The University of Akron Athletics
Men's Soccer To Play NIU For MAC Tournament Championship Sunday
November 10 | Men's Soccer
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AKRON, Ohio – Unbeaten in its last 14 matches and winners of its last 13, the top-seeded and No. 1 nationally-ranked University of Akron men's soccer team will face second-seeded Northern Illinois in the Mid-American Conference Tournament Championship Sunday at 4:30 p.m., at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field. The MAC Tournament champion receives an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
Match #20: No. 1 Akron (16-1-2) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (7-9-3)
Date/Time: Nov. 11, 2012 • 4:30 p.m. (ET)
Venue: FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field • Akron, Ohio
Match Notes: MAC Final - Akron vs. Northern Illinois (PDF)
Televison: None • Radio: Fox Sports 1350 AM (WARF)
Live Stats: GoZips.com • Video Stream: GoZips.com
Ticket Information
• Reserved ($15) and General Admission ($10) tickets are on sale now. Students of both participating schools will be admitted free of charge with valid ID.
• To purchase your ticket, click on GoZips.com/Tickets, call 1-888-99-AKRON (25766) or visit the C.P. and Cornelia S. Chima Athletics Ticket Office at InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field (located at the southwest corner of the venue, near Gate 1, at the corner of East Exchange and South Union streets).
• Tickets may also be purchased at Gate 1 of FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field one hour prior to kick off.
Poll Position
• The Zips are the consensus No. 1 team in the nation according to all five major polls, including the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).
• Akron is also ranked No. 2 in this week's NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) behind No. 1 Notre Dame (14-3-1). UCLA (12-2-3), Maryland (14-1-2) and Georgetown (16-2-1) round out the top five. The RPI is a mathematical formula designed to objectively compare results and strength of schedule and is used by the NCAA to help determine the 48-team field for the postseason tournament.
Akron In The MAC Final
• Sunday's match will represent the 13th time the Zips have advanced to the championship round of the MAC Tournament since its inception in 1994. Akron is 7-4-1 in MAC finals overall, including a perfect 4-0 record since 2007.
• UA's bid for a fifth straight MAC Tournament title was dashed by Western Michigan last season when the Broncos eliminated UA during the semifinal round in a penalty kick shootout (4-3) after the teams played to a 1-all draw. The Huskies would go on to defeat WMU 1-0 in the MAC title match in 2011.
• Sunday's final also marks the third time the Zips and Huskies will meet in the MAC Championship. Both previous matches were 1-0 decisions with NIU getting the upper hand in Dekalb, Ill., in 2006, and UA returning the favor in a double-overtime contest in Akron in 2008.
• The Zips lead all league members with eight MAC Tournament titles. Bowling Green and Kentucky, which competed in the MAC from 1995-2004, are tied for the second-highest tally with three apiece.
NCAA Watch Party Monday
• Regardless of Sunday's outcome, the Zips are all but assured of being selected for this year's 48-team NCAA Tournament.
• Johnny J's, located in the valley at 1282 Weathervane Lane, will host an official Akron Zips NCAA Selection Show Watch Party Monday at 5 p.m. Fans are encouraged to come to this free event to support the Zips as the NCAA postseason picture is revealed.
• The NCAA Selection Show will be streamed on NCAA.com and is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.
About Northern Illinois
• The defending MAC Tournament Champion Huskies defeated West Virginia 1-0 in Friday's semifinal on the strength of Jayson Leseth's first goal of the season. Leseth's game-winner came on a direct free kick from the left side of the field in the 33rd minute. It was the second time NIU had defeated WVU in 2012 after also earning a 1-0 result in Dekalb, Ill., during the regular season.
• Northern Illinois has won four of its last five matches, including a 1-0 overtime win at Northwestern last month.
• NIU is 0-4 versus nationally-ranked teams and 5-8 in away/neutral site games this year. The Huskies suffered setbacks at Creighton (3-1), New Mexico (3-0) and Marquette (1-0) before a 2-0 loss to Akron.
Northern Illinois Series Notes
• Sunday's match represents the 24th all-time meeting between the Zips and Huskies in a series that dates back to the 1990 season. UA, which has defeated NIU in its last eight matches and is unbeaten in its last nine, leads the series, 19-3-1.
• NIU is the last and only MAC school to defeat Akron under seventh-year head coach Caleb Porter's watch. The Huskies accomplished the feat twice during Porter's first year in 2006. Both matches were 1-0 setbacks in Dekalb.
• The Zips scored single goals in each half to earn a 2-0 victory on the road against Northern Illinois during the regular season. Freshman Phil Fives scored the Zips' fastest goal of the year just one minute and 31 seconds after the opening whistle following an Akron corner kick. Reinaldo Brenes capped off the scoring with a goal coming in the 85th minute. In all, Akron out-shot Northern Illinois 18-8.
• NIU did its part to chop up play with 19 fouls and six yellow cards, including three in a 15-second span in the first half. Rocco Taglia was sent off in the 57th minute after being shown his second caution.
Zips Reset
• Akron advanced to the MAC final by way of a dominating 2-0 victory over fourth-seeded Bowling Green Friday night.
• The Zips out-shot the Falcons 33-2 for the match – including a 15-0 advantage in the first half alone – and earned 13 corner kicks to BGSU's none. UA jumped on top in the 40th minute, thanks to a highlight-reel worthy goal by Wil Trapp. On a free kick, Scott Caldwell played the ball back to Trapp, who set himself up with a great touch and fired a rocket from beyond 30 yards that whistled through the box, past the diving BGSU keeper and into the lower right-hand corner of the net. It was the first goal of his Akron career.
• UA essentially put the game away just one minute and 29 seconds later when Saad Abdul-Salaam sent a cross to Caldwell, who played the ball through to Thomas Schmitt. Schmitt, who earned a start in his second straight match, slammed it home for his second goal of the season.
No Place Like Home
• The Zips own a 8-0-1 mark at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field in 2012, where they have been defeated just once since the start of the 2008 season, posting a record of 53-1-6 (.933) during that time.
• Furthermore, UA has allowed just one goal at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field in 2012 where it has out-scored the opposition 24-1.
• Historically speaking, there has been no better home field advantage in the country than the one enjoyed by the Zips. With a 5-0 victory over Cleveland State on Aug. 27, 2011, Akron surpassed Tulsa for the NCAA's all-time standard for the longest home unbeaten streak (40 matches). The Golden Hurricane set the original mark of 39 games from 1988-'92.
• The Zips would remain unbeaten on their home field for eight more matches (6-0-2) in 2011 to push the record to 48 contests (44-0-4) before Michigan State ended the remarkable run with a 1-0 victory on Nov. 2, 2011. During the historic stretch, Akron out-scored its opponents 119-21 at home while posting 31 shutouts.
• Furthermore, the Zips have trailed at home just six times during the last five seasons for a total of 82 minutes and 43 seconds.
The Department of Defense
• Akron leads the nation with 15 shutouts – including eight straight from Sept. 13 to Oct. 16 – and a shutout percentage of .789 (15 shutouts in 19 matches).
• UA, which has allowed just one goal in its last 1,271:30 of play, has allowed six goals all season (three coming in a short-handed loss at Notre Dame on Sept. 9) and is ranked second among all Division I schools with a goals-against-average of 0.31.
• Akron's 15 shutouts are tied for the second-highest single-season total in school history and four shy of the program's standard (19), set in 2009.
