Sept. 4, 2006

St. Louis - No. 24 Saint Louis (1-1-1) goes to the West Coast this weekend to take on No. 15 Santa Clara on Fri., Sept. 8, at 9 p.m. (CT). The Billikens have a date with Navy on Sun., Sept. 10, at 3 p.m. (CT) at Santa Clara. The Bills return to Robert R. Hermann Stadium on Fri., Sept. 15, to entertain No. 13 Indiana for a nationally televised 7 p.m. start on CSTV.

Last Week: Saint Louis claimed the Indiana adidas Classic as the Billikens romped past No. 16 Connecticut 5-1 on Sun., Sept. 3. SLU senior midfielder John DiRaimondo scored twice and assisted on two other tallies, while defender Calum Angus also scored twice. The Billikens and 18th-ranked Notre Dame played to a scoreless draw on Fri., Sept. 1. Senior keeper Nick Billman posted his first career shutout as a Billiken after transferring from UMass.

Classic Performances: Saint Louis made its eighth appearance in Indiana's annual adidas Classic last weekend and won it for the third time. SLU is 11-1-4 all-time at the event with the only loss at the hands of Boston University, 2-0, during the 1995 season. Dan Guffey was named Defensive MVP, and Alex Matteson received the Fair Play Award. John DiRaimondo, Brian Grazier and Casey Spiess were named to the All-Tournament Team.

The Santa Clara Series: Saint Louis leads the series 2-1-0, but the teams have not met since the 1982 season when the Broncos prevailed 3-0 at Santa Clara. The Billikens' victories were a 4-0 whitewash during the 1974 campaign and a 4-1 triumph during 1976. All the matches have been played on the West Coast.

 

Scouting the Broncos: No. 15 Santa Clara (2-0-1) remained unbeaten with a 2-0 blanking of Northwestern at the UC Irvine College Classic on Sat., Sept. 2. The Broncos were scheduled to play Niagara on Labor Day. SCU's other win was over Stanford, while the tie came against then-No. 9 California. Junior midfielder Peter Lowry and freshman forward/midfielder Jeff Cosgriff each have two goals for the Broncos in the early going. Sophomore keeper Joe Buttitta anchors a defense that has allowed only one goal. Head coach Cameron Rast has a five-year career record of 56-22-9 (.695)

The Navy Series: Saint Louis leads the series 3-1-0, but the teams have not met since 1967 when SLU blanked the Midshipmen 1-0. The Bills have won the last two meetings. Navy's triumph was a 2-1 decision at Annapolis during the 1964 season. The match-up has all new meaning for the Billikens, who have been placed in the Middle Atlantic region with their affiliation with the Atlantic 10 Conference, and Navy is also in the Mid-Atlantic.

Scouting the Midshipmen: Navy (2-2-0) will play at Cal Poly on Fri., Sept. 8, before facing the Billikens at Santa Clara on Sunday. The Midshipmen evened their record with a 2-1 triumph over Gonzaga on Sun., Sept. 3. Senior forward McKenzie Plank and junior midfielder Travis King have each scored twice for Navy. The Middies have a seasoned defense with seniors Tom Shelly and Zach Pleis along with juniors Kris Huff and Will Riordan in front of junior keeper Evan Barnes. Head coach Rich Miranda is in his second season with a 10-8-2 (.550) career mark.

Hermann Trophy Candidate: Senior midfielder John DiRaimondo is among 25 players on the 2006 Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch List. It is the second straight year that DiRaimondo has been on that prestigious list. The Hermann Trophy is the official National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Player of the Year Award for NCAA Division I competition.

Dan's Day: Dan Donigan is in his sixth year as head coach with a career record of 67-24-12 (.709). He was the 2003 NSCAA Midwest Region Coach of the Year. He finished 18-2-0 in his debut, which was the best record posted by a Billikens first-year head coach and was Conference USA's 2001 Coach of the Year. His 10-0-0 start was the best by a first-year coach in the Billikens' storied history. The former University of Connecticut All-American and Big East Player of the Decade for the 1980s took charge in 2001 after serving as an assistant coach for the previous four seasons.

