The Missouri S&T men's soccer team will resume its spring schedule Sunday with matches in St. Louis against a current and soon to be former conference opponent.

The Miners will take on conference rival Missouri-St. Louis in the first of two games Sunday at 11:45 a.m., then face Southern Illinois Edwardsville at 2:30 p.m. SIUE is leaving the GLVC at the conclusion of the school year as it is reclassifying to NCAA Division I.

S&T also has spring games scheduled for April 12 at Missouri State and April 26 in Kansas City against UMKC and Rockhurst. The Miners will host their annual alumni game May 3 at the Missouri S&T Soccer Field.

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The Missouri S&T men's soccer team has added seven individuals to its roster to play for the Miners for the 2008 season.

The newcomers for next season are as follows:

J.J. BILYEU, a 5-10, 150-pound defender from Christian Brothers College High School in St. Louis, Mo.: Bilyeu earned all-metro honors in the St. Louis area, as well as all-state and all-district laurels following the 2007 season, one where he helped lead the Cadets to a 23-6-1 record where the team allowed less than a goal per game. Bilyeu was a two-year starter at the high school level and played on the Missouri Olympic Development team that won a regional championship in 2006. Bilyeu also plays on the Scott Gallagher team in the St. Louis area.

TRENT DOERNER, a 6-0, 160 pound midfielder from Klein Oak High School in Spring, Texas: Doerner was a four-year letterwinner at the high school level, helping lead Klein Oak the state semifinals in 2005 and 2006. He earned first-team all-conference honors after his junior year when he led the team with 10 goals and nine assists. He as also a first-team academic all-state selection. He has played for the Texas Rush club team and helped that squad finish second at the 2007 Disney Showcase.

JONATHAN GOECKER, a 5-10, 160-pound defender from Lee's Summit North High School in Lee's Summit, Mo.: Goecker was a three-year letterwinner at the high school level and helped his team win a conference championship during the 2007 season. He led Lee's Summit North in assists as a junior. On the club level, he has played for the Blue Valley Stars Grasshoppers, a team that has won six state championships and finished second at the regional level in 2003.

ZACK HAY, a 6-3, 175-pound center back from Kickapoo High School in Springfield, Mo.: Hay had an outstanding senior year at Kickapoo, earning all-state, all-district and all-conference honors as his team finished third at the Missouri Class 3 state tournament. He was also selected as the region's most valuable player on defense and as a Southwest all-star selection after scoring 11 goals with eight assists. He was also an all-conference and all-district performer as a junior and was part of three district and conference championship teams at the high school level. Hay also played for the Springfield Soccer Club and has played on Olympic Development Program teams in Missouri and Kentucky.

JOE JORDAN, from Priory High School in St. Louis, Mo.: Jordan is a midfielder who captained a Priory team that won the state championship in 2005 with a 26-0 record. He was a first-team all-conference selection as a senior and earned honorable mention all-league laurels in his junior year, while also earning the school's spirit award for soccer following the 2007 season. His high school team won the St. Dominic Super Cup in 2005 and 2006.

RYAN MUICH, a 5-10, 150-pound mdifielder-sweeper from O'Fallon High School in O'Fallon, Ill.: Muich was a four-year letterwinner and team captain at O'Fallon High School, earning all-state, all-area and honorable mention all-metro honors in the St. Louis area. In addition, he was selected to the Chicago Fire's all-academic team as a first team member. Muich also plays for the Metro Soccer club which competes in the U.S. Soccer Academy program.

KYLE SNEED, from Atascocita High School in Humble, Texas: Sneed earned three letters at the high school level and also played on the Kingwood Alliance and Texas Heat club teams, both of which play at the Division 1 level in the Houston area.

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EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- The hopes of the UMR men's soccer team ending the 2007 season with a five-game winning streak fell just short Sunday, as Southern Indiana got a goal late in the first half and made it hold up for a
1-0 win over the Miners Sunday afternoon.

Dan Dormeier's goal with 3:18 to go in the opening half turned out to be the only goal of the contest. The Miners had five shots in the second half, but wasn't able to get any of them on goal or by goalkeeper Brad Cadden to knot up the score.

UMR goalie Mike McNamee, a senior playing in his final game for the Miners, finished with six saves on the day. USI had a 16-12 edge in shots. Nick Landon led the Miners with three shots in the game.

The Miners finished the year with a record of 7-10-1 and were 4-9 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

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OWENSBORO, Ky. -- After winning their last three games in overtime, the Miners took care of matters a lot sooner Friday afternoon as they tallied three first half goals to come away with a 3-1 victory at Kentucky Wesleyan in Great Lakes Valley Conference play.

UMR, which extended its winning streak to a season-high four games, got goals from Sam Shaffer and Nick Landon in a span of 2:07 late in the first half to break a 1-1 tie. Once they got the lead for good, the Miners took care of matters from there as they outshot the Panthers by a 10-4 margin in the second half and allowed only two shots on goal after the intermission.

Andy Held got the Miners on the scoreboard with a goal at the 11:58 mark off an assist from Shaffer. KWC tied the score with over 20 minutes to go in the half on an unassisted goal by Joe Williams.

But UMR regained the lead when Shaffer scored for the first time this season as he took a pass from Nick Landon and got a shot by goalkeeper Andrew Minton at 35:22. Landon scored himself just over two minutes later when the Miners were awarded a penalty kick and he converted it to give UMR a 3-1 advantage that would hold up for the balance of the day.

