Loyola's Kocic drafted by D.C. United

Former Loyola Men’s Soccer goalkeeper Milos Kocic has done fairly well for himself recently.

His team finished with a #15 national ranking after ending their regular season unbeaten… nice.

He was named a second team All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America… awesome.

In Thursday’s MLS Superdraft he was chosen with the 21st selection overall by the D.C. United… phenomenal.

Aaand – he graduated a semester early from school with an international business degree… yes, even Mom is happy too!

The Serbian born Kocic plans to meet with officials from the club soon to see when training sessions begin. If he sticks with the team he will become the second former Greyhound in the MLS; Zach Thornton, also a goalie, currently plays for the Chicago Fire.

Kocic started every game in the net for Loyola during the ’07-’08 seasons and led the ‘Hounds to a 37-5-2 record. He earned a spot on the All-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference squads after both seasons.

Men's Soccer: Loyola v. UNC Greensboro, 2nd Round, College Cup

How’s this for last minute… At 5:00pm I am writing from Boulder Café on the campus of Loyola College as I countdown to the first game of what I hope is a deep run in the NCAA Tournament for the Greyhounds. I’ve called this game the biggest on the Evergreen Campus in some years – translation – since the fall of ’04, my first semester at Loyola. Needless to say I got some energy following through the veins, then again, I’ll need it with game time temps dipping in the lower 40’s.

Attendance figures should be interesting to see, but what’s more important is that the crowd feels large. The Greyhounds always protect their turf well and here’s a little tidbit for you - Loyola has not lost on Diane Geppi-Aikens Field since October 29, 2006. Impressive stuff.

Prediction: The Greyhounds march on. This season will not end this way. UNC Greensboro has been tremendously inconsistent all season long, and I don’t think they can keep playing above their heads the way they have of late. Conversely, Loyola will be on the tops of their game and surely be refocused after a suffering their first loss of the season last time out. The home field means a load in tournament match-ups so I’ll take Loyola 2-0. Darvill and Bannister… Kocic with the shutout.

Men's Soccer Quest in the College Cup begins Tuesday

All the wins. All the streaks. All the goals scored. The undefeated regular season. Everything the Loyola College Men’s Soccer Team has worked for this fall has given them the opportunity to showcase themselves on their home field in late November. Greyhounds fans, this is it! Diane Geppi-Aikens Field will be the venue for the biggest on-campus event the Evergreen Campus has hosted in recent memory Tuesday evening.

Loyola (18-1-1), nationally seeded #9, will oppose UNC Greensboro in the second round of the NCAA College Cup at 9pm in North Baltimore.

The Greyhounds have enjoyed a special season form the start that resulted in the school’s first undefeated regular-season campaign since 1986. After an 18-0-1 start to the season they owned the nation’s longest unbeaten streak at 25, a mark that dated back to last season. By season’s end, Coach Mark Mettrick’s team, whose identity has long been the play of its stubborn defense, emerged ranked #2 in the nation in goals/game at 2.4

They have gotten tremendous play on its backline from junior sweeper, Tennant McVea, who won his second consecutive MAAC Defensive Play of the Year Award and Milos Kocic, the MAAC Coaches’ choice for conference Goalie of the Year.

The offense has fired on all cylanders all season, led by Jamie Darvill, a junior forward, who has been tabbed MACC Offensive Play of the Year and has appeared on some publication’s All-America Team lists. Sophomore midfielder Phil Bannister, second on the team in points with 32, was 1 of 33 student-athletes named an Academic All-American last week.

This is UNC Greensboro’s 4th College Cup appearance in the last 5 years, but finished the season just 9-11-2. However, the Spartans are riding a major winning streak; this past Friday they went on the road and took out the favored Duke Blue Devils 2-0, and last week as the #7 seen in the SoCon Tournament they ran the table, winning the conference’s NCAA Tournament automatic qualifier bid.

