Oct. 24, 2001

MILWAUKEE -- The No. 23 UWM men's soccer team (13-3, 4-0 Horizon) is aiming to capture its first regular season league championship since 1997 when they take to the road again for a pair of league games.

The Panthers first play second-place Wright State on Friday at 6:00 p.m. in Dayton, Ohio. On Sunday, Milwaukee will take on third-place Butler in Indianapolis, Ind., at noon. If UWM can win both games, the team would clinch the regular season Horizon League Championship and a No. 1 seed in the league tournament.

The Panthers are coming off a 2-1 record over the week. On Wednesday, UWM retained the John Lewang Trophy with a 3-0 win over Northern Illinois at home. In Ohio over the weekend, Milwaukee dropped a 3-2 decision to Akron on Friday, before keeping Cleveland State winless in league play with a 1-0 win on Sunday.

After losing the game to Akron on a penalty kick in the 90th minute, UWM dropped from a No. 16 ranking to a No. 23 ranking in the NSCAA poll released this week.

Wright State (9-4-1, 3-1 Horizon) is riding high after upsetting then-ranked No. 24 UIC on Sunday, 3-1, on the road.

Butler (6-7, 4-1 Horizon) lost to UIC on Wednesday, 3-2, before bouncing back and defeating Loyola, 3-1, on Saturday.

Milwaukee defeated both teams last season during the regular season, and also beat Butler again in the tournament quarterfinal. The Panthers are 6-6 all-time against the Bulldogs after their 4-1 and 3-0 wins last season. UWM holds the 5-3-2 edge over Wright State all-time, with the Panthers winning last year's meeting, 1-0, in Milwaukee.

UWM Recap

* The Panthers defeated Northern Illinois, 3-0, on Wednesday to retain the John Lewang Trophy, awarded to the winner of the annual match. Kevin Roethe headed in the gamewinner off a cross from Kyle Lance. Appearing in his first collegiate game, Mark Krstich knocked in his first career goal to put the Panthers up 2-0, while Chad Domborwski made finished off scoring with a header in the final minute.

* In Akron on Friday, the Panthers dropped their first game in their last seven matches with a 3-2 score to the Zips. Down 2-0 in the second half, B.J. Blake scored his first two collegiate goals to knot the game at two a piece. An Akron penalty kick with 22 seconds remaining in regulation proved to be the decision.

* On Sunday, Milwaukee continued its domination of Cleveland State, defeating the Vikings for the ninth straight time, 1-0. Ryan Seymour added all the necessary offense with his team-leading 10th goal of the season off Kyle Lance's league-leading ninth assist.

UWM (13-3, 4-0 Horizon) Game Notes

* With the 1-0 win over Cleveland State, the Panthers won their 13th game of the season. UWM leads the nation with 13 victories. The 13 wins also marks the third consecutive 11-plus win season, and the fifth in six years under head coach Louis Bennett.

* Goalkeepers Chris Dadaian and Brad Swenby have been battling close for the starting spot in front of the net for UWM. Both have been playing well for UWM, though Dadaian has seen more time as he has started 11 games including Sunday afternoon's start against Cleveland State. Posting a 9-2 record, Dadaian leads the league with five shutouts and also has a 0.95 GAA. Swenby has started five times, and has a 4-1 record on the season and 0.86 GAA, which is second in the league. In Sunday's match, both keepers saw time, and it was the first time multiple keepers have seen action in a game since Dadaian split time with Ari Solomon during a 6-2 win over Detroit in the 1999 season, a span of 42 games.

* Ryan Seymour leads UWM in scoring with 27 points, including 10 goals and seven assists. Seymour leads the league in points, shots (64) and is second in goals (10) and assists (7). Kyle Lance leads the league in assists (9), while Lance is second on team scoring with 19 points (5g, 9a). Antou Jallow is third on the team with 16 points (8g), while defender Chad Dombrowski has 12 points (4g, 4a).

* According to the Horizon League release last week, UWM leads the league in most major team statistical categories, including shots, points, goals, assists, goals allowed per game and shutouts.

Panther Injuries

Starting defenders Chad Dombrowski and Evan Richardson both suffered severe ankle injuries against Wisconsin, but Dombrowski returned to the lineup without missing a game. Richardson is possible to return this week. After going down with a knee injury against Green Bay, Antou Jallow has since been out of the lineup and out of training. He has a tear in his MCL and will most likely miss the rest of the season. Freshman Ian Hoelker has started in place of Richardson, while Kevin Roethe started for Jallow in the center midfield and scored gamewinning goals against Loyola and Northern Illinois. BJ Blake suffered an ankle injury against Cleveland State on Sunday, but should be back to the lineup this weekend.