Tom Lawton handled the goalkeeping duties for UMR Friday and was credited with five saves.

The Miners will wrap up the 2007 season Sunday with a 2:30 p.m. game against Southern Indiana in Evansville, Ind.

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Brandon Moore

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Brandon Moore assisted on the Miners' game-winning goals in each of their overtime victories over the past weekend. Wednesday night, he got to score the game-winner himself.

Moore scored both goals for UMR, including one on a penalty kick in the second overtime, as the Miners took their third straight decision in overtime with a 2-1 win at Missouri-St. Louis.

The third victory in succession matches the MIners' longest winning streak of the season and gave UMR its third win over UMSL in as many decisions since joining the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

Moore put the Miners on top in the contest when he headed in Garrett Stevens' cross at the 13:31 mark. However, the Rivermen needed less than three minutes to even the score when Blair Spencer got to a ball on the corner kick that deflected off a UMR defender.

The contest remained tied from that point until the second overtime period. UMR held a 9-4 edge in shots at halftime, then the teams were even in shots with six apiece in the final 45 minutes of regulation time. The Miners had the only two shots in overtime, the second being Moore's penalty kick goal with 5:29 to go in the second extra period.

Mike McNamee finished with six saves in goal for UMR, which will head on a season-ending road trip that begins Friday with a 2:30 p.m. game at Kentucky Wesleyan.

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For the second time in three days, the Miner soccer team ended up in an overtime contest -- and came away a winner.

Daniel Stokes headed in Brandon Moore's corner kick with just under five minutes to play in the second overtime, giving UMR a 2-1 win over Indianapolis Sunday at the UMR Soccer Field.

Sunday's finish was similar in many ways to the one on Friday when the Miners beat Saint Joseph's in extra time. UMR was trying to hold onto a late lead only to give up the tying goal in the final minutes, then found a way to get the victory during the second overtime period.

The Miners took the lead in the first half as Andy Held completed a fine play by the Miners by heading in Brandon Moore's cross. Moore got a pass on the wing from Nick Mentesana and fed Held in front to redirect the ball past UIndy goalkeeper Matt Spaulding.

UMR gradually went into a defensive shell throughout the second half as the Greyhounds had the wind at their backs and was able to hold off several scoring chances throughout the final 45 minutes. However, with 7:18 to go, Brian Fishback got a diagonal pass and put a shot from the wing by Miner goalkeeper Mike McNamee to tie the contest.

McNamee, who was one of four seniors playing in his final home game Sunday, turned back nine shots on the afternoon.

UMR got a corner kick opportunity after Spaulding couldn't keep a ball inbounds after making a save midway through the second overtime. Moore, who had assists on both goals, put the ball to the far side of the net where Stokes was able to head it to the opposite corner to end the game.

Indianapolis had a 16-10 advantage in shots but had none after the first 90 minutes of play.

UMR will play three games on the road next week, starting Wednesday at Missouri-St. Louis at 7:30 p.m.

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Andy Held

The Miners were less than seven minutes away from winning their first Great Lakes Valley Conference game, but got the job done in overtime as Andy Held's goal with 3:49 left in the second extra period gave UMR a 2-1 win over Saint Joseph's Friday night at the UMR Soccer Field.

Held scored after Saint Joseph's goalkeeper Alex Makin lost control of Brandon Moore's cross from the end line. Held got to the loose ball and put it in to put the Miners into the win column in GLVC play.

After a scoreless opening half, UMR broke on top in the 14th minute after the intermission. Nick Landon got free down the sideline and fed a pass to Brad Hippisley in front, who redirected the ball past Makin to give UMR the lead.

That lead held up until the Miners were whistled for a foul outside the box with under seven minutes to go, leading to a free kick opportunity for the Pumas. Bojan Adler converted the chance at 83:35 to even the game at one.

UMR outshot the Pumas 6-2 in overtime and 31-17 in the contest, getting 10 shots on goal to SJC's six. Tom Lawton made five saves in the nets for the Miners.

UMR will wrap up its home schedule Sunday as it hosts Indianapolis in a 2:30 p.m. game at the UMR Soccer Field. The Miner seniors will be honored prior to the contest.

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The University of Missouri-Rolla soccer teams are shooting to have the stands full Friday night as they host "Project 1000" at their doubleheader against Saint Joseph's College at the UMR Soccer Field.

The goal is to have at least 1,000 fans in attendance at the Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader against the Pumas, where the women's game will start at 5 p.m. and the men's game will follow at 7:30 p.m.

Free pizza, courtesy of UMR Corporate Club member Papa John's, will be available after the conclusion of the women's game while supplies last. In addition, the teams will give away a limited number of shirts prior to and at halftime of each of the games.

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EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -- The Miner soccer team took a lead into halftime against 22nd-ranked Southern Illinois Edwardsville, but the Cougars scored twice in the middle of the second half to come away with a 2-1 win over UMR Sunday afternoon.

UMR got the lead on an own goal at the 10:15 mark and took that lead to the intermission. However, the Cougars tied the score at the 62:07 mark when Mike Jones got to a rebound off a corner kick and put a shot past Mike McNamee.

