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Top-10 Battle Awaits as Akron Hosts No. 9 Seattle
August 27 | Men's Soccer
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MATCH NOTES NO. 2 VS. SEATTLE (PDF)
No. 1 Akron (1-0-0) vs. No. 9 Seattle (1-0-0)
Sunday, Aug. 28
FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field (5,000)
Akron, Ohio • 7:30 p.m.
Live Stats: www.gozips.com
Live Stream: www.gozips.com
Radio: www.sportsradio1350.iheart.com
WHAT'S AHEAD
Sparked by a dramatic 1-0 victory in their season-opening game against No. 7 Georgetown on Friday, Aug. 26, the Zips close out play at the Akron Classic with a top-10 showdown with No. 9 Seattle on Sunday, Aug. 28. Game time is slated for 7:30 p.m. at FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field. Georgetown and West Virginia will square off in the other tournament contest at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on WARF 1350AM or online at www.sportsradio1350.iheart.com with Steve French calling the action.
SCOUTING THE REDHAWKS
Sparked by a 2-0 victory over West Virginia on Friday, Aug. 26, in the opening game of the Akron Classic, Seattle (1-0) enters its showdown with Akron ranked ninth, 12th, 14th and 17th by TopDrawerSoccer.com, College Soccer News, National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) and Soccer America, respectively. The Redhawks benefited from junior Alex Roldan and senior Joe Harris, while sophomore goalkeeper RJ Noll recorded a shutout on the strength of four saves.
Seattle posted a 18-4-1 ledger in 2015, including a 9-1-0 mark in the Western Athletic Conference. Seattle's leading returning scorer is junior David Olsen, who registered 16 goals, while adding an assist on 95 shots from his forward position. Olsen did not play for the Redhawks against West Virginia.
As a team, Seattle ranked fifth in the NCAA in 2015 in total goals (49), seventh in shots per game (16.83), eighth in winning percentage (.804), 10th in scoring offense (2.13), 11th in total points (128) and 18th in shots on goal per contest (6.65).
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday evening's game is the first-ever meeting between Akron and Seattle.
THE COACHES
Seattle: Pete Fewing is in his 23rd season as head coach of the Seattle program, owning a 264-156-35 (.619) record.
Akron: In his fourth year on the Akron sidelines as head coach, and 10th season overall, is Jared Embick, who has a 49-13-6 mark (.765), including 96-34-16 (.712) overall, in his seventh year as a head coach.
AKRON HEAD COACH JARED EMBICK
Jared Embick, who had previously served as the Zips' associate head coach and recruiting coordinator, officially became the seventh head coach in the history of The University of Akron men's soccer program in December of 2012.
The 2016 campaign marks his fourth year leading the Zips having registered a 48-13-6 (.761) ledger after posting an 18-3-3 record a season ago.
During Embick's time at Akron, the Zips have posted the highest winning percentage in the nation with an overall record of 158-26-22 (.820), including a 48-2-2 (.942) mark in Mid-American Conference play, while securing eight conference tournament titles, nine trips to the NCAA Tournament and two appearances in an NCAA final.
Recording their 15th consecutive double-digit victory campaign, the Zips finished the 2015 season ranked No. 3 nationally with an 18-3-3 ledger, including 4-0-1 mark in the Mid-American Conference. Akron's efforts were rewarded as the Zips earned the MAC's regular season and tournament crowns en route to collecting a No. 4 national seed and a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the 30th time in program history.
The Zips became one of just five Division I programs to qualify for the NCAA Tournament in each of the past nine seasons with their 30th overall selection.
Akron was led by the play of Adam Najem and Richie Laryea, who garnered second- and third-team National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-America accolades, respectively, en route to directing the Zips to rank second in the NCAA in points (159), goals (56), and scoring offense (2.33), third in points per game (6.63) and shots per contest (17.54), fourth in assists (47), seventh in winning percentage (.813) and 10th in shots on goal per game (7.13).
The Zips also found success in the classroom as Akron boasted a team 3.1955 grade-point average, while Najem was tabbed a first-team NSCAA Academic All-American.
Led by Sam Gainford, Stuart Holthusen, Laryea, Najem, Brad Ruhaak and Andrew Souders, who were selected as first-team All-MAC men's soccer selections, eight Akron student-athletes garnered All-MAC accolades a year ago. Additionally, Jake Fenlason and Sean Sepe were recognized as second-team selections.
The Zips came into the campaign maintaining a No. 25 preseason ranking by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) as well as being tabbed preseason No. 24 by College Soccer News.
