The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
No. 24 UAB Hosts Lipscomb In Final Non-Conference Match
9/21/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 21, 2012
UAB Match Notes | Gametracker | Live Video
BIRMNGHAM, Ala. - The No. 24 UAB men's soccer team will play its final non-conference match of the regular season when it welcomes the Lipscomb Bisons to West Campus Field on Saturday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT.
UAB and Lipscomb will square off for the third time in series history on Saturday night. The Blazers have shutout the Bisons in both matches by a combined score of 7-0.
UAB captured a 3-0 victory on Sept. 7, 2007 at West Campus Field in the first meeting between the two squads on the pitch. In 2010, the Blazers won 4-0 over the Bisons in Nashville, Tenn.
About UAB
UAB enters the contest Friday night sporting a 4-2-2 record through eight games on the year. The Blazers are coming off a successful week in which the went 2-0-1 and captured the 2012 UAB "Soccer For A Cure" Classic last weekend.
Leading the way is senior forward Kofi Gyawu, who enters the contest topping the Blazers in goals (4), shots (19) and shots on goal (10). He is tied for the team lead in assists (1) and game-winning goals (1).
Senior defender Mladen Lemez ranks second on the squad with two goals, four points and 11 shots.
Junior goalkeeper Raphael Ville maintains a 0.93 goals against average, making 36 saves, while allowing just eight goals on the year.
Head coach Mike Getman is in his 21st season at the helm of the Blazers men's soccer program. He owns a record of 229-138-34 (.614) record during his time at UAB, and boasts an overall coaching record of 271-164-43 (.619) in his 26 seasons as a head coach.
About Lipscomb
Lipscomb enters this weekend's match at UAB with a 2-5 record on the season, including a 1-1 mark in road contests. The Bisons most recently split back-to-back home overtime contests, defeating Oral Roberts, 3-2, on Sept. 9, before falling to Bradley, 2-1, on Sept. 14.
UAB In The National Rankings
The UAB men's soccer remained in the nation's top 30, checking in at No. 24 in the country in the Soccer Times and No. 26 in CollegeSoccerNews.com's top-30 national poll, which was released on Monday.
The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) weekly poll, had the Blazers as the first team receiving votes (No. 26). Furthermore, UAB was ranked as the No. 2 team in the Midwest Region by the NSCAA.
The Blazers have now been ranked among the nation's top-25 teams in 17 of the last 19 seasons.
Below is a look at where the Blazers have been ranked in the national polls for each of the three weeks this season:
Week NSCAA CSN Soccer Times
Preseason 21 20 23
8/26 17 16 18
9/3 25 24 22
9/10 RV (27) 29 RV (28)
9/17 RV (26) 26 24
All-Tournament Blazers
Four UAB men's soccer players garnered "Soccer For A Cure" Classic All-Tournament honors for their efforts in helping the team claim the championship.
Senior defender Mladen Lemez was named the Classic's Most Valuable Player, while Reed Matte, Kofi Gyawu and Moses Adeniran were also named to the all-tournament team.
Tough Schedule-Good Results
The Blazers have played a strong schedule this season as three of the eight teams they have faced during the regular season have been ranked in the top-20 in the nation.
UAB has a 1-1-1 record against ranked opponents this year. The Blazers tied then-No. 3 Charlotte, 1-1, on the road (Aug. 31) and defeated then-No. 20 Washington, 2-0, at home (9/16). The lone loss was at No. 8 New Mexico (9/8).
Matte Named UAB Student-Athlete of the Week
Senior defender Reed Matte has been selected as the Student-Athlete of the Week, presented by Waffle House. It is the second time that Matte has earned the honor, which acknowledges those who succeed both in the classroom and in athletic competition for the Blazers.
Matte, a senior defender, is coming off an outstanding week on the pitch, helping lead the 24th-ranked Blazers to a 2-0-1 record and the UAB "Soccer For A Cure" Classic championship.