SIUE scored the game-winner a little over 15 minutes later when Matt Harris scored on a rebound off a shot that hit the goal post. UMR had a late opportunity to tie the game when it got a corner kick chance with two minutes to go but wasn't able to get a shot out of the play.

The Cougars had a 14-3 advantage in shots in the game; McNamee was credited with four saves in the game.

UMR will host Saint Joseph's Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the UMR Soccer Field.

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QUINCY, Ill. -- The Miners were able to trim a two-goal deficit in half in the latter stages of the contest, but weren't able to get the equalizer before time expired as Quincy knocked off UMR 2-1 Friday night in a Great Lakes Valley Conference contest.

Quincy led 2-0 until Wade Aitken-Palmer scored an unassisted goal off a restart with just under 10 minutes to play. The Miners continued to keep pressure on the Hawks after getting the goal, but couldn't get another shot past Kyle Dillman to draw even.

The Miners outshot Quincy 14-12 on the night and had six corner kicks -- all in the second half -- to the Hawks' two. Mike McNamee made three saves in goal for UMR.

Quincy got its goals from Jack Wedemeier 4:13 into play and from Brad Niemann about five minutes prior to Aitken-Palmer's goal in the second half.

The Miners will face No. 22 ranked Southern Illinois Edwardsville Sunday at 2:30 in Edwardsville, Ill.

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Mike McNamee

The Miners were able to halt two streaks Sunday and set a school record, but couldn't quite end the game in the win column.

Mike McNamee broke the UMR career record for shutouts, posting his 15th as he kept Truman State off the scoreboard for 110 minutes. However, the Miners weren't able to record a tally of their own as the teams played to a 0-0 tie at the UMR Soccer Field.

The tie did end UMR's seven-game losing streak and also ended Truman State's seven-game winning streak. But by shutting out the Miners, Truman has now kept its last eight opponents off the scoreboard.

UMR finished the game with the advantage in shots at 17-13 and had three great scoring chances in the latter stages of the contest. Ted Nelson had a shot from the top of the penalty area that was stopped by Truman goalkeeper Kyle Talbot but then went off the crossbar; the Miners couldn't get to the rebound afterwards.

In the second overtime, Sam Shaffer attempted a diving head ball and put it just wide of the net, then Andy Held missed a chance in front on a ball that just went above the crossbar.

McNamee was credited with five saves on the afternoon for the Miners, who will return to the field Friday when it play at Quincy in a 7:30 p.m. game.

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Without question, the Miners have to be tired of looking at the scoreboard at the end of games and seeing the same 1-0 result.

For the fifth time in the last seven games, UMR lost a game by that very 1-0 score, this time to a good Christian Brothers team Friday night.

Usman Hussain's goal in the 71st minute off an assist from Ryan Peel -- after a corner kick by the Buccaneers -- turned out to be the only goal Christian Brothers would need.

UMR had a couple of late chances to tie the contest, including a chance on a corner kick where shots by Nick Landon and Daniel Stokes in the final seconds of the game were turned back by CBU goalkeeper Dex Norman.

The Buccaneers dominated the statistics, outshooting the Miners 15-5 in the game and having nine corner kicks to UMR's five. Matt Wilson was credited with six saves in goal while Brian Tucker, Andy Held and Sam Shaffer had the other three shots for the Miners.

UMR (3-7) will play host to Truman State Sunday in a 2 p.m. game at the UMR Soccer Field. The Bulldogs won their seventh straight game -- all by shutout -- when they beat Missouri-St. Louis 2-0 Friday in Kirksville.

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Nick Mentesana

A free kick goal just over 12 minutes into play was all that Bellarmine needed Sunday to record a 1-0 victory over the Miners at the UMR Soccer Field.

The Miners were charged with a foul just outside the box nearly 12 minutes into play and Bellarmine's Ross Hopkins drilled the ensuing free kick past MIner goalkeeper Mike McNamee for what turned out to be the only goal of the contest.

UMR, which finished even with Bellarmine in the shots department with 11 apiece, had its share of opportunities in the second half when it had the wind at its backs. UMR got two corner kick chances and had three shots on net, but all of those chances were turned away by goalkeeper Justin Welply.

The Miners played the final 32 minutes of the game down a man after a red card was issued.

McNamee finished with three saves on the afternoon for the Miners, who fell to 3-6 overall and 0-6 in GLVC play. Bellarmine improved to 8-3 and 4-1 in conference play.

UMR will play at Christian Brothers Friday night before returning home for a Sunday afternoon contest against longtime rival Truman State.

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Nick Landon

The Miners' difficulty with defending corner kicks early in the game proved to be their downfall Friday night, as Northern Kentucky converted two of them into goals and went on to record a 3-0 win over the Miners at the UMR Soccer Field.

The second-ranked Norse, who kept their perfect record intact at 9-0 with the victory, scored twice off corner kicks in the first 16 minutes of play. The first goal came at the 10:52 mark, when Eric Ashworth got a head on Chris Thompson's serve and put it past Tom Lawton to put the Norse on top.

Then at the 16:30 mark, NKU converted its second corner kick of the night into a goal as well, this time when Chad Cook headed in Seth Eckerlin's serve to put the Norse up 2-0.

The Miners played pretty solid defense for much of the game otherwise, as only five other shots by the Norse made it on net. NKU did add to its lead midway through the second half on a give-and-go play that Braden Bishop scored on to complete the scoring.

