Ohio State and Akron Meet in NCAA First Round in Columbus – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Nov. 19, 2014
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State men’s soccer team is set to play in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Akron at 5 p.m. ET Thursday at Bert L. & Iris S. Wolstein Field in Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The winner of the Ohio State-Akron match will travel to face No. 1 seed Note Dame (11-4-4) in the second round at 7 p.m. ET Sunday in South Bend, Ind.
The Buckeyes (9-7-4) are returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2010 season and ninth time in program history after finishing second in the Big Ten conference and advancing to the semifinals of the league tournament to receive an at-large bid. Ohio State is 5-2-1 in their last eight matches and has collected a 5-2-3 mark in Columbus in 2014.
The Zips (13-6-1) have won eight of their last 10 matches and won their third-consecutive MAC championship. Akron is making its 29th all-time appearance in the NCAA tournament and has advanced to the round of 16 in five of the last six seasons.
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BRACKET BREAKDOWN
Notre Dame is the No. 1 seed in the 48-team field for the NCAA Division I Men’s Tournament, which is set to begin Thursday with first-round games. UCLA, Michigan State, Maryland and Indiana follow at 2-5. The Atlantic Coast Conference led the way with seven teams in the field, while the Big Ten added six teams to the bracket. The ACC produced the most seeded teams (5) of any conference in the country.
The remaining 16 seeds in order are Stanford, Clemson, Georgetown, Syracuse, Charlotte, Providence, Creighton, Louisville, Washington, California and Virginia. Twenty-four additional teams were selected at large. At total of 10 opponents from the Buckeyes’ 2014 schedule made the tourney field, including four seeded teams.
BUCKEYES IN THE NCAA TOURNEY
· Ohio State is making their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in program history, all with John Bluem at the helm, and first since 2010.
· The Buckeyes have posted a 7-8-1 record in NCAA play, 5-2-0 at Jesse Owns Memorial Stadium.
· The team has advanced to the second round of the tournament in five of its eight appearances.
· The 2007 squad advanced to the program’s first College Cup Final before falling short, 2-1, against No.1 seed Wake Forest.
· This will be the second meeting between Ohio State in Akron in the tourney with the Zips winning the first time in 2008 in double overtime in Akron.
BUCKEYES IN A NUTSHELL
• The Buckeyes are 9-7-4 overall and held a 5-3 mark in conference play. Ohio State is 5-2-1 in its last eight matches.
• The Scarlet and Gray earned the No. 2 in the Big Ten Tournament and advanced to the semifinals before falling, 2-1, against No. 6 seed Indiana last time out in College Park.
• Ohio State sits at No. 29 in the latest NCAA RPI poll. Ten opponents on the 2014 schedule made the tourney.
• The Buckeyes are receiving votes in the final NSCAA Division I national poll.
• Senior midfielder Yianni Sarris leads the squad with a season-high 15 points on five goals and five assists, while Liam Doyle (5g, 0a), Danny Jensen (5g, 1a), Kyle Culbertson (3g, 3a), Christian Soldat (3g, 1a), Marcus McCrary (3g, 1a), Ryan Ivancic (1g, 3a) and Joao Ehlers (1g, 0a) have also netted scores.
• Jensen has scored four goals in the last six matches and was the lone goal scorer in the team’s 3-1 loss against Akron Sept. 24.
• Senior goalkeeper Alex Ivanov, a Senior CLASS Award Finalist, is 9-7-4 with a 0.92 goals-against average and .816 save percentage with seven shutouts in 20 matches. He leads the Big Ten with 84 saves and third in save percentage.
• Ivanov (Ohio State, 2010) is the lone Buckeye that was a part of the 2010 NCAA squad. Sarris (FGCU, 2011), sophomore Alex Ranalli (Akron, 2012) and back-up goalkeeper Andrian McAdams (2010-12, Akron) also been to the NCAA Tournament with previous teams.
• Head coach John Bluem was named Big Ten Coach of the Year, while Doyle was named a first team All-Big Ten selection and Sarris a second team honoree. McCrary and freshman Hunter Robertson were each named to the All-Freshman Team.
• The Buckeyes hold a 2-3-1 mark against Top 25 opponents.
