RIPON, Wis. – The 2011 Midwest Conference Tournament returns two teams from last season and welcomes two new ones when the two day tournament kicks off on Friday afternoon from Waukesha, Wis. Carroll earned hosting duties after winning the MWC Championship for the third time in the last four years and aim for back-to-back MWC Tournament titles. Lawrence is also back in the picture holding the second seed while third seeded Beloit and fourth seed Lake Forest will be making appearances after missing the tournament last season.
On Friday morning Lake Forest will take on Carroll at 11 a.m. while Beloit and Lawrence will battle it out at 1:30 p.m. The winners of those two matches will meet each other on Saturday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. for a chance to earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Earlier this season Lake Forest defeated Carroll 2-0 on October 30th and Lawrence beat Beloit 2-1 on October 15th.
After winning the MWC Championship for the third time in the last four years the Pioneers will try to capture the MWC Tournament title for the fourth time in the last five years as they host the 2011 MWC Men’s Soccer Tournament. The Carroll offense is scoring just over two goals a game and ranks second in the MWC with 35 goals in 17 games. Jordan Wickman headlines the offense with 20 points (eight goals, four assists) and leads the league lead with five game-winning goals. Dan Czernicki also has scored eight goals while Andy Ksobiech (five goals, one assist) and Steve Koprowski (four goals, four assists) have 11 and 12 points, respectively. Tomek Miaskowski is the backstop of the defense as he finished the regular season with a 1.18 goals against average (second in MWC) and a conference-best five shutouts.
Lawrence makes a MWC Tournament appearance for the seventh time in school history and is in search of its first tournament title in 2011. David Caprile has a team-high five goals and 12 points to lead the Vikings offense as he also is a perfect 4-for-4 in penalty kicks and boasts a 29% shooting percentage. Vince Butitta is the only other Viking with double-figure points with 10 (four goals, two assists) with two of his four goals going in as game-winners. Hashim Allah-Morad and Simon Newsom each hold the team lead with three assists apiece. Steven Solomon has been in net for 14 games this season and holds a 2.26 goals against average and making 64 saves on the season.
Beloit is back in the MWC Tournament after missing the four-team playoff last season and aims for its first tournament championship in school history. Beloit enters the weekend averaging 1.64 goals per game and is led by the conference’s third leading goal scorer, Jackson Wilkins. Wilkins has eight goals on the season and average .62 goals per game while also posting four assists. Tom Slusher has 15 points on the season (seven goals, one assist) and Marc Robinson (six goals, two assists) gives the Buccaneers a formidable trio on the offensive end. Beloit is tied for third in the league only allowing 24 goals in 16 contests and relies on goalkeeper BJ Kiser who has started in all 16 games this season for the Bucs. Kiser is fifth in the league with a 1.45 goals against average and has made 92 saves on the season, fourth most in the MWC.
With a 13-2-3 mark Lake Forest holds the top overall record of all teams in the tournament this weekend and boasts a roster with seven players that have four goals or more and at least 10 points. The Foresters average more than four shots more per game (17.78) than any other team in the conference and they also lead the league in team points per game (7.50), goals per game (2.50), goals allowed per game (0.72) and goals against average (0.68). Mahir Meameledzija is second in the conference in points (32) and goals (13) to lead the Foresters offense while Alexi Spiratos (four goals, seven assists) and Chris Haught Thompson (one goal, six assists) both rank in the top three in the league in assists. Stephen Egan and Nicholas Kliminski both have five goals to round out a formidable offensive lineup. Goalkeepers Giancarlo Colasanti and Ian Taylor have allowed just 13 goals combined and the team has shut out six opponents.
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