Here’s really hoping the crowd is a good one. My guess is it won’t be as good as it should be. I’m not sure the cold temperatures will keep too potential spectators away as much as students who will be on their way home after classes for the Thanksgiving Holiday. It’s a real shame if the Loyola students don’t come out in large numbers. The team has had a special feel to it all season and the campus has really rallied around them, but it’s very difficult to get the student body to resist taking the first train home

Loyola Men's Soccer featured on ESPNsoccernet.com

As the Men’s Soccer Team (17-0-1) makes its final preparations before heading to Poughkeepsie, NY for this weekend’s MAAC Tournament, they know they have already accomplished something very special. The ‘Hounds 3rd undefeated regular season in school history has not gone unnoticed in the eyes of the national college soccer media. Loyola’s tremendous on-field success this season is the subject on an article that appears on espn.com, the article’s link is below…

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=591730&sec=ncaa&root=ncaa&&cc=5901

Stay tuned for more postseason news in the coming days.

Men's Soccer finises of unbeaten regular season

5 – Scores by Loyola in Saturday’s game vs. Rider (Loyola 5 – 0 Rider)
9 – Number of wins in conference for the Greyhounds this regular season (9-0-0)
17 – Regular season victories in 18 regular season games (17-0-1)
22 – Years since Loyola’s last unbeaten regular season (1986: 15-0-4)
1 – Seed earned in the upcoming MAAC Tournament after receiving the regular season championsip
2 – Wins necessary for a 2nd consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament

The Loyola Men’s Soccer Team has completed their regular season without any defeats. The #6 ranked team will now look for a second consecutive MAAC Tournament Championship next weekend in Poughkeepsie. They are seeded #1 and will face the Purple Eagles of Niagara, the #4 seed, in the semifinals Friday afternoon. In their only meeting of the season Loyola scored a 1-nil victory in western New York on a Daniel Ankrah goal with just 79 seconds remaining in regulation. On the other side of the bracket are #2 Siena and #3 Fairfield.

College Soccer News offers this about the upcoming playoff:

Prediction: Loyola (MD) has a lock on an invite to the NCAA Tourney based on what they have accomplished to date. If Loyola does win with the MAAC Tourney, they will receive an at-large bid.

It will be very interesting to see how the Greyhounds are seeded in the NCAA tournament. All the major recognized polls rank Greyhounds in the top 6 of the country. The only other school to get through the season unscathed is Wake Forest, who is the unanimous top ranked team in the nation. The ‘Hounds will get a home game at least, maybe even one or two more in further rounds, and it will be important for the Loyola community to rally around this group. There’s a good chance this team ranks among the greatest of any Greyhound athletic team in any sport ever.

Busy Weekend for the 'Hounds

Women’s Soccer, Volleyball, Men’s Soccer, Basketball, and the Swimming and diving and Crew Teams will all be in action this weekend in upstate New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and our very own friendly confines of the Evergreen Campus.

Most notably, the Women’s Soccer team will participate in the 4-team MAAC Tournament held on the Siena University campus in Loudonville, NY. They are the top seed in the bracket and if they can pickup a pair of wins, they’ll be crowned champions and awarded with a trip to the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row.

Men’s Soccer moved up to #6 in the national rankings and will play Rider in Lawrenceville, NJ in their last contest of the regular season and with a win they will secure a perfect conference record of 9-0 and will have completed their first unbeaten season at 17-0-1 since 1986. They have already clinched the MAAC regular season conference championship and will have the #1 seed in the MAAC Tournament, which will be held in Poughkeepsie, NY on the campus of Marist College, November 14-16.

And for college basketball junkies, like myself, your first chance to see the Men’s Basketball Team will be tonight at Reitz Arena at 7pm for a scrimmage against DIII power Catholic University. It will be the first opportunity to see Coach Jimmy Patsos’ newest players including Providence transfer, Jamaal Barney, who is eligible after sitting out his residency year last season. Stay tuned, for a complete game wrap-up and season preview in the coming days.

Men's and Women's Soccer pick up pairs of wins, MAAC Titles

Greyhound soccer players had everything neatly laid out in front of them heading into their last weekend of their regular season schedule. Each team would take the field twice and if they secured victories, they would each be crowned regular season Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Champions for the 2nd consecutive season.

A true credit to Coaches Mark Mettrick and Katherine Remy Vettori, both squads got the job done… in emphatic fashion.

The men defeated St Peter’s 1-nil on Friday and dominated an outclassed Siena team Sunday afternoon 3-0. The ‘Hounds will close the regular season a perfect 9-0 in conference with a win next weekend over Rider. As it stands now they are 8-0 in the MAAC and 16-0-1 overall. A #1 seed has been secured in the upcoming four-team MAAC Tournament, and they may have potentially assured themselves a couple home games in the NCAA Tournament in a few weeks.