•. Ohio State has not lost a home match at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium since a 2-1 defeat against Indiana Oct. 12.
• Ivanov, Jensen and Culbertson were each named to the Big Ten Preseason to Watch List, while the Buckeyes were picked to finish last in the preseason B1G coaches poll this past August.
BRING ON THE COLD
The match Thursday will go down as one of the coldest OSU soccer matches in recent history. Here are some of the coldest matches researched (since 2000):
· Nov. 4, 2000 at Michigan (Ann Arbor, Mich.): 25 degrees
· Nov. 3, 2006 vs. Michigan (Columbus, Ohio): 31 degrees
· Nov. 26, 2008 at Akron (Akron, Ohio): 32 degrees
· Nov. 2, 2006 vs. Michigan State (Columbus, Ohio): 34 degrees
· Nov. 19, 2000 vs. Creighton (Columbus, Ohio): 34 degrees
SCOUTING AKRON
The Zips are making their 29th NCAA Tournament appearance and have advanced to the round of 16 in five of the last six seasons. Akron is one of just six Division I programs that have qualified for the NCAA Tournament in each of the past eight seasons. Winners of eight of 10 overall, the Zips won the MAC championship for the third straight year with a 2-1 victory over Bowling Green in the tournament final Nov. 26 at FirstEnergy Stadium – Club Cadet Field. Freshman Anthony Macchione scored the game-winning goal in the 79th minute. Adam Najem leads the team with 30 points on 13 goals and four assists, while goalkeeper Jake Fenlason is 13-6-1 with a 0.78 goals-against average and .813 save percentage, collecting seven shutouts.
SERIES HISTORY
· The match Thursday will be the 38th meeting between the two teams with Akron leading the series, 28-6-3.
· The Buckeyes are 5-11-2 at home against Akron. Ohio State’s last win against the Zips came at home on Sept. 26, 2006 when the Buckeyes shut out the Zips, 1-0.
· The matchup will mark the second time the two teams have met in the NCAA Tournament. Akron defeated Ohio State, 1-0, in dou
· The Buckeyes’ 2010 match against the Zips at home was the largest attendance crowd at JOMS as 7.255 fans watch the team’s battle to a 2-2 draw Sept. 29 in Columbus.
LAST TIME VS. THE ZIPS
Ohio State fell, 3-1, against Akron Sept. 24 in Columbus with sophomore Danny Jensen scoring the lone goal of the Scarlet and Gray in the 16th minute. After the Zips hopped out to an early 1-0 lead, Jensen scored the equalizer five minutes later when he beat Akron keeper Jake Fenlason to the near post with a nifty right-footed flicked at 16:15. However, a costly OSU turnover in the 34th made it 2-1 Akron as Sean Sepe gained possession and sent a shot in at 34:26. Adam Najem extended the lead to 3-1 when he headed in a cross at 75:11. The Buckeyes received a penalty kick chance in the 82nd, but Liam Doyle’s attempt was denied by Fenlason. Goalkeeper Alex Ivanov made nine stops in the loss, while Akron led in shots 19-10 and haled a 6-2 lead in corners.
BLUEM NAMED B1G COACH OF THE YEAR
In his 18th season, head coach John Bluem has turned around the Buckeye program in 2014 and was voted Big Ten Coach of the Year by his peers for the fourth time in his OSU career.
· Bluem’s four coach of the year awards (1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014) is the most by active Big Ten coaches and is the second-most all-time (since 1991).
· His 180 victories at Ohio State are the most in program history.
· Guided the Buckeyes to a tie for second place in the Big Ten regular-season standings with a 5-3 record and the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament after Ohio State was picked last in the Big Ten men’s soccer preseason coaches’ poll.
· Bluem’s career record stands at 266-160-64 for a .609 winning percentage and a holds Top 35 position among active NCAA coaches in both numbers of victories and percentage.
· Led the Buckeyes back to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament for the first time since 2009 when he was last voted coach of the year.
· Has guided the Buckeyes to two regular-season titles (2004/co-09), three tournament championships (2000, 2007 and 2009) and all nine NCAA tournament appearances in school history.