Northern Kentucky outshot the Miners 14-10 for the game as UMR had three shots on goal. Norse goalkeeper Michael Lavric stopped all three that made it on goal, including good saves on scoring chances by Daniel Stokes and Andy Held.

UMR, which lost for the fifth straight time, will play host to Bellarmine at 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

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ROMEOVILLE, Ill. -- The Miner soccer team had designs on snapping its three-game losing streak Sunday and had a halftime lead over Lewis after scoring for the first time since the streak began.

However, the Flyers scored twice in a span of seven minutes early in the second half and held on for a 2-1 win that sent UMR to its fourth straight loss.

UMR (3-4, 0-4 GLVC) took the lead with just eight seconds remaining in the opening half when Daniel Stokes headed in Afif Najjar's free kick. But the momentum the Miners gained from the goal right before halftime and the lead evaporated in the opening minutes of the second half.

Mardoche Beva got to a loose ball and got a shot past UMR goalkeeper Mike McNamee 3:10 into the second half to knot the score, then the Flyers got the game winner 7:10 after that when Kipp Cartwright scored an unassisted goal off a corner kick.

Cartwright's goal marked the first time that the Miners have allowed more than one goal in a game this season.

UMR was outshot 14-8 in the game, but had two golden opportunities in the waning moments to tie the score. Brandon Moore hit a shot wide of the goal with just over two minutes remaining, then Andy Held hit a shot off the post with a minute and a half to go.

The Miners will return home to face second-ranked Northern Kentucky Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the UMR Soccer Field.

Posted by John Kean at 09:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

KENOSHA, Wis. -- The Miner soccer team suffered its third straight loss by a 1-0 score -- and Friday's setback at Wisconsin-Parkside may have been the toughest of all.

Just a minute and 28 seconds away from coming away with at least a scoreless tie, the Miners were called for a hand ball in the penalty area. UW-Parkside's Bojan Jovicic converted the ensuing penalty kick to give the Rangers the double overtime victory.

UMR had only four shots in the game to the Rangers' 10 and just two of those attempts made it on goal. The Miners were equally stingy on the defensive end, as just two shots taken by the hosts made it on goal prior to the penalty kick and were turned away by goalkeeper Tom Lawton.

The Miners (3-3, 0-3 GLVC) will look to get back into the win column Sunday when they travel to Romeoville, Ill. to face Lewis; the Flyers also posted a victory in double overtime Friday over Missouri-St. Louis.

Posted by John Kean at 10:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The University of Missouri-Rolla men's soccer team is ranked ninth in the latest Great Lakes regional rankings that are conducted by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.

UMR moved into the ninth spot despite its 1-0 loss to Rockhurst -- who is ranked second in the region this week -- on Sunday. The Miners opened their season with three straight shutout wins before the loss to Rockhurst.

The rankings do not reflect the Miners' 1-0 loss Tuesday to Drury, who is ranked fourth in the region this week. UMR plays Friday at Wisconsin-Parkside, then plays its next three games against teams that are ranked within the region.

NSCAA Great Lakes Regional Rankings
1. Northern Kentucky
2. Rockhurst
3. SIU Edwardsville
4. Drury
5. Gannon
6. Quincy
7. (tie) Bellarmine
7. (tie) Indianapolis
9. Missouri-Rolla
10. Lewis

Posted by John Kean at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Nick Landon

The Miners caught an unfortunate break in more ways than one Tuesday night and the end result was their second straight loss in Great Lakes Valley Conference play.

UMR and Drury were in a scoreless dual late in the first half when the Miners' Dan Gravlin went down with an injury at a time when the Miners had control of play at the Drury end. After the game was delayed for several minutes, the Panthers regrouped and got the only goal of the game about a minute later to come away with a 1-0 win over UMR.

Marco Cherisma, who entered the week as NCAA Division II's second-leading scorer, took a pass from Adam Peterson and got a shot past Mike McNamee with 2:36 to go in the first half to give the Panthers the lead, then Drury was able to hold off the Miners in the final 45 minutes.

UMR's best chance to score after the Panthers moved in front came in the latter stages of the contest when Nick Landon got free behind the Drury defense. However, his scoring chance got stopped by Logan Hoffman and an ensuing corner kick was cleared out.

It was the second straight 1-0 loss for the Miners, who lost by that score Sunday to 25th-ranked Rockhurst.

The Miners (3-2, 0-2 GLVC) will play on the road this weekend starting with a Friday game at Wisconsin-Parkside.

Posted by John Kean at 11:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Andy Held

The Miner soccer team put their undefeated record and unscored upon status on the line Sunday against a team that has been its nemesis throughout the years -- and the nemesis got the better of it on the scoreboard.

UMR gave up its first goal of the season early in the second half and it turned out to be all Rockhurst would need to escape from the UMR Soccer Field with a 1-0 victory over the MIners in the Great Lakes Valley Conference opener for both teams.

The Miners and Hawks both entered the game with 3-0 records and the game was a defensive battle all afternoon. UMR had the edge in shots in the first half by an 8-3 margin, but neither team was able to dent the net.

A defensive mistake by UMR in the opening minute of the second half ended up leading to the game's decisive moment. The Miners made a poor clearing attempt in the box and Rockhurst's Tom Heinemann, the third-leading goal scorer in the GLVC, pounced on the loose ball and sent a shot past Miner goalkeeper Mike McNamee just 43 seconds into the second half.