The women’s team proved that it’s not how you start the season, but instead it’s how you end it. They had a tough mountain to scale in upstate New York on their way to the summit. After Friday’s 2-0 win over Marist, it came down to a 1 game season with Siena. In the winner-takes-all final game of conference play, Loyola got 2 goals from senior Lea Day, and a hard fought 2-1 victory over the Saints. They started the season 0-5-2, but now ride an 11 game unbeaten streak where they’ve gone 9-0-2 and have ended the year with an impressive 9-5-4 record.

Upcoming for the Loyola men’s squad will be the previously mentioned Rider game in Lawrenceville, NJ this coming Saturday then a trip to Poughkeepsie, NY for the MAAC tournament to be held, November 14-16. Next up for the women is their chance to send themselves to the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row. They’ll play the Golden Griffins of Canisius in the semifinals of the MAAC tournament on Friday. Looming in the finals could be a rematch with the tourny’s host, Siena, on November 9th.

Men's Soccer Stays Unbeaten

As Fall is now officially upon us, Diane Geppi-Aikens Field had chilly temperatures and good crowds this past weekend to see the Loyola Men’s Soccer Team notch two more victories. Friday’s 4-1 and Sunday’s 3-1 decisions over Marist and Siena now give the Greyhounds, currently ranked #8 nationally, a record of 12-0-1.

The ‘Hounds will almost certainly see climbs in its home attendance and national ranking as wins continue to amount and streaks continue to grow. Unbeaten in their last 21 matches, Loyola, now 4-0 in conference, has won their last 11 MAAC games dating back to last season.

Tremendous success brings recognition, and Tennant McVea, after scoring his first goal of season against Siena, has been named to College Soccer News’ National Team for his outstanding performances. The junior sweeper was named to the MAAC first team last year and was honored as the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year. More accolades will be bestowed upon the Greyhounds tomorrow as the NSCAA National Poll is released and the MAAC will hand out its Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week Awards.

Here’s the link to NCS’s National Team, featuring Tennant McVea…
http://www.collegesoccernews.com/index_files/Page6133.htm

And last week, junior Milos Kocic was the subject of a feature profile article done by the Baltimore Sun, its link is below…
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/college/other/bal-sp.kocic17oct17,0,4798235.story

Loyola has its very own Top 10 Team

The Loyola College Men’s Soccer Team, fresh off their trip to western New York - which produced two more shutouts, moved up in this week’s NCSAA Poll to #8. Their lofty ranking places them ahead of such traditional national powerhouses as Notre Dame, North Carolina, Virginia, UConn, and Indiana.

This past weekend the ‘Hounds picked up two more victories over a regionally ranked Niagara team, 1-0, and fellow MAAC foe Canisius, 5-0, to push their record to 10-0-1 on the season. Loyola is now only one of three schools without a blemish this year, along with #1 Wake Forest and #2 Northwestern. The two shutouts also gave them 8 blank sheets in their 11 games, and push their unbeaten streak to 19 over the last two seasons.

Baltimore will get their first chance to see their top10 team this coming weekend as the Greyhounds will take on Marist - Friday at 4:30, and Siena – Sunday at 1, both games will be played on the Evergreen Campus on Diane Geppi-Aikens Field.

Soccer Teams to start MAAC Play this Week

This weekend on DGA Field the Women’s Soccer Team will host a pair of games against Iona and Fairfield to kickoff their ’08 conference schedule. Loyola is the defending conference champion and will head into MAAC play having won their last two matches over Villanova and American. Their tough preconference schedule has them well prepared for the rigors of playing familiar opponents, and Coach Katherine Vettori expects her group to keep their momentum going. Kickoff against the Gaels will be at 4:30 this afternoon and Sunday’s game against the Stags will begin at 1PM.

As for the 16th ranked Men’s Soccer Team, they will have a one more test to pass before they get started in MAAC play. They will take the field at home in DGA Field against Quinnipiac Saturday afternoon at 1 o’clock, which will conclude their preconference schedule (pending if the UMBC game is made up or not). Already having played high caliber opponents the schedule gets no easier as Loyola will have the unenviable task of starting in conference on the road taking on the two Buffalo schools, Niagara next Friday and Cansius next Sunday.

