Game Time...20th seed Northwestern College drew 13th seed Maine-Fort Kent in the NAIA's 49th Annual Championships in Olathe, Kan. The Red Raiders and Bengals will take the field on Wednesday, November 14th at noon in the tournament's opening match. UMFK comes into the match as the nation's only unbeaten team at 20-0-0, while Northwestern comes in at 12-7-1.
Scouting Report...The Bengals were ranked 19th in the final poll of the regular season and won their second straight Sunrise Conference Championship. Like the Red Raiders, they will be making their first ever trip to the national tournament. Head Coach Bill Ashby, in his sixth year with the Bengals, also serves as the school's athletic director.
UMFK leads the nation as a team in assists per game at 5.5, goals per game at 5.65, and shots on goal per game at 24.8. Emlyn Jacoby ranks 1st in the NAIA in assists per game at 1.050 while teammate Andre Anderson ranks 1st in the NAIA in goals per game, points per game, and shots on goal per game. He has scored 26 goals and collected 14 assists. Goalkeeper Derick Plourde has allowed eight goals in 20 games. The Bengals closest matches this season were a 1-0 win over Hussein back on Sept. 5 and a 3-2 victory over Vermont Tech on Oct. 28.
More about the Bengals...click on the following link: U of Maine-Fort Kent
Red Raider Notes...Northwestern enters the national tournament for the first time in school history under NAIA Region III Coach-of-the-Year T.J. Buchholz. Brad White leads the Raiders with 11 goals and seven assists and earned first team all-conference honors. Opposite White up front is sophomore Aaron O'Brien, an honorable mention all-league selection, who has scored 10 goals this season and has two assists. Junior midfielder Andy Janssen has netted 10 goals and has one assist which earned him first team all-GPAC honors. Senior captain Blake Wieking, a three-time all-league player and 2006 All-American, has scored seven times and has one assist this season.
Defensively, the Red Raiders are led by first team all-league sweeper, Tyler Sytsma. Three-year starter and honorable mention all-GPAC defender Brian Springer also leads the NWC backline. Ben Schneider has allowed 14 goals in 14 games since taking over the goalkeeping duties and earned honorable mention all-GPAC honors.
Next up... The winner of the match will play #4 Ohio Dominican on Thursday, Nov. 15 at noon. To view the complete bracket, click on the following link: Tournament Bracket
2007 media guide