From there, the Miners had a tough time navigating through Rockhurst's defense for scoring chances, as they were held to just three shots after the Heinemann goal. UMR -- which has just one win over Rockhurst in the history of the program -- ended up outshooting the Hawks 11-9, with Andy Held taking five of the shots.

McNamee was credited with two saves on the day as only three of Rockhurst's nine shots were on net.

UMR (3-1, 1-0 GLVC) will face Drury Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at the UMR Soccer Field; the game is a make-up game from Friday's rained out contest.

Posted by John Kean at 09:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Friday's soccer games between UMR and Drury have been postponed due to the weather conditions in the Rolla area. Strong thunderstorms, with heavy rain and lightning, have occurred throughout the morning and more storms are expected this afternoon and tonight. The area is currently under a flash flood watch through Sunday afternoon.

The Drury games have been rescheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 11, with the women's game starting at 5 p.m. and the men's game to follow at 7:30 p.m.

In addition, Saturday's youth soccer camp has also been postponed and will be rescheduled for Saturday, Sept. 22 at 9 a.m. at the UMR Soccer Field.

Posted by John Kean at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Wade Aitken-Palmer

KIRKSVILLE, Mo. -- The UMR men's soccer team recorded its third straight shutout victory to open the 2007 season Sunday, beating a good Northeastern State team 1-0 to wrap up its weekend in the Truman State Classic.

The Miners made Wade Aitken-Palmer's unassisted goal late in the first half stand up as they improved to 3-0, the team's first 3-0 start since 2000. The team also got its third consecutive shutout win for the first time in nine seasons.

UMR did post three straight shutouts early in the 2005 season, but one of the three contests ended in a scoreless tie.

The game was scoreless until Aitken-Palmer, a redshirt sophomore, converted a chance at the 42:18 mark to put the Miners up 1-0. UMR had controlled play in the opening half as it outshot the RiverHawks 7-1 and had both corner kick opportunities.

UMR's defense took care of the rest as only one shot of NSU's seven shots reached goalkeeper Tom Lawton. Lawton turned that one chance away and got his first career shutout.

The Miners outshot the RiverHawks 17-7 for the game and had all six of the game's corner kicks.

UMR will open Great Lakes Valley Conference play Friday when it hosts Drury in a 7:30 p.m. game at the UMR Soccer Field.

Posted by John Kean at 05:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Mike McNamee

KIRKSVILLE, Mo. -- Mike McNamee has played every minute in goal for the Miners since the start of the 2005 season -- and his work in the nets has now put him on the top of a career list at UMR.

McNamee picked up his 14th career shutout Saturday -- tying Todd Wilfling's school record -- as the Miners posted their second straight shutout win to start the 2007 season by topping Missouri Southern 3-0 at the Truman State Invitational.

McNamee wasn't really tested much by the Lions, as the Miner defense held Southern to one shot on goal out of the 10 overall shots in the game. Meanwhile, the Miners made a goal by Corey Bailey late in the first half stand up for most of the afternoon until they scored two more in the final six minutes.

Bailey's goal at the 43:20 mark came off an assist from Mario Calderon, as he made a cross to the top of the penalty area and Bailey converted the chance for his first career goal.

Bailey and Calderon combined again on the second Miner goal with just 5:35 to go, as Calderon took a pass from Andy Held and sent a ball in front that Bailey headed past Southern goalkeeper Jon Hansen to give the Miners a 2-0 advantage.

UMR iced the win at the 87:20 mark when Brad Hippisley scored on a free kick.

The Miners outshot the Lions 18-10 in the game as they opened a season with back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 2000.

UMR will face Northeastern State Sunday in its final tuneup before Great Lakes Valley Conference play begins next weekend.

Posted by John Kean at 05:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Andy Held

Andy Held started out the 2007 soccer season by picking up where he left off last fall.

Held headed in a pair of free kicks Saturday afternoon to provide all the scoring as the Miners opened their season with a 2-0 victory over Ashland at the UMR Soccer Field.

Held, who led the Miners with 11 goals in 2006, got UMR on the board at the 16:50 mark when he got a head on a free kick by freshman Daniel Stokes and redirected it by goalkeeper Blaize Lishewski.

That would be the only goal the Miners would score in the first 45 minutes, despite holding an edge in play for the most part and outshooting the Eagles 10-4.

At the 65:11 mark, Ashland’s Max Hiltner was given a red card for a flagrant foul just outside the penalty area and the Miners made the Eagles pay just three seconds later. Brandon Moore’s serve into the box got to Held and he put it away by reserve keeper Ryan Cruise to extend the lead.

The Miner defense took care of the rest, allowing only four shots to reach goalkeeper Mike McNamee as the senior goalkeeper recorded his 13th career shutout, one shy of the UMR all-time record.

UMR outshot the Eagles 17-9 for the game.

The Miners will play two games in Kirksville over the Labor Day weekend, starting with a contest next Saturday against Missouri Southern.

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Joe Ahearn

ROLLA, Mo. -- The University of Missouri-Rolla has named Joe Ahearn, an assistant coach at Colgate University, as its new men’s soccer coach.

Ahearn is taking over for Vince Darnell, who resigned from the position last month to pursue other career opportunities.

