Temple University Athletics
Thursday, November 8
Transamerica Field (Charlotte, N.C.)
5:00 p.m.
Temple University
vs
Virginia Commonwealth University
Photo by: Mitchell Leff
MacWilliams Goes For Career Win No. 100 As Men's Soccer Takes On No. 19 VCU Thursday In A-10 Tourney First Round Match
11.7.12 | Men's Soccer
A-10 Championship Central | Temple Game Notes | Live Stats | Watch FREE Webcast
CHARLOTTE, N.C - Undefeated in 11 of their last 13 games, Temple Men's Soccer heads to Transamerica Field in Charlotte for the 2012 Atlantic 10 Championship. The No. 5 seeded Owls in the newly-expanded eight team tourney, will face the No. 4 seed Virginia Commonwealth University Rams, who are ranked No. 19 in the nation, Thursday afternoon at 5:00 p.m.
Temple, who is under the direction of 13-year head coach David MacWilliams, is in pursuit of its first A-10 Championship in what will be the program's final chance, as it will make the move to the BIG EAST following this season. MacWilliams enters the match with 99 victories on his coaching resume, putting him one win shy of joining three other Temple coaches at the 100-win plateau.
QUICK FIVE...
TEMPLE NOTES...
Temple is firing on all cylinders as it readies for a date with the nationally ranked VCU Rams. Freshman Jared Martinelli has been the key component to the team's offensive success this season. With 28 points on the year, which includes nine goals and 10 assists, Martinelli is ranked third in the nation among all rookies in scoring this season and is tied for 8th all-time at Temple for points in a single season. Also providing a major portion of the offensive production this season has been juniors Vaughn Spurrier, Jake Lister, Nolan Hemmer and seniors Cody Calafiore and Homero Rodriguez. Spurrier and Martinelli, who are the second and third players in Temple history to reach double figures in assists with 10 this season, Together the two combine for 20 helpers, marking the most in program history by a Temple duo.
Defensively, the Owls have gotten outstanding efforts all around. Senior Billy Kappock, who owns the program record for consecutive starts with 74, has used his experience and leadership to help anchor a defense that help opponents to 1.01 goals per game. In net, the Owls have two very skilled netminders in junior Bobby Rosato and sophomore Dan Scheck. Together the two keepers have collected 8 shutouts, which is the most since 2008. Scheck has made just seven starts this season, but has been a stonewall in net, as he nailed down five shutouts, while has allowing just two goals all season and posting a goals against average of 0.27.
VCU NOTES...
Owning an identical 6-1-2 record in conference play through their first season in the A-10, the Rams are squaring off against Temple for the first time ever. Ranked No. 19 in the nation, VCU is 10-2-5 on the year and has been a tough squad to handle this season. In games against fellow ranked opponents, the Rams defeated No. 13 Charlotte and defending A-10 Champion No. 12 Xavier earlier this season.
Junior forward Jason Johnson leads the team in scoring with 32 points, while junior goalkeeper Andrew Wells has played in all 17 games, through which he owns a 0.98 goals against average and four shutouts.
CHARLOTTE, N.C - Undefeated in 11 of their last 13 games, Temple Men's Soccer heads to Transamerica Field in Charlotte for the 2012 Atlantic 10 Championship. The No. 5 seeded Owls in the newly-expanded eight team tourney, will face the No. 4 seed Virginia Commonwealth University Rams, who are ranked No. 19 in the nation, Thursday afternoon at 5:00 p.m.
Temple, who is under the direction of 13-year head coach David MacWilliams, is in pursuit of its first A-10 Championship in what will be the program's final chance, as it will make the move to the BIG EAST following this season. MacWilliams enters the match with 99 victories on his coaching resume, putting him one win shy of joining three other Temple coaches at the 100-win plateau.
QUICK FIVE...
1.) Temple is the No. 5 seed in the 2012 Atlantic 10 Tournament.
2.) Should the Owls advance, they will face either No. 1 Charlotte or  No. 8 Duquesne on Friday.Â
3.) This year's postseason appearance marks the third straight for the Owls and their fourth in the last five years.
4.)The Owls are looking for their first Atlantic 10 Championship title and are looking to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1985.
5.) This is Temple's sixth postseason appearance under head coach David MacWilliams. Under his tutelage, the Owls are 4-5 and have been runners-up for the A-10 title twice (2003, 2004)
TEMPLE NOTES...
The Owls dive into postseason play for the third consecutive year and for the fourth time in the last five years. Wrapping up a 10-5-3 regular season campaign, Temple posted its fourth 10-win season under MacWilliams and its first one since 2008.Â
It's been a year with a lot of success stories for the 2012 Temple men's soccer team. The Owls proved to be unbeatable on their home field this season at the Ambler Sports Complex. Opening the year with a 5-0-0 start on their home grass, the Owls got off to their best-ever start since moving to Ambler back in 2004. In addition to that, Temple also started off A-10 play undefeated through its five games for the first time since 2003.
It's been a year with a lot of success stories for the 2012 Temple men's soccer team. The Owls proved to be unbeatable on their home field this season at the Ambler Sports Complex. Opening the year with a 5-0-0 start on their home grass, the Owls got off to their best-ever start since moving to Ambler back in 2004. In addition to that, Temple also started off A-10 play undefeated through its five games for the first time since 2003.
Temple is firing on all cylinders as it readies for a date with the nationally ranked VCU Rams. Freshman Jared Martinelli has been the key component to the team's offensive success this season. With 28 points on the year, which includes nine goals and 10 assists, Martinelli is ranked third in the nation among all rookies in scoring this season and is tied for 8th all-time at Temple for points in a single season. Also providing a major portion of the offensive production this season has been juniors Vaughn Spurrier, Jake Lister, Nolan Hemmer and seniors Cody Calafiore and Homero Rodriguez. Spurrier and Martinelli, who are the second and third players in Temple history to reach double figures in assists with 10 this season, Together the two combine for 20 helpers, marking the most in program history by a Temple duo.
Defensively, the Owls have gotten outstanding efforts all around. Senior Billy Kappock, who owns the program record for consecutive starts with 74, has used his experience and leadership to help anchor a defense that help opponents to 1.01 goals per game. In net, the Owls have two very skilled netminders in junior Bobby Rosato and sophomore Dan Scheck. Together the two keepers have collected 8 shutouts, which is the most since 2008. Scheck has made just seven starts this season, but has been a stonewall in net, as he nailed down five shutouts, while has allowing just two goals all season and posting a goals against average of 0.27.
VCU NOTES...
Owning an identical 6-1-2 record in conference play through their first season in the A-10, the Rams are squaring off against Temple for the first time ever. Ranked No. 19 in the nation, VCU is 10-2-5 on the year and has been a tough squad to handle this season. In games against fellow ranked opponents, the Rams defeated No. 13 Charlotte and defending A-10 Champion No. 12 Xavier earlier this season.
Junior forward Jason Johnson leads the team in scoring with 32 points, while junior goalkeeper Andrew Wells has played in all 17 games, through which he owns a 0.98 goals against average and four shutouts.
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