Nov. 14, 2007

Olathe, Kan. - The first day of the 2007 NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship is complete and four teams have advanced to Day 2. The Championship, hosted by MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.) and the Olathe Chamber of Commerce, will continue tomorrow at 12 p.m. (CST). All games are played at the College Boulevard Activity Center (CBAC) with the final scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. (CST).

DAY 1 SCORES (Wednesday, Nov. 14):
Game #1: No. 13 Maine-Fort Kent 2, No. 20 Northwestern (Iowa) 1
Game #2: No. 19 Embry-Riddle (Fla.) 2, No. 14 Madonna (Mich.) 1
Game #3: No. 18 Mid-Continent (Ky.) 2, No. 15 Judson (Ill.) 1
Game #4: No. 17 Mid-America Nazarene (Kan.) 2, No. 16 Covenant (Ga.) 0

DAY 1 NOTES:
·         Three of the four games were won by the lower seeds.
·         Maine-Fort Kent won its first ever contest in the Championship.
·         Maine-Fort Kent's Andre Anderson notched his 27^th goal in the win today - he is the active leader in goals scored among all current Championship players.
·         Embry-Riddle extended its winning streak to seven games.
·         With the Championship win, Embry-Riddle snaps a four-game losing streak in finals play.
·         Mid-Continent is now 2-0 in first-round games.
·         Riding a five-game winning streak on the year, Mid-Continent advances to its second straight quarterfinal round tomorrow.
·         Mid-America Nazarene notched its sixth shut-out of the season - half of its 12 wins this year have been of the shut-out variety.

DAY 1 RECAP:
Wednesday, Nov. 14
Game #1 - No. 13 Maine-Fort Kent 2, No. 20 Northwestern (Iowa) 1
(box score)
No. 13 seed Maine-Fort Kent moved to 21-0 on the season with a 2-1 first-round win over No. 20 seed
Northwestern (Iowa). The victory handed the Bengals their first Championship win in its first appearance. Dwayne Smith picked up his 11^th goal of the year to open up the scoring in the 34^th minute. Sunrise Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year Andre Anderson notched the game-winner on a break-away at midfield for his team-leading 27^th goal of the campaign in the 42^nd minute. The Bengals held a 10-3 shot advantage in the first half.

Northwestern made a comeback-bid in the second half piling on 14 shots and scoring in the 59^th minute
via a Brad White netter. However, Maine-Fort Kent goaltender Derick Plourde posted six saves in the win, including five in the second period, to stave off the Red Raiders.

Maine-Fort Kent will now face No. 4 seed Ohio Dominican on Thursday (Nov. 15) at 12 p.m. ODU had a first-round bye. Northwestern ends its season with a 12-8-1 mark.

Game #2 - No. 19 Embry-Riddle 2, No. 14 Madonna (Mich.) 1
(box score)
Hugh Davey found the back of the net in the 69^th minute and lifted No. 19 seed Embry-Riddle to a 2-1 win over No. 14 seed Madonna (Mich.).  Embry-Riddle (11-6-2) nearly doubled Madonna in shots with a 16-9 edge. ERU's Phil Middleton struck quickly in the second minute with his second goal of the year, an unassisted one. Madonna's Darrel Quinn tied the contest up with his seventh goal in the 43^rd minute.

Goaltender Ian Levine posted the win with four saves on the day.

Embry-Riddle advances to play No. 3 seed Mobile (Ala.) at 2:15 p.m. tomorrow (Thursday). The Crusaders, who appeared in their first Championship, end their campaign at 14-4-2.

Game #3 - No. 18 Mid-Continent (Ky.) 2, No. 15 Judson (Ill.) 1
(box score)
Two second-half goals in a span of eight minutes propelled No. 18 seed Mid-Continent (Ky.) to a 2-1 victory against No. 15 seed Judson (Ill.). Down 1-0, All-Region XI performer Marcio Neves took a feed from Freddy Tims in the 54^th minute to tie the count up. That followed a Mark Howlett score in the 38^th minute for Judson. The tie-breaker came from Martin Castro in the 62^nd minute and sent Mid-Continent to the quarterfinal round.

Goaltender Michael Etale earned the win as his defense did not allow a shot on goal. There were a combined 24 fouls in the contest.

Mid-Continent (14-7-2) looks forward to play No. 2 seed Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) at 4:30 p.m. Judson  ends its season at 15-5-3.

Game #4 - No. 17 Mid-America Nazarene (Kan.) 2 , No. 16 Covenant (Ga.)
(box score)
In its first ever Championship appearance, No. 17 seed Mid-America Nazarene (Kan.) pulled out a 2-0
win over No. 16 seed Covenant (Ga.) in front of its home fans. After not much offense in the first half,
which included zero combined shots on goal, there was plenty of action in the second. MNU's Dave
Richards notched his eighth goal of the year on a break-away from midfield in the 52^nd minute to give the
Pioneers a 1-0 edge. Less than two minutes later, Alec Lemmon found the net off a feed from his brother,
Jon. That put the game out of reach as the Pioneers won its first Championship game.

Mid-America out-shot Covenant 12-5 on the night. Goaltender James Mace blocked one shot to earn the victory.

Mid-America will play No. 1 seed Azusa Pacific at 7 p.m. tomorrow.

DAY 2 SCHEDULE (Thursday, Nov. 15):
Game #5: No. 4 Ohio Dominican vs. No. 13 Maine-Fort Kent, 12 p.m.
Game #6: No. 3 Mobile (Ala.) vs. No. 19 Embry-Riddle, 2:15 p.m.
Game #7: No. 2 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) vs. No. 18 Mid-Continent, 4:30 p.m.
Game #8: No. 1 Azusa Pacific (Calif.) vs. No. 17 Mid-America Nazarene, 7 p.m.