Wright State (9-4-1, 3-1 Horizon) Game Notes

* The Raiders are coming off a 3-1 upset of then-No. 24 ranked UIC. Down 1-0 after four and a half minutes, Winston Marshall tied the game on a penalty kick. Marshall knocked in the gamewinner in the 79th minute off an assist from Ricky Strong. Strong added a goal of his own five minutes later.

* Wright State scoring has been spread out evenly. The Raiders have four players with at least 10 points, and 15 of the 16 field players who have logged playing time have also registered a point.

* Ricky Strong leads the Raider offense with 17 points (8g, 1a). Evan Shrewsbury is second on the team with 13 points (6g, 1a), while Bret Jones is third with 12 points (4g, 4a).

* Keepers JR Nelson and Chris Schiavone have split time in front of the net for Wright State. Nelson has played nearly 800 minutes and boasts a 5-3-1 record with a 1.36 GAA and three shutouts. Schiavone has played just over 500 minutes and has a 4-1 record with a 1.59 GAA.

Butler (6-7, 4-1 Horizon) Game Notes

* The Bulldogs are enjoying a rebirth during the league season. Butler, who started the season 0-4, has gone 6-3 since, including 4-1 in the league play, to move into second play in the standings.

* Butler is led in scoring by Nick Pantazi, who has registered 26 points on a league-leading 11 goals. Pantazi's 26 points are one behind UWM's Ryan Seymour for the league lead. Michael Mariscalco is second on the team with 17 points with six goals and a team-high six assists.

* Grant Barrie has seen the majority of time in front of the net for the Bulldogs, logging 865 minutes and recording three wins with a 1.87 GAA and two shutouts. Jason Richarz has also seen time in goal for Butler, tallying three wins, with a 1.43 GAA in 315 minutes.

Scoring First Leads To Wins

* A growing trend with the 2001 Panthers is scoring first. Ten of Milwaukee's 11 games have come when the Panthers take the initial lead. UWM won its first come-from-behind victory after trailing Green Bay, 1-0. UWM's three losses on the season have come when the Panthers failed to score first. Southwest Missouri State beat UWM, 2-1, Bowling Green scored the golden goal in overtime to knock off the Panthers, 1-0, and Akron used a penalty kick with 22 seconds left to defeat Milwaukee, 3-2.

Moving Up In Records Book

After recording three straight shutouts and his fifth of the season against Northern Illinois, junior goalkeeper Chris Dadaian ranks ninth in career shutouts with 12 and ranks fifthin career wins with 22. His senior year still remaining, Dadaian needs just seven more shutouts to tie the career record of 19 shutouts held by PJ Johns. Paul Royal holds the career record in wins with 40.

Dadaian's record so far this season rests at 9-2. In 1999, Dadaian's nine wins on the season landed him in 10th place in the records book for season wins. He has currently tied that record, while UWM still has four games guaranteed remaining. Jon Mroz holds the season-wins record with 15, gained back in 1990. Matt Schmidt and Paul Royal are tied for second with 13 wins.

Sweeping The State

UWM stands at top of the Wisconsin schools after posting wins over Marquette (2-1), Wisconsin (3-1) and Green Bay (2-1 OT) this season. The last time the Panther swept all three state opponents was in 1991 under former head coach Brian Tompkins. The Panthers then defeated Green Bay, 3-1, Wisconsin, 2-0, and Marquette, 2-1, in overtime.

Possessing All Three Cups

UWM has a tradition of playing annual cup games during the season. Milwaukee currently has possession of the Milwaukee Cup, won 2-1 against city-rival Marquette, and also the Chancellor's Cup with a 2-1 win against state-rival Green Bay. Milwaukee is searching to capture its third cup when it hosts Northern Illinois for the John Lewang Memorial Cup. The last time UWM retained all three trophies was in 1996 with scores of 2-1 against Green Bay, 2-1 against Marquette and 1-0 against Northern Illinois.

Heading Into The 2001 Season

* The Panthers are picked to finish second in the Horizon League in a preseason poll of the league coaches.

* Milwaukee returns nine starters to the 2001 squad, including leading scorer and all-league second team selection Ryan Seymour and all-newcomer team selections Tighe Dombrowski and Kyle Lance.

* UWM coach Louis Bennett led his team to the league tournament semifinals last year and finished the season at 11-9-1. The Panthers ended the regular season tied for third in the conference.

Head Coach Louis Bennett

Louis Bennett, a native of Great Britain, is in his sixth season at the helm of the Panthers. After the roadtrip to Ohio this past weekend, he posts a 70-44-7 record overall at UWM, including a 26-9-5 record in league play.

* Bennett was named MCC Coach of the Year in 1997 after leading the Panthers to the regular season conference crown and to the tournament championship game.