"Everything makes so much sense -- good academics, good program, good conference, good people and a good location," Ahearn said. "There are a lot of exciting things going on at UMR and we look forward to being a part of it."

"Joe will bring excellent experience and a strong technical background to our program," said UMR director of athletics Mark Mullin. "I am extremely pleased and feel fortunate to have him join our staff. He will be an excellent leader of our men's soccer program.

"His character and amiable personality will make him an excellent recruiter and an outstanding representative of UMR athletics," he added. "His recent experiences at Colgate University have prepared him well for the academic environment at UMR. I am excited for him to get started as I know he is."

Ahearn has spent the last two seasons at Colgate, a school located in Hamilton, N.Y., and a member of the Division I Patriot League. The Raiders finished the 2006 season with a record of 8-4-5 after going 9-7-3 in the 2005 season, making the Patriot League Tournament in both seasons.

Before joining the staff at Colgate, Ahearn spent three seasons as an assistant coach at DePaul University where he played his collegiate soccer. While on the DePaul staff, he was involved in the day-to-day operations of the program and assisted in game preparation.

Prior to that, he worked as the equipment operations coordinator for the United States Soccer Federation and traveled with the national team to the 2002 World Cup held in South Korea and Japan. He also traveled with the team when it took part in the Under-20 World Championships in Argentina.

In addition, he served as the associate director of the Chicago City Soccer Camps.

Ahearn is a 2000 graduate of DePaul, where he played in 67 games over his four-year career for the Blue Demons and started in every game in his last three years. He was selected to the Conference USA all-league team as a third-team selection following the 1999 season and was chosen as his team’s most valuable player.

He is the holder of a United States Soccer Federation National A coaching license.

"What you will see with our team is that it will be a hard working group on both ends of the field," Ahearn said. "I want this to be a well-balanced team. Our organized defense and creative attack will give us the opportunity to be a top team in the conference."

Ahearn and his wife, Katie, have one son, Frankie.

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Vince Darnell

ROLLA, Mo. -- Vince Darnell, who has headed the University of Missouri-Rolla men’s soccer program for the last five seasons, is resigning from the position to pursue other career opportunities.

Darnell led the Miners to the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament in each of the last two seasons – the university’s first two as a member of the league – and to records of 9-9-2 overall and 7-5-1 in GLVC play last season.

During his five-year tenure as head coach, the Miners posted a record of 41-42-8 and had a mark of 12-10-4 in GLVC play during the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Included on the 2006 resume was a 1-0 victory over No. 7-ranked Drury, one of two wins over a team ranked among the top 10 in the last five seasons.

"We appreciate the efforts of Vince in directing our men's soccer program over the past five years," said UMR director of athletics Mark Mullin. "His hard work and dedication to the program have been evident during his tenure. I know he is excited about his new opportunities. We wish him all the best in his new professional endeavors.

"Vince leaves the program in good shape and we are excited about finding a new leader to continue the positive direction of the program," he added.

Mullin said that the search will begin immediately for Darnell’s replacement.

Posted by John Kean at 11:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The University of Missouri-Rolla men's soccer team has added six players to its roster for the 2007 season as they have signed National Letters of Intent to play at UMR.

The six signees are:

MARIO CALDERON, a 5-9, 155-pound midfielder from Mexico City, Mexico: Calderon is transferring to UMR from Lindenwood University after a successful high school career in Mexico, where he was part of a national championship team.

KENNY GRAVLIN, a 5-11, 180-pound midfielder-defender from St. Louis University High School in St. Louis, Mo.: Gravlin, whose older brother, Dan, is a current member of the Miners, was a two-year letterwinner at the high school level. He earned first-team academic honors in each of his four years in high school.

JEREMY McBRIDE, a 6-0, 145-pound midfielder from Oakville High School in St. Louis, Mo.: McBride was a three-year starter at the high school level as a center midfielder. He had a goal and three assists in the 2006 season for a team that finished 17-8-2 and as co-champions of the Suburban West Conference. He also played for the Lou Fusz Premier team in the St. Louis area and on the Missouri Olympic Development Team over each of the last two years.

AFIF NAJJAR, a 5-9, 165-pound midfielder-sweeper from Francis Howell Central High School in St. Charles, Mo.: Najjar is transferring to UMR from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he played in 13 games during the 2005 season for the NCAA Division II semifinalist. Prior to that, Najjar spent one season at the University of Memphis and played in eight games with an assist.

SAM SHAFFER, a 5-9, 145-pound midfielder from Oakville High School in St. Louis, Mo.: Shaffer was an honorable mention all-conference selection in the Suburban West Conference after finishing with seven goals and five assists for 19 points during the 2006 season. He had six goals and three assists during his junior year.

DANIEL STOKES, a 6-2, 170-pound midfielder from Vianney High School in Kirkwood, Mo.: Stokes had five goals and five assists last season at Vianney, where he was twice named as his team's most valuable player during his prep career. He served as a team captain during the 2006 season as Vianney reached the Missouri Class 3 semifinals. In addition, Stokes earned the team's top offensive player award during his career.

Posted by John Kean at 09:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Dan Gravlin

UMR junior forward Dan Gravlin (St. Louis, Mo./St. Louis University High) has been selected to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America soccer team for the recently completed season.

Gravlin, a civil engineering major at UMR, finished the year with one goal and a team-high four assists in the Miners' 9-9-2 campaign. Gravlin had a four-point game during the season with a goal and two assists in a key GLVC win over Missouri-St. Louis in early October.

