http://redstormsports.collegesports.com/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/083104aaa.html Queens, NY - The St. John's University men's soccer team, which kicks off its 2004 season at home this upcoming weekend, was rated among the top three teams in the country in a pair of national preseason polls released this week. The Red Storm open the 2004 regular season on Friday, September 3, hosting BIG EAST rival West Virginia at Belson Stadium at 8 p.m. On Monday, September 6, the Red Storm will host Pacific 10 power Washington at 8 p.m. at Belson Stadium. St. John's, which has been selected as the preseason favorite to win the BIG EAST Regular Season title for the second-straight year, was rated as the No. 3 team in a poll released today by Soccer America, and was tabbed at No. 2 by Soccer Times. That gave the Red Storm four top-three national ratings, as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America andCollegeSoccerNews.com had the team as the second-ranked team in the country in their preseason polls. In the Soccer America poll, the Red Storm were rated third behind Indiana and UCLA. Following St. John's is Wake Forest, Connecticut, North Carolina, Santa Clara, St. Louis, Notre Dame and California. St. John's is one of four BIG EAST schools in the poll. In the Soccer Times poll, the Red Storm were rated second behind Indiana, picked as the No. 1 team in all four polls. St. John's was followed by UCLA, St. Louis, Maryland, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Santa Clara, Notre Dame and Washington. The Red Storm were one of three league schools in the top-25. St. John's opened its 2004 season last weekend, playing in the IPFW Soccer Classic in Indiana. The team went 1-1 in a pair of exhibition games, beating Kentucky, 2-1, with senior Matt Groenwald (Mt. Prospect, IL) scoring two goals to lead the way. The Red Storm went 17-6-3 in 2003, finishing the season as the No. 2-ranked team in the country after reaching the NCAA Championship Game and winning the program's 11th BIG EAST Championship in the last 12 years.
http://bigapplesoccer.com/college/stjohns2.php?article_id=959 Sept. 3, 2004 SEEING RED Groenwald and SJU teammates ready for '04 Matt Groenwald was frustrated. He was frustrated at not being able to play in the NCAA national title game last year and he was frustrated that he and his teammates at St. John’s went so far and came up just short of their ultimate goal, losing to Indiana 2-1 last December. “When you get that close and (the national championship) is within grasp, to not come away with it burns even more,” said the senior midfielder. “Taking a look back at last year, it was successful as a whole but not one person on the team is content with the outcome.” It was the second time Groenwald and the other Red Storm seniors went home from a Final Four empty-handed. As freshmen, they were on the team that lost to Indiana in double overtime in the semifinals. The following season, Groenwald said, the Red Storm took things for granted a bit and weren’t as sharp as they could have been. The result was a second round loss to Creighton. But it’s because of that experience that Groenwald believes this year’s team will be even more determined to return to the Final Four. “It’s already been spoken about in team meetings. Last year doesn’t mean anything after what happened our sophomore year,” Groenwald said. “It helps because we’ve been here before from our freshman year and we remember what it’s like.” If preseason polls carry any credence — and St. John’s coach Dave Masur will be the first to say they do not — then many across the country also feel the Red Storm should face top-ranked Indiana in the national championship again. St. John’s is ranked No. 2 in the country in two national polls and No. 3 in the other. Eight starters are back, forward Andre Schmid is returning from injury and the incoming class was ranked among the best in the country. Groenwald was one of 25 players nationally named to the Hermann Award watch list, Simone Salinno was named the Big East preseason Offensive Player of the Year and Chris Corcoran was another All-Big East selection. But Masur isn’t satisfied with preseason numbers or accolades. “We have to be a bit more athletic in the midfield and in the back, and we’ve got to go out tougher up front and be more consistent on the ball,” said Masur, who is 206-53-34 in 12 years at St. John’s. “We have to be tougher and more focused.” And Corcoran, who will miss Friday night’s opener against West Virginia (a live broadcast and stats can be found on www.RedStormSports.com) and a match-up with Pac-10 power Washington Monday night recovering from a stress fracture in his left foot, knows that the Red Storm’s success also bring with it more pressure every game. “We’ve been lucky enough to be successful, going to the Final Four two of the last three years,” said Red Storm captain. “We’re going into games against teams that saw us on TV in December. This is their chance at a Final Four.” St. John’s will miss the leadership both on and off the field of Chris Wingert, the 2003 Hermann Award winner and most decorated player in St. John’s history, as well as gritty center midfielder Matia Damiani, but welcome back versatile players with a wealth of experience. Chris Leidner, who would have been the top defender back, will sit out the season as a medical redshirt. In addition to Groenwald, Salinno and Corcoran, keeper Billy Gaudette, Ryan Kelly, Sebastian Alvarado-Ralph, Jeff Carroll and Georgios Spanos are back, and are joined by highly-touted newcomers Brandon Oot, Jason Landers, Swedes Farid Hafsia and Patrik Engstrom and the New Zealand duo of Sam Matthews and Steven Old. The newcomers will be tested immediately, with a tough opening weekend of West Virginia and Washington. The Red Storm then heads to the University of Maryland to face the host Terrapins in a national semifinal rematch Sept. 10 and then the always-tough Penn State Sept. 12 in a brutal September that Masur calls the “toughest ever,” of his 12 years at the helm.