PERFECT 10
With a win over Akron, the Buckeyes would post the 20th 10-win season in program history. Twelve of those have come in 18 seasons under coach John Bluem.
HOME COOKIN’
Ohio State holds an 89-34-18 record (.688) – 5-2-3 this season – in Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium since the facility opened in 1999.
RPI
In the final RPI of the 2014 season issued Nov. 17, Ohio State holds on to the No. 29 spot in the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), the most important of the criteria in selection to the 48-team NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes are 3-5-1 against teams ranked higher than them. Six Big Ten teams ended the year in the Top 30. The RPI is a mathematical formula designed to objectively compare results and strength of schedule.
BIG TEN HARDWARE
Junior back Liam Doyle was named a first team All-Big Ten selection, while senior midfielder Yianni Sarris picked up second team accolades, the conference office announced last week. Two Buckeye rookies made the All-Freshman squad, including Marcus McCrary and Hunter Robertson.
Doyle, a native of Isle of Man, U.K., picks up his first career All-Big Ten selection in his first season in the Scarlet and Gray as a center back. The anchor to the Buckeye backline standing at 6-4, Doyle has started in all 20 games, collecting five goals, including three goals in Big Ten games, which is tied for third in the conference.
Sarris, from Mentor, Ohio, earns his first career All-Big Ten laurel on the second team. The OSU midfielder has had a breakout season, leading the team with a season-high 15 points on five goals and a team-best five assists.
McCrary, a native of Madison, Wis., is one of the top upcoming forwards in the conference, and was a unanimous selection to the All-Freshman squad. One of the quickest attacking players in the league, McCrary has collected seven points on a three goals and an assist and guided the team to a road victory at Wisconsin in front of his hometown crowd with a goal and an assist in the 2-0 win over the Badgers Oct. 18. He scored his first career goal in the 14th minute in a home win over Michigan State to give the Buckeyes the early lead Oct. 4 in Columbus. McCrary has played in 19 games this season with 11 starts.
Robertson, a Westerville, Ohio, native and Columbus Crew Academy product, is the only freshman to start in all 20 games this year. The OSU back has been a consistent, strong defensive player and has been a key piece to the Buckeyes’ backline, while also taking the majority of the team’s corner kicks. Robertson has helped the Buckeyes limit opponents to 0.95 goals per game and has been a part of seven shutouts this season.
Junior co-captain Zach Mason received the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award for Ohio State. A constant presence in the midfield, the Big Ten Distinguished Scholar has started in all 56 games the last three seasons, which leads all active Buckeyes.
BIG TOURNEY RECAP
Ohio State received the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2009, but was eliminated following a 2-1 loss to No. 6 seed Indiana Nov. 14 in College Park. Maryland went on to win the tournament crown with a 1-0 win over the Hoosiers Nov. 16. Freshman forward Marcus McCrary scored the equalizer in the 69th minute following an athletic run through the midfield on a headed pass by Yianni Sarris. However, the Hoosiers earned a penalty kick in the 86th minute and converted the attempt to claim the eventual gamewinner. The Buckeyes outshot the Hoosiers, 20-12, including a 9-5 advantage in shots on target.
#VOTE4IVY
Senior goalkeeper Alex Ivanov was named one of 10 finalists for the 2014 Senior CLASS Award, the organization announced last week. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.
Ivanov is in his first year as captain for the Buckeyes. The native of Strongsville, Ohio, Ivanov graduated last spring with a bachelor’s degree in electrical and computer engineering, collecting an impressive 3.70 cumulative GPA. He is currently pursuing a second degree in sports industry as a post graduate independent study this fall. In addition to his work in the classroom, Ivanov has volunteered with the 2nd and 7 Foundation, reading to elementary students. He also has been a part of three different “Kids Kicking Cancer” events. On the field, Ivanov was named a second team All-Big Ten selection and was selected as Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week four times in his career. This year, Ivanov has led the league in saves for the second-consecutive year and was named to the 2014 Big Ten All-Tournament Team.
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2014 NCAA Men’s and Women’s College Cup® championships in December. Fans are encouraged to log on to the senior class award website and vote up to Nov. 24th.