The week began on Monday when the Preseason All-Conference USA honoree scored the game-winning goal to help lift the Blazers to a 2-0 victory at Clemson. He now has three tallies for his career, all of which have been game winners.
He followed that performance by being named to the "Soccer For A Cure" Classic All-Tournament team, as UAB posted a 1-0-1 record in the event. The Birmingham, Ala. native played all 110 minutes of a 2-2 draw vs. Fairleigh Dickinson on Friday's opening day and followed that by playing all 90 minutes of a 2-0 victory over then-No. 20 Washington to clinch the championship. The Blazers secured the title for the third consecutive season and the ninth time in the 15 years of the event
In the classroom, Matte has been equally impressive. He maintains a 3.43 cumulative grade point average as an anthropology major. He was selected to the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll in 2010 and 2011, which is awarded to student-athletes who maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better. He was also named to the Dean's List (3.6 or above) in the 2012 Spring semester.
Ville Has Big Night
Part of the reason that UAB was able to come away with a 1-1 tie at then-No. 3 Charlotte was due to the play of junior goalkeeper Raphael Ville. The native of France played a huge role, making 10 saves on the night to preserve the point.
For the season, Ville has recorded two shutouts and made 36 saves, while allowing only eight goals (0.93 GAA).
Gyawu Named C-USA Offensive POW
UAB senior forward Kofi Gyawu was chosen as the men's soccer Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week, league officials announced on Aug. 27. It marks the second time Gyawu has earned the honor, and the first since his freshman season in 2009.
After he battled through several nagging injuries in 2011, Gyawu began his senior year with a bang.
In the season-opening match against Mercer on Friday night, the Lilburn, Ga., native recorded UAB's first goal of the season and assisted on the game winner in the 2-1 win.
He followed that by scoring the game-winner in the 2-1 victory over Georgia Southern on Sunday, while also recording a team-best three shots and two shots on goal.
Matte Named Preseason All-Conference
UAB senior defender Reed Matte was named to the Preseason All-Conference USA Men's Soccer team.
Matte, one of four seniors on this year's team, is coming off an outstanding junior season in which he earned second-team all-conference honors.
A native of Birmingham, Ala., Matte played an integral part of the league's stingiest defense a year ago, helping hold the opposition to a 1.01 goals per game and seven shutouts - both of which led C-USA.
Matte started all 21 contests a year ago and led the team in minutes played (1,941). Furthermore, he also posed an offensive threat as he scored two goals in 2011, both of which were game-winning strikes (against then-No. 20 VCU and Kentucky).
UAB Hosts Big Soccer Events
The UAB men's soccer team will play host to two major soccer events in the upcoming year. The Blazers will host the 2012 Conference USA Championship and the 2012 NCAA College Cup, with both events taking place at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala.
The Conference USA Championship returns to Birmingham for the first time since the 2007 campaign. The event will take place on Nov. 7-11.
UAB, along with the Alabama Sports Foundation, will host the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship for a second consecutive year. The event will take place December 7 and 9, 2012 at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala.
For tickets to either or both events, fans can log onto UABsports.com or collegecupsoccer.com or call the UAB athletic ticket office (205-975-8221.
UAB Soccer Best In C-USA
UAB head coach Mike Getman knows a few things about winning games in Conference USA. Since the league began back in 1995, Getman ranks as the conference's all-time winningest coach, racking up an astounding 83 C-USA victories, which is nearly 40 wins better than his closest competition (John Tart of Charlotte with 45 wins). Following the 2011 C-USA regular season, the Blazers' head coach owns an overall conference record of 83-48-13 (.623).
In addition, UAB is the winningest league team since the inception of C-USA (1995), with a record of 195-110-28 (.628), which leads all league squads in terms of total wins. Memphis is in second in the league with 119 overall wins over that same time frame.
What's On Deck
UAB will next take on SMU in the opening game of the 2012 Conference USA slate. The Blazers and Mustangs will square off on Saturday, Sept. 29, at 7 p.m. at West Campus Field in Birmingham, Ala.
