Dec. 2, 2009

Men's Soccer: No. 20 Lewis vs. No. 9 Lees-McRae Game Notes (NCAA Final Four) in PDF Format

Romeoville, Ill. - The Lewis University men's soccer team seeks its first-ever berth in the NCAA Division II Championship, as the No. 20 Flyers (16-3-2) square off with No. 9 Lees-McRae (18-2-1) in a 'Final Four' contest on Thursday afternoon at 1 p.m. (CST) at the University of Tampa's Pepin Field.

Gametracker and video streaming of Thursday's contest will be provided by the University of Tampa. Mike Farrant and Guy Harrison will serve as the talent for Thursday's broadcast.

Streakin': Lewis is currently riding an 12-game unbeaten streak which is the second-longest of the four teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament. Earlier this season, Lewis had a 16-game unbeaten streak snapped with a 3-0 loss to Great Lakes Valley Conference regular-season champion, Drury, on September 6th.

Streakin' (Part Deux): Coincidentally, this streak began against Northern Kentucky on October 2, which was the first game that All-Great Lakes Valley Conference second-team midfielder Mardoche Beya returned to the line-up after missing the first nine games due to injury.

Streakin' (Part Trois): Lewis currently has a 20-game unbeaten streak against non-conference opponents, dating back to a 1-0 loss to Truman State on September 18, 2005.

Decade of Dominance: Lewis earned a berth in the NCAA Regional Tournament for the third-straight season and for the seventh time in the 21st century. Since 2000, Lewis, led by 18th year head coach Evan Fiffles, has accumulated a record of 149-44-14 (.754).

Double-Digit Success: Since his arrival in 1992, Fiffles and the Flyers have notched at least 10 wins in the past 18 seasons.

The Last Time: The last time Lewis appeared in an Final Four contest was on December 1, 2000, as the Flyers dropped a 1-0 decision over eventual National Champion, CSU-Dominguez Hills.

Stonewall Jackson: Lewis goalkeeper Sebastian Kieruzal, the 2009 GLVC Freshman of the Year, has totaled 12 shutouts in his rookie campaign between the pipes for the Flyers. That totals the most shutouts by a Lewis keeper since Andrew Barks had 12 whitewashes during the 2000 campaign. As a team, Lewis leads the nation in both shutout percentage (0.67) and save percentage (0.893).

Keeper Goin': Kieruzal is currently second in the nation with a .885 save percentage. If he claims the top spot, he will be the second consecutive Flyer keeper to lead the nation in that category as former Lewis keeper Anthony Szymel (.885) led the NCAA in 2008.

Scoring Machine: Senior forward Nestor Hernandez has totaled a career-high 14 goals this season which helped propel him to All-GLVC First Team honors for the third-straight season and All-Midwest Region Second Team accolades. Hernandez is currently seventh in school history with 88 career points. Hernandez has scored at least one point in 14 of Lewis' 21 games this season and six out of the Flyers last seven contests.

Second Half Surge: Lewis is outscoring its opponents 22-3 in the second half this season.

Opposites Attract: While Lewis enters Thursday's contest with the fewest goals of any team (35) still alive in the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament, the Flyers can hang their hat on a solid defense that has held opponents to 0.51 goals-per-game, which is fifth in the country.

Bond, Zac Bond: One of the unsung heroes for the Lewis men's soccer team has been the play of defender Zac Bond. Bond has been the lynchpin of the Lewis defense, as the Flyers have held opponents to 0.51 goals-per-game this season. For his efforts, Bond, a junior, has been named both the All-GLVC and Daktronics All-Midwest Region First Team. Another Flyer defender, Alex Koprowski, earned All-GLVC Second Team accolades.

250 Club: With his next victory, Fiffles will reach his 250th career win as a head coach.

Comeback Kids: There has been no shortage of excitement for the Flyers during the NCAA Tournament, as Lewis has claimed two come-from-behind victories, including a 2-1 overtime win over Ashland in the Super Region 4 Semifinals on November 13th.

Extra Sessions: In the last two seasons, Lewis has seen five of their last seven postseason games go to overtime and four of them reach penalty kicks - which the Flyers went 0-for-4.

Dishin' Dimes: Senior midfielder Kipp Cartwright does not hesitate to make the extra pass, evidenced by his team-high eight assists on the campaign. During his four seasons, Cartwright has accumulated 21 assists.

Tournament Tested: Sophomore transfer Nathan Groesch was a member of the Bradley Braves squad that advanced to the 2007 NCAA Division I Quarterfinals.

Local Flavor: Lewis is aiming to become the first school from the Midwest to win the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship since Missouri-St. Louis accomplished the feat with a 3-0 win over Cal-State Fullerton in 1973. Former GLVC member and now Division I school, SIU-Edwardsville was the last Midwest school to reach the finals before dropping a 2-1 decision to Seattle on December 5, 2004.

Finding The Back Of The Net: Former Lewis All-American midfielder Cory Mastey was the last Flyer to convert a penalty kick, as he scored the first goal in a 2-1 win over Upper Iowa on October 1, 2008.

Call Me Freddy: Lewis junior midfielder Jose Ibarra likes to be referred to as `Freddy'.