In the past weeks action, after being rained out against UMBC the ‘Hounds collected a hard fought 1-0 victory over the Princeton Tigers on Wednesday afternoon. Eddie Dines was able to knock a header in with 12 minutes left to play to give Loyola the winning tally. As what is now expected the defense was stellar and frustrated Tiger attackers all afternoon. Now time to update the streaks… The win ups the Greyhounds unbeaten streak to 16, the shutout is their 12th consecutive at home, and they have now won 22 of their last 23 overall and 15 straight on DGA Field – Unreal.

Greyhound team on the road for the weekend

While Women’s Soccer, Tennis, and Volleyball will all be in action this weekend, none will compete in the friendly confines of the Evergreen Campus. Both the Soccer and Tennis squads will be in Lewisburg, PA to take on Bucknell and participate in the Bucknell Invitational respectively. As for the volleyball team, they will be in New York City for matches against MAAC opponents Iona and Manhattan Saturday and Sunday.

Men’s Soccer will be in Emmitsburg, MD to take on Mt. St. Mary’s for their first of two road trips within the state; next weekend they will head west on the Beltway to Catonsville to take on the Retrievers of UMBC.

Men’s Golf after a 15th place finish at the Ron Moore Invitational in Colorado will be idle. The Mulieri brothers, senior Mike and freshman Jay, lead the ‘Hounds as they tied for 44th place in the individual competition.

Men's Soccer to head west to take on the Mountaineers

The Men’s Soccer Team, now ranked 17^th in the nation in the latest NCSAA poll, will be traveling west on Saturday afternoon to take on arch-rival Mt. St. Mary’s. The trip will mark the Hound’s first time back to Emmitsburg since all the way back to the fall of 1988. In the series between the two schools, which dates back to 1954, Loyola holds a dominant 21-4-1 mark. Kickoff is set for 1PM.

The Greyhounds come off a 1-0-1 week, keeping alive their now 14 game unbeaten stretch. Last weekend’s game resulted in a 3-1 win over George Washington in D.C. with goals scored by Phil Bannister, Ben Hanson, and Glenn Leitch.

However, Loyola could not find the back of the net in a 0-0 tie with William & Mary on DGA field Wednesday afternoon. The Tribe proved to be a worthy opponent and in last week’s national rankings they appeared in the “Also Receiving Votes” section. Milos Kocic and the back line kept W&M attackers at bay throughout regulation and the two 15-minute overtime sessions, which ended while darkness and an autumn chill took over the field. The shutout was Loyola’s 4^th in 6 games this season – a statistic the ‘Hounds led the entire nation in last fall.

Busy Weekend ahead for Greyhounds

The Loyola women’s soccer, tennis, volleyball and cross country teams as well as the men’s soccer, cross country, and golf teams will all take on competition this weekend.

Women’s Soccer (0-3-1), the defending MAAC Champs, will have two opportunities to pick up their first victory of the season as they will host a pair of home games this weekend on DGA Field, taking on VCU Friday afternoon at 4:30 and the Indiana Hoosiers Sunday afternoon at noon.

Women’s Volleyball (2-6) will spend the weekend in northern New Jersey and will play 3 matches in the span of 2 days. Coming off a win in their home opener against Morgan St. the ‘Hounds will take on Sacred Heart Friday, and have a pair of matches Saturday as they will take the court against UMBC and the weekend’s hosts NJIT at 10AM and noon respectively.

Women’s Tennis and the both Cross-Country teams will all compete in in-state tournaments as the ladies will hit the courts in the Towson 4+1 Tournament on the Tigers’ Campus and the harriers will run in the Navy Invitational in Annapolis.

The defending MAAC champ Men’s Golf Team, led by Coach Tom Biedleman, will take aim at the Ron Moore Tournament team title in Denver, Colorado in their first action of the season. The Greyhounds will compete against the likes of Ohio St., Iowa, Iowa St., Hawaii, the Air Force Academy, and hosts, the University of Denver, in this seventeen team tournament to be played Sunday-Tuesday.

As for the undefeated Men’s Soccer squad (4-0), they will take their #23 national ranking to the District to take on George Washington University Saturday at 3PM.