He is the first student-athlete from UMR selected as an Academic All-America this season and 21st in this decade, which is one of the top totals in NCAA Division II.

UMR finished at 7-5-1 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference and earned a berth to the conference tournament for the second consecutive year.

Posted by John Kean at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Zach Crane

Derek Pelate

Three members of the University of Missouri-Rolla men's soccer team have been selected to the ESPN The Magazine academic all-district team for District 7.

Seniors Zach Crane and Derek Pelate, along with junior Dan Gravlin, were all first-team selections to the squad for the 2006 season and all three will be eligible for Academic All-America honors; that team will be annoucned next month.

Crane was named to the squad for the second straight year as a defender, as he played as a wing defender during the year. He helped a defensive unit that included Pelate, an honorable mention selection by the Great Lakes Valley Conference, that held its opponents to just over 1.5 goals per game and four shutouts during the year.

Crane, a civil engineering major, had one goal during the 2006 season. Pelate, who is majoring in electrical engineering, had a goal and two assists during the 2006 season while playing as the Miners' sweeper.

Dan Gravlin

Gravlin is majoring in civil engineering and finished the year with one goal and a team-high four assists in the Miners' 9-9-2 campaign. Gravlin had a four-point game during the season with a goal and two assists in a key GLVC win over Missouri-St. Louis in early October.

UMR finished at 7-5-1 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference and earned a berth to the conference tournament for the second consecutive year.

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Brandon Moore

KENOSHA, Wis. -- UMR probably wishes that the halftime intermission never took place Sunday.

The Miners were riding a wave of momentum from two goals late in the first half and had 19th-ranked Wisconsin-Parkside primed for a first-round exit from the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament on its home field for the second straight season.

However, the Rangers were able to regroup at halftime and scored three times in a span of 18 minutes in the latter half of the game to come away with a 3-2 victory over the Miners Sunday in the opening round contest of the GLVC Tournament.

The first half was tightly contested until UMR scored twice in a span of 2:12 late in the period to take a 2-0 lead at the break. Will Kirby got the Miners on the board when he scored off an assist from Brandon Moore at the 37:04 mark, then Moore scored himself off an assist from Justin Lightner at 39:16 to give UMR its two-goal advantage.

Wisconsin-Parkside turned the tide of the contest right after the game resumed, getting goals from Johnson Thoa at 50:15 and 57:44 to tie the score. The Rangers completed the comeback 10 minutes later when Mike Buffolo scored at the 67:45 mark and held on to earn a trip to Edwardsville, Ill., on Friday to face Northern Kentucky in the semifinals.

The Rangers outshot the Miners 10-5 in the game and had a 7-2 advantage in the second half. Mike McNamee was credited with seven saves in the contest.

UMR finished its season with a record of 9-9-2.

Posted by John Kean at 08:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Brandon Moore

KIRKSVILLE, Mo. -- The UMR men's soccer team got a second half goal from Brandon Moore to salvage a 1-1 tie in its regular season finale Friday afternoon at Truman State.

Moore scored an unassisted goal at the 58:47 mark to even the score of a game in which the Miners controlled after the intermission. However, Moore's goal turned out to be the only one of the final 45 minutes of regulation time and 20 minutes of overtime even though UMR outshot the Bulldogs 16-3 during that stretch.

The Miners (9-8-2) held a 21-9 advantage in shots for the game and got 12 on goal. Mike McNamee ended up making one save for the afternoon.

Truman's goal came from Matt McCarthy at the 12:26 mark in the first half.

UMR will face Wisconsin-Parkside Sunday in an opening round game in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament. Game time will be at noon in Kenosha, Wis.

Posted by John Kean at 10:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Andy Held

Andy Held, who ranks second in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in goals and points, is one of two players who have been honored by the GLVC for their play during the 2006 season.

Held was named to the All-GLVC second team Wednesday as he is in the midst of a season in which he has scored 11 times for a Miner team that will be playing in the conference tournament. Of Held's 11 goals on the season, four of them have been game-winning tallies.

Held, a redshirt freshman from Alton, Ill., has 22 points on the season with those 11 goals.

The other Miner honored was senior defender Derek Pelate, who has anchored the Miner defense throughout the year and has stood out despite missing four games with an injury. Pelate, who is from Edwardsville, Ill., also has a goal and two assists on the season and was named to the All-GLVC team as an honorable mention selection.

Bojan Jovicic of Wisconsin-Parkside, the fourth-ranked scorer in NCAA Division II, was named as the league's offensive "Player of the Year," while Southern Illinois Edwardsville midfielder John Matthews was named as the defensive "Player of the Year." Northern Kentucky gained the other two major awards, as forward Braden Bishop was named as the league's top freshman and John Basalyga was selected as the "Coach of the Year."

UMR, the No. 6 seed for this weekend's conference tournament, will play at Truman State Friday at 2 p.m. before opening GLVC Tournament play Sunday at UW-Parkside in a noon contest.

Posted by John Kean at 04:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Mike McNamee

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- With its playoff fate in its own hands, the University of Missouri-Rolla men's soccer team took care of earning its place in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament all by itself.

