took a pass from Drew O’Donnell in the right corner and sent a cross into the box which Steve Totten volleyed in for the goal. Trout now has 20 points in his UVa career on four goals and 12 assists, with three of his goals being game winners.
TOTTEN NETS FIRST COLLEGIATE GOAL: Freshman midfielder Steve Totten scored the first goal of his UVa career in Sunday’s game with Cal State Fullerton. Totten gave the Cavaliers a 1-0 lead during the second half when he volleyed in a cross by Ryan Trout from eight yards out in the center. He led the team in shots attempted against the Titans with four and is now tied for the team lead in shots with five. One of three freshmen to start both games this season for the Cavaliers, Totten was an NSCAA and Parade All-American at the Peddie School in Allentown, N.J., last year.
UVA ONLY 10 WINS AWAY FROM 500: With 10 more victories this season, Virginia will record the 500th win in the history of its men’s soccer program. When the Cavaliers reach that milestone, they will become the first team in Atlantic Coast Conference men’s soccer history with 500 victories (Duke currently ranks second with 480 all-time wins). The majority of UVa’s victories have come in the last 20 years, with the Cavaliers posting a 331-66-38 record since the beginning of the 1978 season. Entering the Lehigh game, Virginia’s all-time record stands at 490-230-75 for a .664 winning percentage
CHULIS AND MOORE NAMED HERMANN TROPHY FINALISTS: Senior defender Matt Chulis and sophomore midfielder Jason Moore are among the 15 finalists who have been named for the 32nd annual Hermann Trophy. Chulis and Moore make Virginia one of only four schools to have more than one finalist, along with Duke, Indiana and UCLA. The winner of the Hermann Trophy will be announced on Dec. 12 in Richmond, Va. If either Chulis or Moore wins the award he would be the fourth player in school history to receive the honor, along with Tony Meola (1989), Claudio Reyna (1993) and Mike Fisher (1995 and 1996).
ALBRIGHT STARS FOR UNDER-20 NATIONAL TEAM: Sophomore forward Chris Albright scored four goals and one assist in three games as the United States under-20 team finished in first place in CONCACAF qualifying, held in Trinidad in early August. Albright scored two goals in a 5-1 victory over Canada, then added two goals and an assist in a 6-1 win against Trinidad & Tobago. In both contests, Albright scored the first goal of the game. The U.S. played Costa Rica to a 1-1 tie in its other game. By finishing with their 2-0-1 record, the Americans earn a spot in the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship, to be played in Nigeria next April.
TWO CAVALIERS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS: Senior defender Matt Chulis and sophomore forward Chris Albright have both been named to the Soccer America preseason All-America teams. Chulis, a first team selection, has earned second team All-America and first team All-ACC honors each of the last two seasons. Albright, a second team selection, was named to the Soccer America National All-Freshman team and the All-ACC Tournament team last season. Virginia was one of only four schools to have more than one player named to the squads.
CLEANING HOUSE AT KLOeCKNER: The Cavaliers are now in their seventh season of play at Kloeckner Stadium and have an all-time record of 80-7-4 (.901) at the facility. Virginia has won its last five games at Kloeckner and stands 12-0-2 in its last 14 contests. The Cavaliers had a school record home unbeaten streak of 34 games, which were all played at Kloeckner, from Oct. 29, 1994 to Nov. 15, 1996. The $3.4-million facility offers seating for approximately 3,600 fans in the grandstand, while hillside seating is available for another 3,000. Prior to the 1995 season lights were installed, allowing the Cavaliers to play night games. UVa has a perfect 21-0-0 record under the lights.
O’DONNELL SHOWS VERSATILITY IN CALIFORNIA: Junior Drew O’Donnell, who played as a flank midfielder during the Cavaliers’ two exhibition games, made the move to right back during last weekend’s Fila Classic. O’Donnell played a big role for the UVa defense, as the Cavaliers surrendered only one goal in 210 minutes. He also made an offensive contribution in the Cal State Fullerton contest, sending a pass to Ryan Trout in the right corner before Trout crossed the ball to Steve Totten for the score. Last season O’Donnell played in 19 games, starting four times, and totaled two goals and three assists.
ALBRIGHT REMAINS A TOP SCORING THREAT: Sophomore forward Chris Albright, the Cavaliers’ top returning scorer, was named the Offensive MVP of last weekend’s Fila Classic. Although he did not score in the tournament, Albright played all 210 minutes of Virginia’s two games and tied for the team lead in shot attempts with five. Last season, Albright ranked third on the team in scoring with 29 points on 11 goals and seven assists. He was the first UVa freshman to reach double figures in goals in a season since A.J. Wood totaled 13 goals in 1991.
NINE CAVALIERS NAMED TO 1997-98 ACC ACADEMIC HONOR ROLL: The UVa men’s soccer team placed nine players on the 1997-98 Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll. The list is comprised of all athletes in the conference who achieve a grade point average of 3.0 or better for the full academic year. Current players Matt Chulis, Mike Feller, Sam Franklin and Billy Petersen were all named to the Honor Roll, along with departed seniors Matt Laughlin, Matt Leonard, Yuri Sagatov, Andriy Shapowal and Joaquin Targhetta. Overall, Virginia had 240 student athletes named to the Honor Roll.