After opening the season splitting a pair of matches at VCU and Old Dominion, Akron rolled off three consecutive victories over ranked opponents registering a 1-0 triumph at No. 4 Georgetown before notching a 3-2 road win at No. 6 Maryland and then opening its home campaign downing No. 14 Saint Louis, 3-2.
In a rematch of its 2014 NCAA Tournament showdown, the Zips battled Ohio State to a 3-3 double-overtime draw before No. 8 Wake Forest bettered Akron, 2-1.
The Zips then began a run of seven straight wins with a 2-0 triumph at No. 25 UC Santa Barbara.
Akron followed with victories past Penn State (1-0), UAB (2-1 in OT), Santa Clara (2-0), Buffalo (2-1), Northern Illinois (4-0) and Michigan State (4-1) before earning a 1-1 double-overtime draw at Western Michigan.
Akron closed out the month of October recording a 2-0 win at West Virginia before dropping a 4-2 decision against No. 25 UCLA to open the month of November.
The Zips registered a 4-0 victory over Bowling Green to earn the right to host the MAC Championship at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field after claiming the schools 18th regular season league title.
Akron captured the MAC Tournament crown with a 1-0 victory past Buffalo before opening NCAA Tournament play downing No. 25 Rutgers, 6-1, in the tournament's second round.
The Zips continued tournament besting No. 11 SMU, 2-1, before earning a 3-2 overtime victory over No. 3 Creighton in the Elite Eight to advance to the College Cup where Akron battled eventual national champion Stanford to a 1-1 double-overtime draw, before the Cardinal advanced on penalty kicks, 8-7 in 10 rounds.
In January, 2016, Laryea became the 11th Zip to have his name called during the first round of the MLS SuperDraft with his selection seventh overall in the MLS SuperDraft by Orlando City.
A 2000 graduate of Indiana Wesleyan, Embick was named an All-American by the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) in 1998 and 1999 as a player. He was also an NAIA honorable mention All-America honoree in 1999 and was twice named to the All-Mid-Central Conference squad.
RUHAAK PROPELS AKRON TO DRAMATIC 1-0 WIN OVER NO. 7 GEORGETOWN
Senior Brad Ruhaak (Akron, Ohio) propelled the top-rated University of Akron men's soccer team to a season-opening 1-0 victory over No. 7 Georgetown on Friday, Aug. 26, at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field, scoring the game-winning tally for the Zips (1-0) with 36 seconds remaining in regulation (89:24).
Redshirt sophomore Ezana Kahsay (Asmeras, Eritrea) set up the goal as his strike from approximately 10 yards out in the 90th minute (89:22) was thwarted by a diving save from Georgetown goalkeeper JT Marcinkowski. The deflection bounded to the sliding feet of Ruhaak, who found the corner of the net for what proved to be the game-winning goal, with Kahsay garnering the assist.
The goal ended what proved to be a defensive battle with Marcinkowski making saves on eight of Akron's nine shots on goal.
Sophomore Ben Lundt (Berlin, Germany) made the most of his Zips' debut registering two saves en route to collecting the clean sheet.
Akron posted a 20-6 margin in shots, including 9-2 on goal. The Zips bettered the Hoyas in the opening half, 7-1, before outshooting Georgetown over the final stanza, 13-5.
Senior Adam Najem (Clifton, N.J.) and redshirt junior Sam Gainford (Liverpool, England) paced the Zips attack with a game-high four shots apiece. Adding two shots each for Akron were seniors Goncalo Soares (Lisbon, Portugal) and Victor Souto (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and redshirt junior Pau Belana (Barcelona, Catalonia). Arun Basuljevic and PJ Koscher recorded two shots apiece for the Hoyas.
KAHSAY SPARKS AKRON PAST MICHIGAN, 1-0, IN EXHIBITION FINALE
A goal in the 80th minute (79:07) from Ezana Kahsay proved to be the game-winning tally propelling Akron to a 1-0 exhibition victory past Michigan on Aug. 19, at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field.
A long feed into the box from redshirt junior Robby Dambrot (Akron, Ohio) enabled Kahsay to unleash a laser which grazed the Wolverine defender and found the back of the net.
The Zips outshot Michigan in the affair, 12-3, including 6-1 on goal. Adam Najem paced all players with a game-high five shots for Akron, while Rylee Woods directed the Wolverines with a team-best two shots.
Sam Gainford added two shots for the Zips, while contributing one shot apiece was Kahsay, redshirt senior Danilo Radjen (Broadview Heights, Ohio), freshman Jesus Perez (Waukegan, Ill.), Brad Ruhaak Victor Souto and redshirt junior Tyler Sanda (North Royalton, Ohio).
