Men's Soccer Set for #11 Monmouth in NCAA Tournament First Round

Men's Soccer Falters in Ivy Opener at Princeton

Men's Soccer Set for #11 Monmouth in NCAA Tournament First Round

11/17/2010 7:50:00 PM | Men's Soccer

By: Dartmouth

Winners of four straight, the Dartmouth men's soccer team looks to snap #11 Monmouth's 12-game unbeaten streak in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at noon this Thursday in New Jersey. The winner will advance to face ninth-seeded Notre Dame on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 6 p.m. in South Bend, Ind.

2010 NCAA Tournament: First Round
Game 18: Dartmouth (10-6-1) at Monmouth (14-1-4)
Date: Thursday, Nov. 18, 2010 • 12 PM
Location: The Great Lawn • Monmouth, N.J.
Series Record: First meeting

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IVY LEAGUE HONORS
For the second straight season, Daniel Keat (Wellington, New Zealand) and Lucky Mkosana (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) headline Dartmouth's five All-Ivy honorees as repeat selections to the first team. Mkosana, a junior forward, has earned his third straight first team All-Ivy honor while Keat, a fifth-year senior midfielder, has also made three appearances in 2006, 2009 and 2010.

Three other Dartmouth players were named honorable mention All-Ivy: senior defender Bryan Giudicelli (Emerald Hills, Calif.), sophomore defender Teo Larsson-Sax (Kalmar, Sweden) and senior forward Andrew Olsen (Norwell, Mass.).

Keat, who ran the midfield for Dartmouth, was one of just three unanimous selections to the All-Ivy first team. The senior started 16 contests for the Big Green and tallied nine points on four goals and one assist. He was also named first team All-Ivy as a freshman in 2006 and last season in 2009, when he earned NSCAA All-America third team status. Keat was named second team All-Ivy as a sophomore in 2007 and missed the 2008 season with injury.

One of the league's most feared strikers, Mkosana earned his third straight All-Ivy first team honor this fall. Though his numbers were lower than his first two seasons, Mkosana was a central part of Dartmouth's offense and his exploits consistently helped free up other attacking players. He leads the Big Green in scoring to date with 11 points on four goals and three assists.

Olsen has been named All-Ivy for the third time in his career, previously tabbed honorable mention in 2009 and second team All-Ivy in 2008. As a four-year starter, Olsen has been both a great striker and playmaker for Dartmouth, tallying 39 career points with an even 13 goals and 13 assists including nine game-winners. This fall he ranks second on the team with three goals and four assists for 10 points.

Giudicelli has been named honorable mention All-Ivy for the second time in his career, also picking up honors in 2008. The senior has been a rock on defense during his career, contributing to a staggering 25 shutouts to date. This fall, Giudicelli has scored two goals including the game-winner against New Mexico.

Lastly, Larsson-Sax makes his All-Ivy debut after a breakout season as one of Dartmouth's top backs. In his second year as a starter, Larsson-Sax found his niche on set pieces, also contributing three goals including the game-winner against San Diego.

IN THE CLASSROOM AND ON THE FIELD
Seniors Bryan Giudicelli (Emerald Hills, Calif.) and Andrew Olsen have been named to CoSIDA's Academic All-District first team. The teams are voted upon by members of CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) in each of eight districts. Student-athletes must have a minimum cumulative gpa of 3.2 and are selected based on both their academic and athletic prowess. Giudicelli, a defender, is making his second appearance on the all-district first team and it is the second-straight season that Dartmouth has had two players make the team.

As a team, Dartmouth was just honored as an NSCAA Academic Squad and the team's cumulative GPA for the 2009-10 school year — a 3.33 — ranked ninth nationally.

NCAA TOURNAMENT EXPERIENCE
Dartmouth's senior class (Class of 2011) has become the first class in program history to make four NCAA Tournament appearances. Currently, 18 players have NCAA experience while 13 have been in the starting lineup of an NCAA game.

Senior Bryan Giudicelli is the only player to have played in all four of NCAA Tournament games since 2007.

COMEBACK KIDS
Dartmouth has proven that it can never be counted out this season. Of its 10 wins, five have been won in comeback fashion when the Big Green trailed by at least one goal: San Diego, Bradley, Vermont, Harvard and New Hampshire. Dartmouth's lone tie, 1-1 at UMass, was also a comeback game. In recent weeks, the Big Green has won two comeback games in even more dramatic fashion. Dartmouth scored two goals just over a minute apart in the final 20 minutes against Harvard and two goals 30 seconds apart with 10 minutes to play versus UNH.

IVY LEAGUE AT A GLANCE
For the second straight season, the Ivy League has sent four teams to the NCAA Tournament: Princeton, Penn, Dartmouth and Brown. It is the first time since the 1971 and 1972 seasons that the League has sent four teams in back-to-back years.

AGAINST THE TOURNAMENT FIELD
The Big Green has played seven of the other 47 teams in the 2010 NCAA Tournament field including Boston College, Bradley, Brown, Creighton, New Mexico, Penn and Princeton. Dartmouth is 3-4 against the field with wins over Bradley, Brown and New Mexico

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
Dating back to the first game of the 2007 season, Dartmouth boasts a 26-5-3 record at its home pitch, Burnham Field. For the past two seasons, the Big Green has ranked first in the Ivy League in attendance, welcoming an average of 1,000+ per home game in each of the last three seasons. Against Brown on Nov. 14, 2008 for a nationally-televised game, Dartmouth broke the Burnham Field record with a sellout crowd of 2,114.

SUPER SENIORS
Including two fifth-years, Dartmouth has nine seniors on its roster: Austin Bowers, Aaron Gaide, Bryan Giudicelli, Daniel Keat, Brendan Lane, Walker Linares, Lyman Missimer, Andrew Olsen, and Donnie Surdoval. During their time at Dartmouth, these young men have been exemplary student-athletes, on and off the field. As a class, they have helped the Big Green to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances and an Ivy League Championship in 2008, totaling 42 wins with 18 Ivy victories to date.

ASSAULTING THE RECORD BOOKS
Two current Dartmouth players have already inked their names on the program record books for scoring. Junior Lucky Mkosana should have his sights set on the career records for both goals and points as he was more than halfway to both marks after just two collegiate seasons. As of Nov. 17, Mkosana now has 23 career goals, which is tied for fifth and is 10 away from the record of 33, held by Bob Drawbaugh '54. He also has 55 career points, putting him fourth all-time and just 22 points away from Vladdy Stanojevic's '90 record of 77. Senior Daniel Keat currently has 50 career points, in sole possession of eighth place on the all-time list. With 20 career goals, Keat ranks ninth all-time.