GELNOVATCH LOOKS TO REACH 50 WINS IN 1998: UVa third year head coach George Gelnovatch has the Cavaliers off to another strong start in 1998. With a 1-0-1 mark so far this season, Gelnovatch has improved his career record to 36-7-7 for a .790 winning percentage. With 14 more wins this season, Gelnovatch can become the first men’s soccer coach in Atlantic Coast Conference history to record 50 victories in his first three seasons. He also has a chance to become the first ACC coach to reach 50 wins before he has 10 losses. Gelnovatch already ranks third all-time at UVa in career wins, behind only Bruce Arena (295) and Eugene Corrigan (39).
BARNES LOOKS TO BOLSTER OFFENSE: With three of last year’s top four scorers gone, the Cavaliers knew they would need to find some offensive fire power this season. In the first two games of the season, freshman forward Sheldon Barnes showed he is ready to shoulder some of the scoring responsibilities. Barnes recorded an assist on the game-winning goal against San Diego, winning the ball at midfield and sending it to Ryan Trout in the center, before Trout found the net for the only goal of the game. Last year, Barnes was the Florida state Player of the Year, while earning high school All-America honors from both Parade and the NSCAA.
VIRGINIA CLAIMS ACC TOURNAMENT AND REGULAR SEASON TITLES: The Cavaliers claimed the championship of last season’s ACC Tournament, marking the seventh time they have won the tournament. In the 11 year history of the ACC Tournament, which began in 1987, Virginia remains the only school to win the title more than once. Overall, the Cavaliers have an all-time record of 17-4-3 in ACC Tournament games, winning titles in 1988, ’91, ’92, ’93, ’94, ’95 and ’97. Virginia also tied for the 1997 ACC regular season title with Duke and North Carolina State, posting a 3-1-2 (.667) mark in conference games. That marked the 13th time the Cavaliers won the ACC regular season title, but the first time UVa has finished in a tie for first. The only school with more regular season ACC championships than Virginia is Maryland with 17, while Clemson has also won 13 titles. The Cavaliers previous ACC regular season titles came in 1969, ’70, ’83, ’84, ’86, ’87, ’88, ’89, ’91, ’92, ’95 and ’96.
THE ALL-AMERICAN TEAM: Once again last season, a number of Cavaliers were selected as All-Americans by the National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA). Three UVa players were selected to the teams, tying Virginia with Indiana for the most selections last year. Ben Olsen earned first team All-America honors, Matt Chulis was a second team selection for the second year in a row, and Scott Vermillion earned third team honors. Virginia has now had at least two NSCAA All-America selections each of the last seven years, while having at least one first team choice for the 13 straight season.
SCOUTING THE ENGINEERS: Lehigh enters tonight’s game with an overall record of 2-0-0. The Engineers won their opener 4-3 in overtime against Temple, then downed St. Peter’s 3-0 in their last contest. Senior midfielder Gus Zangrilli leads the team in scoring with seven points on two goals and three assists, while sophomore midfielder Andrew Casey has totaled six points on two goals and two assists. Senior Michael Carberry has played every minute in goal for the Engineers, making seven saves while posting a 1.31 goals against average.
THE DYNASTY: Since 1989, UVa has won five NCAA titles (1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994), advanced to at least the NCAA semifinals seven times, and compiled an overall record of 174-25-21 (.839). From the beginning of the 1991 season until now, Virginia has lost just 17 games, going 141-17-13 (.863), including 95-8-6 (.899) against teams from outside the ACC. In the last eight years, UVa has won six ACC Championships and had five National Players of the Year.
CAVALIERS PLACE FOUR ON ALL-ACC TEAMS: Four Virginia players were named to the 1997 All-Atlantic Coast Conference teams, with all four being first team selections. Matt Chulis, Ben Olsen and Scott Vermillion were all named to the first team for the second consecutive season, while Brian West earned All-ACC honors for the first time. Other than Virginia, the only other schools to place more than one player on the first team were Duke and Maryland with two each. Virginia has now had at least four players earn All-ACC honors for seven consecutive seasons.
THE HONOR ROLL: Since 1978, 19 UVa players have been named All-Americans, including 11 first-team selections. Five have left UVa as two-time All-Americans, three as three-time All-Americans and one (Jeff Agoos, 1986-90) as a four-time All-American. In addition, over the past 12 seasons UVa has produced 38 first-team all-ACC selections, 18 more than any other ACC school.
FREE KICKS: Lehigh is one of two teams the Cavaliers will be facing for the first time ever this season. In addition to the Engineers, Virginia has never faced Buffalo (which will visit Kloeckner Stadium on Sept. 30) … Although its has played only two games so far this season, Virginia is off to an excellent start defensively with a team goals against average of 0.43. The Cavaliers have not posted a team GAA of less than 0.50 since Tony Meola’s senior year of 1989 (0.47).