Ben Lundt went all 90 minutes in goal for the Zips recording one save. Evan Louro and Andrew Verdi registered four and one save, respectively, for the Wolverines.
SOCCER AMERICA SELECTS AKRON AS PRESEASON NO. 1
The University of Akron men's soccer team made its 2016 debut on Friday, Aug. 26, as the newly minted top-rated team in the country after Soccer America released its preseason Top 25 poll this week. Stanford, UCLA, Maryland and North Carolina follow the Zips in the top five of the poll, respectively.
NAJEM, SOUTO AND HINDS RECOGNIZED TO TOPDRAWERSOCCER.COM
Three University of Akron men's soccer standouts were recognized as some of the game's best when TopDrawerSoccer.com unveiled its Men's Preseason Best XI squads.
Adam Najem was honored as a first-team honoree in the midfield, while Victor Souto and freshman Nick Hinds (Plantation, Fla.) were recognized as third- and freshman-team selections.
NAJEM AND SOUTO GARNER MEN'S NATIONAL TOP 100 HONORS
Adam Najem and Victor Souto were recently honored as members of the initial Men's National Top 100 list compiled by TopDrawerSoccer.com. Najem was tabbed as the No. 2 player in the country, while Souto came in at No. 32.
NAJEM AND LARYEA EARN 2015 ALL-AMERICA HONORS
University of Akron men's soccer standouts Adam Najem and Richie Laryea garnered All-America accolades when the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) unveiled its 2015 All-American teams on Dec. 11, 2015.
Both Zips earned All-America status for the first time in their respective Akron careers as Najem and Laryea were tabbed as second- and third-team honorees.
The NSCAA All-America citations were the 54th and 55th in the Zips' storied men's soccer history.
NAJEM SELECTED AS FIRST-TEAM ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN
Adam Najem was selected as a First-Team Scholar All-America award winner when the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) unveiled its 2015 Scholar All-American team last season.
Najem became the sixth Zip to garner First-Team NSCAA Scholar All-America accolades and the first since Reinaldo Brenes in 2013.
The NSCAA Scholar All-America citation was the ninth in the Zips' storied men's soccer history, while also marking the 22nd overall academic All-America honor in program history.
SANDA NAMED 2015 ELITE 90 WINNER
Tyler Sanda was named the recipient of the NCAA Elite 90 award for the 2015 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship.
In its seventh year, the award recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 90 is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's 90 championships.
Eligible student-athletes are sophomores or above who have participated in their sport for at least two years with their school. They must be an active member of the team, traveling and a designated member of the squad size at the championship. All ties are broken by the number of credits completed.
Sanda appeared in 14 games for Akron this past fall and registered a pair of goals, while adding two assists. He maintains a 3.954 GPA majoring in biology.
A LEAGUE-BEST EIGHT ZIPS GARNER ALL-MAC ACCOLADES
Led by Sam Gainford, Stuart Holthusen and Richie Laryea, Adam Najem, Brad Ruhaak and Andrew Souders who were selected as 2015 first-team All-Mid-American Conference men's soccer selections, a conference-best eight Akron student-athletes garnered All-MAC accolades.
Najem and Souders became the first three-time first-team All-MAC recipients for Akron since Chad Barson was tabbed a first-team honoree in 2010, 2011 and 2012, respectively.
Seniors Jake Fenlason and Sean Sepe were tabbed second-team recipients.
ZIPS TIDBITS
• Brad Ruhaak's game-winning goal in a 1-0 win past Georgetown on Friday, Aug. 26, was the second of his career. He also netted game-winner in a 2-0 victory at West Virginia last season.
• The Zips' next victory will mark the 50th for head coach Jared Embick at Akron.
• Ben Lundt made the most of his Akron debut as he registered the shutout on the strength of two saves in a 2-0 win against No. 7 Georgetown on Friday, Aug. 26.
• Adam Najem has started in each of the last 59 games in which he has played in.
• The Zips have scored two or more goals in 19 of the squad's last 31 matches, including on 18 occasions last season.
• Adam Najem owns 166 career shots, 10 shots shy of surpassing Eric Stevenson (2010-13) for the fifth-most in program history.
• Akron advanced to the College Cup for the fourth time (1986, 2009, 2010 and 2015) in program history in 2015.
• The Zips posted a 7-1-2 mark away from FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field last season.
• Since Oct. 1, 2015, Akron owns a 13-1-2 record, with the lone setback occurring versus UCLA on Nov. 1.