St. John's-2-West Virginia-0 http://redstormsports.collegesports.com/sports/m-soccer/recaps/090304aaa.html next game on Monday
St. John's-1-Washington-0 Schmid's Second Half Goal Leads No. 2 St. John's Over No. 21 Washington Sept. 6, 2004 Queens, NY - St. John's senior Andre Schmid (Sacramento, CA) scored in the second half, lifting the second-ranked St. John's men's soccer team to a 1-0 win over No. 21 Washington in front of 1,095 fans at Belson Stadium tonight. St. John's finally broke through in the 79th minute, when Schmid picked up a deflection in the box and sent a blast from 12 yards out that beat Washington keeper Chris Eylander to the lower left. Schmid picked up the deflection off a shot from senior Matt Groenwald (Mt. Prospect, IL) from the top of the 18-yard box. The Red storm controlled play though much of the first half, despite the Huskies getting the first shot attempt, with a poke from Washington's Brett Wiesner going wide in the fourth minute. From that point forward, however, St. John's was in control, as Groenwald and freshman Andrei Gotsmanov (St. Paul, MN) each had chances. St. John's had a pair of chances in the waning moments of regulation. The first shot from Groenwald came as he dribbled down the end line and took a blast that went just wide. A free kick from 40 yards out was deflected to the top of the box on the far side, where junior Jeff Carroll (Springfield, VA) headed the ball and it was saved by Washington defender Mike Chabala. Senior Bill Gaudette (Hummelstown, PA) posted his second consecutive shutout to open the season, as he grabbed two saves. St. John's out shot the Huskies 13-to-5 and also held a 9-to-1 advantage in corner kicks on the night. St. John's plays next on Friday, September 10 at Maryland in a rematch of last year's Final Four match, in which the Red Storm advanced, 1-0. Kickoff at the Maryland/adidas Classic is set for 8 pm.
St. John's plays next on Friday, September 10 at Maryland in a rematch of last year's Final Four match, in which the Red Storm advanced, 1-0. Kickoff at the Maryland/adidas Classic is set for 8 pm.
i am watching the ST John game on Comcast...Maryland was up 3-1 hat half and are up 5-2 right now. St. John's defence is terrible...getting shreaded and making bonehead plays.
Printer-Friendly Format Senior Simone Salinno scored his first goal of the season in St. John's 2-0 win over Seton Hall. Salinno, Old Score as St. John's Tops Seton Hall, 2-0 Sept. 17, 2004 Box Score Queens, NY - St. John's scored two goals in the second half and the seventh-ranked Red Storm men's soccer team topped Seton Hall, 2-0, in front of 1,070 fans during first round play of the St. John's Nike Cup Tournament at Belson Stadium. In the first game of the day, George Mason scored two goals in the first half en route to a 3-0 win over No. 10 St. Louis.
