Weekly Release #13

Upcoming Schedule ...
Wednesday, Nov. 26 -- host winner of St. Peter's/Brown (U-M Soccer Field), 2 p.m.
Sat./Sun., Nov. 29-30 -- NCAA Third Round (Campus Sites), TBA
Dec. 5-7 -- NCAA Quarterfinal (Campus Sites), TBA
Dec. 12 -- NCAA College Cup Semifinal (Columbus, Ohio)
Dec. 14 -- NCAA College Cup Final (Columbus, Ohio)

This Week ...
The University of Michigan men's soccer team earned its first bid to the NCAA Tournament last Monday afternoon (Nov. 17) as the NCAA selection committee seeded the Wolverines No. 12 with a first-round bye. The Wolverines (13-6, 5-1 Big Ten) will face the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion Saint Peter's College (18-4-2) at 2 p.m. Wednesday (Nov. 26) on the U-M Soccer Field.

Michigan and the NCAA's ...
It marks the first time in Michigan's four-year history the Wolverines will participate in the NCAA Championship. Following a record-setting season, theMaize and Blueearned a bye into the second round and will hostSaint Peter's, who posted a 2-0 victory over Brown inan NCAA first round matchup that took place on last Saturday (Nov. 22) at 7 p.m. in Providence, R.I.

Scouting the Opponents ...
Saint Peter's -- Saint Peter's advanced to the second round of the second round of the NCAA Championship when it claimed a 2-0 victory at Brown University last Saturday (Nov. 22). Rinaldo Chambers tallied both Peacock goals, while The Peacocks also earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship when they downed Loyola 2-1 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference to win their first league title. Saint Peter's posted a school-record 17 winswhile only losing four games, all by the score of 1-0. The Peacocks have a very high powered offense as they boost three players who scored more than 20 points during the season. Leading the way was Rinaldo Chambers who tallied 44 points with 14 goals and 16 assists. Chris Megaloudis also netted 12 goals and added eight assits for 32 points, while Douglas Narvaez posted 21 points on eight goals and five assists. It marks the first meeting between the two teams.

Big Ten's Best ...
Junior foward Knox Cameron (Bronx, N.Y./Cardinal Spellman HS) was selected Big TenAthlete of the Year by the coaches last Thursday (Nov. 13) at the Big Ten postseason banquet in Bloomington, Ind. Cameron led the Big Ten in points (33), points-per-game (1.74), goals (12), goals-per-game (0.63) and game-winning goals (5).

Post Season Honorees ...
In its best season to date, Michigan placed five players named to Big Ten all-conference teams at the postseason banquet last Thursday (Nov. 13). Highlightingthelist of Wolverines wasfirst teamunanimous selectionand Big Ten Athlete of the Year KnoxCameron. Joining Cameron on theAll-Big Ten first teamwere senior tri-captains Kevin Taylor (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) and Mike White (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson HS) and sophomore goalkeeper Peter Dzubay (Sylvania, Ohio/Northview HS). Junior forward Mychal Turpin (Pontiac, Mich./University of Detroit Jesuit HS) was named to the All-Big Ten second team.

Cameron With U.S. U-20's...
Knox Cameron will not be on the roster for theremainder of the Wolverines season, as he is currently playing for the U.S. Under-20 Men's Soccer National Team. The U-20's are participating in the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championships in the United Arab Emirates (Nov. 22-Dec. 19). The 24-team field will be divided into six groups of four, with the top two teams in each group and the four best teams among those ranked third at the end of the first round of qualifying for the Round of 16.Cameron, as well his 19 teammates will play in travel to UAE on Saturday (Nov. 22) and conduct a week of training before they begin tournament play. The U.S. will compete in Group F and will play all three of its matches at Al-Nahyan Stadium in Adu Dhabi. The U-20's will open the tournament on Nov. 29 agaisnt Paraguay, before meeting Germany on Dec. 2 and South Korea on Dec. 5.

Setting New Standards ...
With 13 wins this season, Michigan has surpassed the program's single-season win record of 11 set last year. In 2002 the Maize and Blue finished 11-7-2. Michigan's win at Ohio State on Nov. 1 also gave U-M its program-best fifth win in Big Ten Conference play, breaking its old mark of three set during the 2001 and 2002 seasons.

I Love Gooooooooooals ...
Through 19 games this season, Michigan tallied four goals five times (UNC Greensboro, at Bowling Green, at Michigan State, vs. Wisconsin and at Penn State). It those five games, the Wolverines have compiled a record of 5-0, improving their four-year program record to 14-1-1 when netting three or more goals in a game.

Honors and Awards ...
The Wolverines have been honored many times this season, as Mychal Turpin was named the College Sports Television Student-Athlete of the Week, Knox Cameron was twice named to the College Soccer News' National Team of the Week and four athletes have combined to win five Big Ten Conference Athlete of the Week accolades. Cameron was selected twice as the league's Offensive Athlete of the Week, while Bobby Trybula and Turpin earned the honor once this season. Senior tri-captain Kevin Taylor (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) earned the team's lone Defensive Player of the Week this season.