• The Zips played some of their best soccer at home last season as Akron had 12 players who contributed points. Leading the way with 22, 20, 19, 16 and 14 points, respectively, was Richie Laryea (eight goals and six assists), Adam Najem (six goals and eight assists), Stuart Holthusen (seven goals and five assists), Victor Souto (seven goals and two assists) and Sam Gainford (four goals and six assists).
• Sam Gainford, Richie Laryea and Adam Najem played a major role in the offensive exploits of the Zips last season as the trio has played a scoring role in 43 of Akron's 55 goals.
• Jake Fenlason, Adam Najem, Brad Ruhaak, Andrew Souders and Victor Souto started each of Akron's 24 games this past season.
• The Zips ranked seventh nationally in attendance in 2015 averaging 2,187 fans per contest.
• Akron benefited from scoring contributions from 14 players this past season, led by 31, 29 and 23 points, respectively, from Adam Najem, Richie Laryea and Sam Gainford.
• The Zips registered seven victories over ranked opponents last season defeating No. 3 Creighton (3-2 on Dec. 5), No. 4 Georgetown (1-0 on Sept. 4), No. 6 Maryland (3-2 on Sept. 7), No. 11 SMU (2-1 on Nov. 29), No. 14 Saint Louis (3-2 on Sept. 11), No. 23 Rutgers (3-1 on Nov. 22) and No. 25 UC Santa Barbara (2-0 on Sept. 25).
• Najem and Brad Ruhaak have been named as team captains for the 2016 campaign.
• Akron owns a 27-3-2 record in its last 32 home matches.
• Since 2007, Akron owns a league record of 48-2-2 (.942) mark in the MAC. Furthermore, the Zips have won 10 consecutive MAC regular season championships and seven of the last eight MAC Tournament titles.
• In all, Akron leads all league members with 18 regular-season and 12 tournament championships since joining the MAC in 1993, and has won both titles in the same season 11 times after doing so in 2015.
• In 23 seasons in the MAC, the Zips have produced 169 All-MAC honorees, including a conference-record nine first-team selections in 2010.
• In all, the Zips have produced 22 Academic All-American honors in its history, dating back to the 1998 season.
• Akron has long been associated with academic excellence. In addition to posting a team GPA's of better than 3.20 in 2015 and 3.37 in 2014, the Zips finished second in Division I in 2011-12 with a cumulative mark of 3.44. The remarkable feat follows years that saw the Zips post GPAs of 3.43 in 2010-11 and 3.33 in 2009-10.
• Najem is Akron's active career leader in goals (28), assists (24), points (80), shots (166) and shots on goal (78).
• Richie Laryea became the 11th Zip to have his name called during the first round of the MLS SuperDraft with his selection seventh overall in the MLS SuperDraft by Orlando City SC in January.
A LEGACY OF SUCCESS
Since 2007, Akron men's soccer program has posted the highest winning percentage in the nation (.821) as of games of Aug. 26, with an overall record of 159-26-22. The Zips are followed by Creighton, 132-36-23 (.751), Maryland, 143-39-29 (.746), North Carolina, 131-41-30 (.723), Connecticut, 124-36-38 (.722), Wake Forest, 124-46-27 (.698) and New Mexico, 112-47-22 (.680). Akron has made nine straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament (2007-15), earning a first-round bye in seven seasons. The Zips have advanced to the NCAA's Round of 16 in seven of the last nine years. Since 1961, the Zips have advanced to the NCAA postseason 30 times, including each of the past nine seasons and 14 of the past 15.
PROTECTING OUR HOUSE
Since 2007, the Zips have recorded an 95-7-12 (.886) ledger in home matches at FirstEnergy Stadium - Cub Cadet Field. Akron owns four unbeaten campaigns during that span, including posting home marks of 12-0-1, 13-0-0, 12-0-1 and 10-0-2 during the 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012 seasons, respectively.
NAJEM NAMED TO MAC HERMANN TROPHY WATCH LIST
Adam Najem added another accolade to his growing resume with his selection to the 2016 Missouri Athletic Club's (MAC) Hermann Trophy Watch List.
Najem is one of 28 men tabbed for consideration for the MAC Hermann Trophy, which is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer presented annually to one male and one female athlete. The winners will be announced Jan. 6, 2017, at the trophy presentation banquet at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
Near the end of the collegiate regular season, NCAA Division I coaches whose programs are current NSCAA College Services members will vote on their top choices and the lists will be narrowed down to the top 15 players.
College soccer fans will also have the opportunity to participate in the selection process, by voting for their favorite semifinalist in November at the MAC Hermann Trophy website, managed by LockerDome.
From that pool of 28, six finalists (three men, three women) will be chosen for the award. The winners will be announced in January.