Good luck to everyone and be sure to check loyolagreyhounds.com for results.

Men's Soccer Keeps the Ball Rolling

Two more games, two more victories for the now ranked 23rd ranked team in the country – the Loyola men’s soccer team. While many of us were watching the NFL’s opening games last Sunday, the Greyhounds were busy defeating their Baltimore County rival, the Towson Tigers, 2-1in front of an outspoken and unforgiving group of students who made the trip up Charles Street.

Loyola found themselves trailing for the first time in the young season after Towson scored with about 10 minutes remaining in the first half. It was the first - and only - goal allowed by goaltender Milos Kocic and the Loyola defense this year. However, sophomore forward Phil Bannister, a freshmen All-American last Fall, would provide an answer, burying a shot with under 2 minutes left before half to knot the score at 1 at intermission. It wouldn’t be the only time Bannister got the best of the Tiger defense; he scored the game winner in the 88th minute as the game looked on its way to OT. Bannister tallied on a header that found the back of the net off a pass headed by teammate Eddie Dines.

On Wednesday back on the Evergreen Campus the Greyhounds played host to the defending Atlantic Sun champs, Campbell University. The game was a perfect model of what has made this team so successful over the last two seasons – score first and play great defense. Dines, a sophomore midfielder picked up the lone goal of the game minutes into the second half and the back line of Josh Taylor, Glenn Leitch, and Tennant McVea did the dirty work in front of Kocic to insure victory. The shutout was the team’s 3rd in 4 games this year and dating back to last season its 10th consecutive on the DGA turf.

Men’s Soccer Season Kicks Off on the Right Foot

This past weekend junior goalkeeper Milos Kocic posted back-to-back shutouts, while junior forward Jamie Darvill collected 3 goals and the MVP award at the conclusion of the Black and Decker Classic. Loyola prevailed in both their matches playing as host on DGA Field, a pair of 2-0 decisions over Fordham and Hartwick College, to give the team a 2-0 record after the first weekend of play.

Their stellar performance lead to a rise in the national rankings, ascending to 26^th in the just released polls, and individual hardware for both Kocic and Darvill as the MAAC recognized them as Defensive and Offensive Conference Players of the Weeks respectively.

It seems they have picked up right where they left off from last fall; the stingy Greyhound back line has now registered 16 shutouts in their last 17 outings and “The Dogs” have now won their last 12 games played in front of their home fans. If these results are a harbinger for the rest of the season the Greyhounds could make climbing up in the national polls a regular occurrence on the Evergreen Campus.

The men’s next game will be this coming weekend as they will take the team bus a few miles north on Charles Street to take on the Towson Tigers in a Sunday afternoon altercation scheduled for 2:30PM.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

Ready or not, here they come! Diane Geppi-Aikens, sporting new field turf, and Loyola University Maryland, sporting a new name, will play hosts to the first action of the new school year this weekend for the Greyhounds.

The men’s soccer team will welcome the Fordham Rams, the Drexel Dragons, and the Hawks of Hartwick College for the second annual Black and Decker Soccer Classic commencing today with a double-header of action. “The Dogs” will kickoff second with a 5:00PM start time against Fordham after the conclusion of the Drexel-Hartwick match.

Sunday will be a busy day on the DGA pitch with three games scheduled, including the home opener for the Loyola Women’s Soccer Team. FU-Drexel will commence at 10:30AM followed by the Loyola-Hartwick men’s match at 2PM, and play will conclude with the Loyola women taking on Old Dominion at 5PM.

Both Loyola futbol clubs have high expectations for themselves after both claimed MAAC Championships last season. Returning starters are a plenty on both sides, with the men even garnering a preseason rank of 30 in the NCSAA/addidas Preseason National Rankings.

On the men’s side keep an eye on the stingy Loyola defense that last season shut out more opponents than any other Division I in the country. The voters for the Hermann Trophy, soccer’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy, certainly have. Junior defender Tennant McVea and junior goalkeeper Milos Kocic were graced the prestigious honor of being named to the preseason Hermann Trophy Watch List.

Stay tuned to the Hound’s Bark for a more detailed preview of both the men’s and women’s seasons to come soon! Until then, if you’re around the Evergreen Campus this weekend – stop by Diane Geppi-Aikens Field for some great action o