I Had An Awesome Time ...
In Big Ten Conference play Michiganended the regular season as the leaderin five of six offense categories. Michiganlead the conference in points (47), goals scored (16), goals-per-game (2.67), assists (15) and assists-per-game (2.50). Overall, counting non-conference matches, the Wolverines led all Big Ten teams in the same five offensive categories. Headlining the lists of points (121), goals scored (41), goals-per-game (2.16), assists (39), assists-per-game (2.05).

League Leaders ...
Knox Cameron finished the regular season as the leader in nearly every Big Ten offensive category this season. Cameron led the league in shots (21), shots per game (3.50), points (13), points per game (2.17), goals (5), goals per game (0.83) and game-winning goals (3). Cameron is also second in assists (3) and assist per game (0.60). Peter Dzubaywas the league leader in saves (37) and saves per game (6.17). He was also second in the conference in goals-against average with a mark of 1.31.

The Life I Love is Making Music With My Friends ...
For the second consecutive year the Michigan offense is putting up some big numbers. Through Nov. 13, the Wolverines have totaled a conference-leading 121 points on a conference-best 41 goals and 41 assists in 19 games this season. Michigan is the conference leader in goals (41), goals per game (2.22) and assists (41) and assists per game (2.11).

Would You Like To Supersize Your Order ...
Mychal Turpin etched his name in the Big Ten record book earlier this year when the junior striker netted his second career four-goal game. It marked the first time in conference history a player had tallied two career four-goal games. What makes it even more special is that Turpin accomplished the feat in just a two-week span. Turpin is one of only five players in league history to net four goals in a game and first since Aaron Lauber did it on Nov. 1, 2001.

Debuting at the Top of the Charts ...
The Maize and Blue made a stunning debut in the NSCAA/adidas Top 25 on Oct. 20, earning a No. 11 national ranking after not even receiving a single vote the previous week. In just their fourth season as a varsity program, head coach Steve Burns' Wolverines have won have won nine of their last 11 games to improve to 13-6 overall and 5-1 in Big Ten play, good for second place in the final conference standings.

In the Polls ...
The Wolverines dropped out of the latest NCAA/adidas Coaches' Poll, released last Monday (Nov. 17).

RANK, TEAM RECORD PREV  1. UCLA 18-1-1 1 2. Maryland 17-2-1 2 3. Notre Dame 15-3-3 5 4. Wake Forest 15-4-0 2 4. Saint Louis 13-3-3 6 6. St. John's 14-5-2 4 7. Virginia Commonwealth 16-4-0 8 8. Indiana 12-3-5 11 9. Santa Clara 13-3-3 7 10. North Carolina 12-3-4 8 11. Brown 10-3-3 12 12. Coastal Carolina 17-2-0 18 13. Fairleigh Dickinson 14-4-1 14 14. Florida International 13-4-2 10 15. Southern Methodist 13-6-2 25 16. Hartwick 15-2-1 15 17. Cal State Northridge 14-3-2 -- 18. Virginia Tech 14-4-2 -- 18. Rutgers 10-6-4 -- 20. UC Santa Barbara 15-4-1 21 21. Akron 14-4-2 -- 22. Davidson 15-5-2 -- 23. Yale 10-6-1 22 24. Bradley 11-8-4 19 25. Duquesne 13-3-3 17 25. Alabama Birmingham 10-5-5 24 Also receiving votes: Columbia, Old Dominion, Washington

The Book on Burns ...
Head coach Steve Burns' Wolverinesfell to 40-30-3 through 73 games as the headman, after a 2-1 defeat to Northwestern in the first round of the Big Ten Championship. In 19 games this season the Maize and Blue has compiled a program-best 13 wins. Burns' boys also set a Michigan record with five wins in conference play this season and made their first-ever appearance in the NSCAA/adidas Coaches' Pool, debuting at No. 11 in the weekly poll on Oct. 20. They head into the Big Ten Championship this week as the No. 23 team in the nation according the latest poll, released Monday (Nov. 10). Last season Burns guided the Maize and Blue to a No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Conference Championship and its first ever appearance in the championship game. Since Burns took the helm in 2000, the Wolverines have bettered their record in each of his first four years. In the program's inaugural season of 2000, U-M finished with a 6-10 record, while in 2001 his club put together a mark of 10-7-1. Prior to Michigan soccer being granted varsity status on March 26, 1999, Burns was the head coach of the Michigan club team since 1993. Under his leadership, Michigan posted a 121-51-26 mark (.677 winning percentage) and made six consecutive appearances in the national club championship tournament. The team won back-to-back national championships in 1997 and 1998.

On the Horizon ...
Depending on the outcome of Michigan's NCAA second round match against Saint Peter's, the Wolverines will either advance to the thrid round of the NCAA Championship or have no games left in the its season. If the Wolveriners win they could play on Saturday or Sunday (Nov. 29-30) in South Bend, Ind., or at the U-M Soccer Field.

Contact: Gene Skidmore (734) 763-4423