ZIPS PAIR WITH TEAM IMPACT TO ADD MAVERICK WESTOVER TO 2016 ROSTER
The University of Akron men's soccer team and head coach Jared Embick announced the signing of Maverick Westover on Aug. 19. The 11-year-old Akron native, signed a national letter of intent to join the Zips' men's soccer squad this season.
Team IMPACT, an organization that connects children facing chronic or life threatening illnesses to college athletic teams in an effort to improve their quality of life, orchestrated Maverick's recruitment with the Akron men's soccer program.
Maverick deals with Common Variable Immune Deficiency (CVID), which makes him highly susceptible to infection, especially in his lungs, sinuses, and ears.
ZIPS PRIMED FOR BIG THINGS IN 2016
The Zips enter the 2016 campaign looking to build upon an 18-3-3 mark last season, including a 4-0-1 ledger in the Mid-American Conference, an return to the College Cup in search of winning the program's second national championship.
Akron is seeking to integrate 12 newcomers Manuel Cordeiro (Porto, Portugal), Jackson Crawford (Massillon, Ohio), Nick Hinds, Joe Korb (Willowick, Ohio), Reggie Laryea (Toronto, Ontario), Jonathan Lewis (Plantation, Fla.), Ben Lundt, Alex Mapp (Medina, Ohio), Jesus Perez, Jeremy Pollard, Tor Saunders (Bothell, Wash.) and Marcel Zajac (Mississauga, Ontario) this season onto a roster that boasts seven returning starters from a year ago.
AKRON TABBED TO CAPTURE MAC REGULAR AND POSTSEASON TITLES
Akron was tabbed to capture the Mid-American Conference regular and postseason titles in a preseason poll of six conference coaches.
The Zips under fourth-year head coach Jared Embick, were picked to repeat as conference champions in the MAC Coaches Preseason poll with five first-place votes. Akron (29 points) was followed by Western Michigan (17 points), who also garnered a first-place tally.
Rounding out the rest of the poll was 2015 MAC Tournament participants West Virginia (16 points) and Buffalo (15 points), along with Bowling Green (11 points) and Northern Illinois (two points).
Also voted on by the coaches was the predicted 2016 MAC Tournament Champion where Akron was a unanimous selection to repeat as league tournament winner.
ZIPS LIVE RADIO SHOW
Every Thursday throughout the season from 7-8 p.m. ET, Akron head coaches can be heard on the weekly radio program Zips Live, presented by Lee Hyder and Associates. The show airs locally on 1350 AM (WARF) and originates from the Spaghetti Warehouse (510 S. Main Street). A free audio stream is available on www.SportsRadio1350.com.
WHAT IS A ZIP?
• One of the unique nicknames in collegiate athletics belongs to The University of Akron.
• Originally Zippers, athletic director Kenneth "Red" Cochrane officially shortened the nickname to the Zips in 1950. Twenty-five years earlier a campus-wide contest had been conducted to choose a nickname for the University's athletics teams.
• Suggestions submitted by students, faculty, and alumni included Golden Blue Devils, Tip Toppers, Rubbernecks, Hillbillies, Kangaroos, and Cheveliers.
• The winner, freshman Margaret Hamlin, received a prize of $10 for Zippers, a $6 pair of rubber overshoes and a brand name of the BF Goodrich Company.
• The evolution of Zippy, UA's mascot, began 40 years ago when the student council decided the University needed a mascot.
• "Zippy" the kangaroo was officially declared the school's mascot on May 1, 1953. The first known printed reference to the mascot as "Zippy" was a 1965 Zip football press brochure. The Buchtelite's first use of the name "Zippy" came Sept. 24, 1965, in an identification of a photo of the cheerleaders listing "Mascot - 'Zippy' - Charles Huettner."
• In 2007, Zippy was named the Capital One National Mascot of the Year.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Redshirt junior MF/D Robby Dambrot is the son of Zips' men's basketball coach Keith Dambrot.
• Akron men's soccer has produced 22 Academic All-Americans since 1998.
• Eleven Zips have had their names called during the first round of the MLS SuperDraft, including a league record five selections in the first eight picks in 2011 following the Zips' national championship season.
• Akron broke a second MLS record that day as seven Akron players were chosen in the first two rounds, the most from a single team in draft history.
• Zippy is just one of five female-gendered college mascots in Division I athletics. Do you know the other four? (YoUDee, the Delaware Blue Hen; Mrs. Wuf of N.C. State; Lucy Lobo of New Mexico; and Wilma Wildcat of Arizona).
UP NEXT
The Zips travel to California for a tilt versus San Diego State on Friday, Sept. 2. Game time is set for 10 p.m. ET.