In the Polls: After Soccer America had SLU rated No. 25 in its preseason ratings, and College Soccer News ranked the Billikens 27th in its preseason poll, the Billikens dropped out as a result of their season-opening loss to Illinois-Chicago. Soccer America has the Bills back at No. 24 this week.

Offense: Opening the season with back-to-back shutouts, the offense had been starving until the Billikens broke loose for five goals against Connecticut. It was the Bills' best offensive splurge since scoring eight against Saint Joseph's last year.

Defense: Saint Louis' defense has been holding up its part of the bargain to date. In three games, the Bills have allowed just two goals and only 14 shots on goal.

D-Rays: Senior midfielder John DiRaimondo (St. Louis, Mo. / Edison Academic Center, Bradenton, Fla.) is a Hermann Trophy candidate ... busted out of a scoring slump with two goals, including the game winner, and two assists against No. 16 Connecticut and was named to the IU Classic All-Tournament Team ... is tied for 11th with Jack Jewsbury on SLU's all-time assists list with 25 behind Carl Gentile who is 10th with 26.

Matte Finish: Senior midfielder Alex Matteson (Chesterfield, Mo. / Chaminade) scored his first goal of the season against UConn and received the Fair Play Award at the IU Classic.

Time and Spiess: Senior midfielder/back Casey Spiess (Florissant, Mo. / DeSmet) recorded his first career two-assist game against UConn and was named to the IU Classic All-Tournament team ... came off the bench in the season opener, but started both games at the Indiana adidas Classic.

Takes No Guff: Senior defender Dan Guffey (St. Peters, Mo. / Howell North) was named Defensive MVP at the IU Classic ... was back in the starting lineup against Notre Dame after twice leaving the UIC match with injuries.

Mo Defense: Senior defender Mo Benne (Ellisville, Mo. / Chaminade) is one of the mainstays in the back and has started all three matches.

Nick of Time: Senior goalkeeper Nick Billman (St. Louis, Mo. / DeSmet) posted his first career win as a Billiken by making two saves against UConn ... made four saves against Notre Dame to record his first career shutout as a Billiken.

Grazin': Junior midfielder Brian Grazier (Edwardsville, Ill. / Edison Academic Center, Bradenton, Fla.) was named to the IU Classic All-Tournament team ... has completely recovered from leg injuries that kept him out of the 2005 season and is back in the starting lineup.

Bolstering the Back: Junior defender Bobby Wilmering (St. Louis, Mo. / DeSmet) has seen time in all three games to date ... is a junior college transfer from St. Louis Community College-Meramec.

It's Magic: Sophomore forward Dado Hamzagic (St. Louis, Mo. / Mehlville) had a game-high four shots against Notre Dame ... was named preseason All-Conference.

From Across the Pond: Sophomore forward Kyle Patterson (Birmingham, England) came off the bench against Connecticut after starting the first two matches.

British Invasion: Sophomore defender Calum Angus (Portsmouth, England) had a career-high five points (2G, 1A) against Connecticut.

That's Sweet: Sophomore midfielder Eric Sweetin (Overland Park, Kan. / Kansas City Rockhurst) was back in the lineup against Notre Dame after leaving the UIC match in the 18th minute with an injury.

California Dreaming: Freshman defender Rob Viviano (Orange, Calif. / Orange Lutheran) is the lone rookie starter ... was back in the lineup against Notre Dame after leaving the UIC match with an injury.

Fresh Faces: Freshmen Josh Aranda (St. Louis, Mo. / DeSmet), Kyle Hayes (St. Louis, Mo. / CBC), Jimmy Holmes (St. Louis, Mo. / Priory), Scott Wisniewski (Dallas, Texas / Marcus) and Tim Ream (St. Louis, Mo. / St. Dominic) all made their Billiken debuts against UIC ... Hayes had the Bills' best scoring chance against Notre Dame and registered his first career shot.

Donigan's Data: "It felt great to come up with that kind of result against UConn, which is one of the top five teams in the country. We came out with a lot of heart, passion and desire, and we never really gave them a chance. It was just our day."