St. John's -1-St. Louis -0 St. Louis (3-3-0) vs. Goals by period 1 2 Tot St. John's (4-1-1) ------------------------------- Date: Sep 18, 2004 Attendance: 873 St. Louis........... 0 0 - 0 Weather: Overcast, windy, cool, 58 degrees St. John's.......... 1 0 - 1 St. Louis
St. John's schedule, record etc http://redstormsports.collegesports.com/sports/m-soccer/sched/stjo-m-soccer-sched.html
Would appreciate someone posting a Georgetown score today as soon as you find out. Game is not on radio or internet.
http://bigapplesoccer.com/college/stjohns2.php?article_id=1090 Sept. 22, 2004 ANOTHER CLEAN SHEET St. John's 6th shutout stops Georgetown, 1-0 Every game St. John's plays, it looks more and more that its 5-2 loss to Maryland was an aberration. The Red Storm registered its sixth shutout in seven games this season on Wednesday, blanking Georgetown in a Big East matchup Washington, D.C., 1-0. St. John's has not allowed a goal in more than 410 minutes. Junior Sebastian Alvarado-Ralph provided all the scoring the sixth-ranked Storm (3-0-0 league, 5-1-1 overall) needed, scoring with less than 10 minutes remaining en route to its third consecutive win. Georgetown fell to 0-2-0 in the league and 3-5-0 overall. "It was a hard-fought battle on a warm day," St. John's coach Dave Masur said. "It was nice to go down there and get a win." The decisive goal was scored after a Georgetown foul gave the Storm a free kick on the near sideline. Junior Jeff Carroll sent his kick toward the box, and Alvarado-Ralph headed it past Georgetown goalkeeper Andrew Keszler at 80:11. The Hoyas had opportunities in the second half, but senior keeper Bill Gaudette made saves on shots from Jeff Curtin and Ricky Schramm to preserve the win. The Storm had controlled play for much of the first half, outshooting the Hoyas, 7-3, with senior Matt Groenwald and freshman Jeff Stepan each hitting the post. St. John's outshot Georgetown, 16-10. The Red Storm returns to action at Boston College (1-1-0, 4-1-0) at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Went to the BC game yesterday. Better team won. Redmen still without Groenwald and Kelly but just don't have enough pace to stay with a team like B. C.
U17 National Team co-captain Ryan Soroka commits to St. Johns http://topdrawersoccer.com/NextStep/1096506883/view
I have a question for soccer fans in the NY area......What is the explaination of FDU having so many foreigners or foreign born players????
Well unfortunately my beloved Storm fell to WVU this past Saturday. Where do you think they'll end up in the NCAA tourney rankings?
I was there. I see them around a 15-20 seed. Don't see them going far this year at all. They just aren't that good.
Congratulations to St. John's big win over UCLA 2-1 Maryland will be next http://redstormsports.collegesports.com/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/112804aaa.html
After a disappointing season (mazur's worst record since his arrival), look for next year's team to be much better. No real key graduation losses and 2 absolute studs coming in (Beltran and Soroka).
I guess your definition of key is different from most peoples. I would define a midfielder who was All Big East first team the last two seasons as key. I would define a midfielder who was All Big East third team this year, after being a first teamer last year and second teamer as a sophomore, as key. I would define the starting GK, who was All Big East second team twice in his career, as key. And I would define a starter on a very good defense who also scored a key post-season goal as key. Maybe you don't think Simone Salinno, Chris Corcoran, Bill Gaudette and Ryan Kelly are "key players" but I bet you Dave Masur does. That doesn't mean St. John's won't be strong next year. I'm sure they will be as they are a perennial Top Ten program and have a great coach. But I think they'll have some gaps to fill.
undefined Salinno will hurt but Groenwald will more than ably replace him. Corcoran was hurt almost the entire season. Kelly missed a lot of games due to injuries and is nowhere near the defender that returning red-shirt Chris Leidner is. Gaudette is one of my all time favorites but with former national team GK Jason Landers in goal next season, SJU will be fine.
That's not being dipsuted. Most good programs always have good pieces already in the program or incoming that replace the players they lose. What is being argued is that St. John's loses "no key players." I guess we'll just disagree but I have a hard time seeing how a true fan of the program doesn't see Salino, Corcoran, Kelly and Gaudette as key losses.