The Miners came away with a 2-0 victory Sunday afternoon at Indianapolis to put themselves in the GLVC Tournament for the second time in as many years. UMR will go into the tournament as the No. 6 seed and will open play in the eight-team event on Sunday (Oct. 22) on the road against No. 3 seed Wisconsin-Parkside.

The Rangers beat the Miners 3-0 when the teams met in Rolla Sept. 24.

In Sunday's game, the Miners got their first goal on an own goal by the Greyhounds, when a headed ball by a UIndy defender eluded Greyhound goalkeeper Matt Spaulding at the 22:23 mark. UMR added an insurance goal in the second half when Nick Landon tapped in a pass from Justin Lightner at 58:26 to give the Miners a two-goal advantage.

Even though the Greyhounds outshot the Miners 14-12 in the game, the defense was able to keep most of the shots away from UMR goalkeeper Mike McNamee. Only two of the 14 Indianapolis attempts were on goal and McNamee turned both of them away to record his fourth shutout of the season.

UMR, now 9-8-1 overall, finished 7-5-1 in GLVC play to end up in sole possession of sixth place. The Miners will play Friday at Truman State (2 p.m. start) prior to their GLVC Tournament opener at UW-Parkside on Sunday.

Posted by John Kean at 01:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Andy Held

RENSSELAER, Ind. -- The UMR men's soccer team drew a step closer to landing a spot in the Great Lakes Valley Conference playoffs Friday night with a 3-1 victory over Saint Joseph's.

The victory improved the Miners, 8-8-1 overall, to 6-5-1 in GLVC play with one game remaining. The Miners are currently tied for seventh place with Drury with identical .542 winning percentages as Drury played Wisconsin-Parkside to a 1-1 tie Friday night. A win or a tie by the Miners in their league finale will get them into the playoffs for the second year in a row.

The Miners close the season Sunday at Indianapolis while the Panthers play host to Lewis and Missouri-St. Louis, a 2-0 loser Friday at UIndy, will play at Saint Joseph's. The Rivermen fell behind UMR and Drury in the standings after Friday's contests.

UMR could finish with as high as the No. 5 seed for the conference tournament if it wins its game Sunday and Drury can knock off Lewis on the final day of conference play. The Miners would be tied with Drury in terms of winning percentage, but UMR holds the tiebreaker based on its 1-0 win over the Panthers last month.

In Friday's contest, UMR got two goals from Andy Held -- his 10th and 11th of the season -- and a tally from Nick Landon to get the win.

Held opened the scoring with a goal at the 5:49 mark with assists from Will Kirby and Derek Pelate, who was seeing his first action since suffering an injury on Oct. 1 at Rockhurst. Saint Joseph's, whose head coach, Eric Rue, resigned on Thursday, got the score even at 29:36 on a goal from John Grigorakis.

However, Landon broke the tie with an unassisted goal at 77:10, then Held added an insurance goal at 85:15 off an assist from Alvaro Lopez.

UMR outshot the Pumas 19-7 in the game, as Miner goalkeeper Mike McNamee was credited with one save as Saint Joseph's managed to get only two of its seven shots on net.

The Miners and Indianapolis will face off in a game that will start at 11 a.m. Central time Sunday.

GLVC PLAYOFF SCENARIO (Through Oct. 13 games)
1. SIU Edwardsville, 10-2-1 (clinched No. 1 seed)
2. (tie) Northern Kentucky, 8-2-2 (NKU holds tie-breaker edge over UWP)
2. (tie) Wisconsin-Parkside, 8-2-2
4. Rockhurst, 8-3-1
5. (tie) Indianapolis, 7-5-0 (UIndy holds tie-breaker edge over LU)
5. (tie) Lewis, 7-5-0
7. (tie) Missouri-Rolla, 6-5-1 (UMR holds tie-breaker edge over DU)
7. (tie) Drury, 5-4-3
9. Missouri-St. Louis, 5-5-2

Quincy, Bellarmine, Southern Indiana, Kentucky Wesleyan and Saint Joseph's have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Posted by John Kean at 04:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Nick Landon

The Miners have played on break-even terms against the Great Lakes Valley Conference teams as a whole, but their biggest struggles have come against the conference's elite teams.

Wednesday night was another case of that as No. 8-ranked Southern Illinois Edwardsville routed the Miners 5-0 at the UMR Soccer Field, claiming at least a share of the GLVC regular season title in the process and putting the Miners into a must-win situation this weekend when they head to Indiana to finish conference play.

The Cougars put three of the goals on the board in the opening half, starting with Mike Banner's goal at the 11:43 mark when he ripped a shot through the outstretched arms of UMR goalkeeper Mike McNamee. John Matthews scored after he got to a loose ball in the box after a free kick to give the Cougars a 2-0 lead at 29:14, then Rob Ridder scored the first of his two goals on the night just 4:37 later.

Ridder and Mike Zaegel scored goals 2:06 apart in the second half to round out the scoring.

SIUE (10-3-3, 10-2-1 GLVC) outshot the Miners (7-8-1, 5-5-1 GLVC) by a 13-9 margin for the night, but had nine shots on goal to UMR's five. Nick Landon had two of the five shots on net for the Miners, who got four saves from McNamee in the contest.

UMR will face Saint Joseph's (1-11-3, 0-8-2 GLVC) Friday at 5 p.m. in Rensselaer, Ind., before closing league play Sunday at Indianapolis.

Posted by John Kean at 03:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)