Men's Soccer Heads to Texas for SMU Invitational

THIS WEEK - Southern Methodist Invitational
Friday, Sept. 16 - at Southern Methodist 8:30 p.m. (ET)
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Sunday, Sept. 18 vs. Tulsa, 1 p.m. (ET)
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- All games at SMU's Westcott Field (Dallas, Texas)

The Dartmouth College men's soccer team (1-1-2) hits the road for the Southern Methodist Invitational hosted by SMU in Dallas, Texas this weekend. The Big Green will take on tournament host, SMU, on Friday (Sept. 16) at 8:30 p.m. (ET) and will conclude tournament action against Tulsa on Sunday (Sept. 18) at 1 p.m. (ET). All games will be played at SMU's Westcott Field.

BIG GREEN TIDBITS

Dartmouth Wins 2011 Dartmouth Classic - The Big Green concluded the 2011 Dartmouth Classic with a 1-0-1 record and posted a win over South Carolina on Friday (Sept. 9) and earned a 3-3 double overtime tie with No. 11 South Florida on Sunday (Sept. 11). Dartmouth and Bradley both concluded tournament play with a 1-0-1 record and Dartmouth was declared champion by virtue of goal differential. The Big Green last won the Dartmouth Classic during the 2009 season.

Big Green Players named to Dartmouth Classic All-Tournament Team - The Big Green had four players earn All-Tournament honors this past weekend. Senior captains Lucky Mkosana (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) and Nick Pappas (Scottsdale, Ariz.) were named Offensive and Defensive MVP's, respectively. The senior duo was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammates Alex Adelabu (Houston, Texas) and Kevin Dzierzawski (Oakland Township, Mich.).

Mkosana Earns Ivy League Player of the Week - Senior forward Lucky Mkosana (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) took home his first Ivy League Player of the Week honor this season after leading the Big Green at the Dartmouth Classic. Mkosana tallied two goals and an assist on the weekend and leads the Big Green in all offensive categories. Mkosana's Ivy League honor is the third of his career. Mkosana was also named ECAC Division I Men's Soccer Player of the Week.

Deep in the Heart of Texas - This week's trip to Texas is the first time the Big Green has ventured to the Lone Star state. The trip will serve as somewhat of a homecoming for first year assistant coach Chase Wileman. Wileman played at SMU from 2003-06 and reached the College Cup with the Mustangs in 2005.

First Time Opponents - The Big Green will take on a pair of first time opponents this weekend in Tulsa and SMU. Last weekend, the Big Green played South Carolina for the first time in program history. After this weekend, Dartmouth will have taken on three consecutive first time opponents.

Early Season Overtime - The Big Green have played two double overtime games this season. Dartmouth opened the season with a 0-0 double overtime game against Holy Cross and played No. 11 South Florida to a 3-3 double overtime draw this past weekend. The last time Dartmouth played two double overtime games in the first four games of the season was in 2006 when they played to 0-0 ties with New Hampshire and Colgate. In contrast, Dartmouth only played two double overtime games in each of the last three seasons.

More NCAA Tournament Foes on Tap - Dartmouth has compiled a very strong non-conference slate and this weekend will feature two more teams that reached the 2010 NCAA Tournament. SMU advanced to the quarterfinals last season and fell in penalty kicks to College Cup participant, North Carolina. Tulsa reached the second round before falling to Indiana. SMU is currently ranked No. 5 in the NSCAA Midwest regional ranking just ahead of Tulsa who comes in at No. 6.

Adelabu Finds the Net - Freshman forward Alex Adelabu (Houston, Texas) picked up his first collegiate goal in Dartmouth's 2-0 win over South Carolina to open the Dartmouth Classic. Adelabu also added another goal in Dartmouth's double overtime with No. 11 South Florida. The rookie tallied four points on the weekend and was named to the Dartmouth Classic All-Tournament Team.

Murray Scores - Sophomore forward Patrick Murray (Lakewood, Ohio) picked up his first career marker in dramatic fashion against South Florida. With the Big Green trailing 3-2 and just 1:39 left in regulation, Murray nailed a shot past the South Florida goalkeeper Chris Blais to send the game to overtime. The Big Green walked away with a 3-3 draw and the 2011 Dartmouth Classic title.

Captain My Captain - Seniors Lucky Mkosana (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) and Nick Pappas (Scottsdale, Ariz.) have been named captains this season. The duo will wear the captain's armband for the Big Green throughout the season.

Cook Approaching 100 Wins -- Head coach Jeff Cook entered the 2011 season with 89 career wins as Dartmouth head coach and is poised to become just the second coach in Dartmouth men's soccer history to reach the 100-win plateau. Thomas Dent, Dartmouth's longest tenured coach, is Dartmouth's all-time winningest coach with 143 career wins in 35 years. After a win over South Carolina, Cook is sitting at 90 all-time wins at Dartmouth.

Looking at Southern Methodist -- Friday's meeting with SMU will mark the first ever meeting between the programs. The Mustangs enter the game with a 2-3 record after defeating Oakland 4-1 and falling to UConn, 1-0, at the Tulsa Hurricane Classic last weekend. Arthur Ivo leads the SMU offense with a goal and three assists while six other SMU players have recorded goals this season. Netminder Jamie Ibarra has a 2-2-0 record and a 0.51 goals against average. He has made 16 saves on the season.

A Glance at Tulsa- Sunday's meeting with Tulsa will be the first-ever matchup between the Big Green and Golden Hurricane. The Hurricane enter the weekend with a 3-2 record after defeating Oakland 2-1 in the final game of the Hurricane Classic, hosted by Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane dropped a 1-0 contest to No. 3 UConn on Friday. Omar Mata leads the Tulsa offense with two goals and two assists while goalkeeper Michael Murray has a 3-1-0 record and is sporting a 0.72 goals against average and a .727 saves percentage.

Keep Up With the Big Green -- Stay current with everything going on with your Big Green by following Dartmouth men's soccer on twitter (@DartmouthMSoc) and "liking" the Big Green men's soccer team on Facebook.

UP NEXT
Saturday, Sept. 24 - vs. UMass (Burnham Field), 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 1 -- vs. Princeton (Burnham Field), 3:30 p.m. - Ivy League Opener

Schedules