Friday, October 6
Omaha, Neb.
7:00 PM
Creighton University
vs
St. John's
Photo by: Steve Branscombe
Men's Soccer Hosts St. John's On Friday To Start Home Stand
10/4/2017 3:30:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Bluejays play their next three matches at home, including two BIG EAST contests
Download Complete NotesÂ
Friday, Oct. 6Â | St. John's at Creighton | Omaha, Neb. | 7:00 p.m. (CST)
Up Next
Creighton returns to Morrison Stadium after playing two consecutive road matches, and will host St. John's on Friday night for the first of three straight contests at home.
Follow The Match
Friday's match will be broadcast on FOX Sports Go, which can be found at FOXSportsGo.com or on the FOX Sports Go app. Donny Baarns will handle the play-by-play, while Rob Simms will provide color commentary.Â
Live stats for the contest can be found at www.creighton.statbroadcast.com.
Bluejay fans can also stay updated through the Creighton men's soccer Twitter feed: Twitter.com/CreightonMSoc.
Scouting Creighton (6-4-0, 1-2-0 BE)
The Bluejays enter Friday's match with four wins during their past six matches.Â
Senior forward Ricky Lopez-Espin leads the Bluejays and is tied for fourth in the BIG EAST with five goals. He also owns two assists to pace the squad with 12 points.
Joel Rydstrand and Lucas Stauffer each have three assists to lead Creighton. Â
Creighton ranks second in the  BIG EAST in shots per match (14.10) and third in corner kicks per contest (6.40).Â
Defensively, the Bluejays own five shutouts and are tied for 22nd in the nation and atop the BIG EAST (with St. John's) with a 0.50 shutout percentage (five shutouts through 10Â matches).
Last Time Out
The No. 25 Creighton men's soccer team fell 2-0 to Seton Hall on Saturday afternoon during a BIG EAST match at Owen T. Carroll Field.Â
The momentum of Saturday's match shifted to Seton Hall after Creighton goalkeeper Michael Kluver received a red card during the ninth minute for his challenge in the box.
Kluver appeared to be going for the ball but ended up making contact with a Pirate attacker making a run towards the end line. The ejection forced Creighton to play a man down for the final 81:46.Â
Following the foul in the box, Andres Arcila converted a penalty kick to give the Pirates an early 1-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the match.
Creighton recorded its first shot during the 23rd minute as Noah Franke's shot went wide.Â
Seton Hall held a 5-3 edge in shots after the first half of play, while the Bluejays did not record a shot on goal.
The Pirates extended their lead during the 52nd minute as Francisco Alderete converted on a shot from about 25 yards out.
Scouting St. John's (5-4-1, 2-1-0 BE)
The Red Storm enter the week with a two-match losing streak after winning four consecutive matches, including back-to-back shutouts against Seton Hall and No. 19 Xavier.
Goalkeeper Andrew Withers leads the BIG EAST and ranks 10th nationally with a 0.578 goals against average. He also paces the conference in save percentage (.846) and shutouts (5). Withers ranks 13th in Division I in save percentage and his shutout total is tied for 16th nationally.Â
Offensively, Alistair Johnston leads the Red Storm with four goals, while three players have two assists a piece.Â
Unanimous Preseason All-BIG EAST selection Harry Cooksley has appeared in five of St. John's 10 matches while battling an injury.Â
Series History vs. Red Storm
Creighton leads the all-time series against St. John's 4-2-1.Â
The Bluejays and Red Storm tied 1-1 (2OT) last season in Queens, N.Y.
Creighton is 2-0-0 against St. John's at Morrison Stadium.
Three of the seven meetings have gone to overtime, including the 2013 matchup during Creighton's first BIG EAST match (1-0 CU win).Â
First RPI Rankings
The Bluejays were ranked 16th in the intial RPI rankings that were released on Monday, Oct. 2.
Creighton is one of six BIG EAST teams listed in the top 60 (of 205 Division I programs).
8. Â Butler
16. Creighton
22. Georgetown
42. Xavier
51. St. John's
60. Villanova
The top 10 includes 1) Michigan State, 2) North Carolina, 3) Columbia, 4) Virginia, 5) Wake Forest, 6) Louisville, 7) Notre Dame, 8) Butler, 9) Indiana, and 10) Clemson.Â
Fortress Morrison
Creighton is 127-23-17 overall at Morrison Stadium, including a 4-1-0 record at home so far this season.
The Bluejays are 15-4 during BIG EASTÂ regular-season matches at home, including a 1-0 mark this season (2-0 W vs. Villanova, Sept. 23).Â
Creighton has never lost consecutive matches at Morrison Stadium during the same season (since 2003).Â
The Bluejays' loss at Morrison Stadium against No. 17 Virginia Tech to open the 2017 season followed the team's loss at home to end last season (2-1 vs. Providence), marking the first time since 1985 that Creighton had lost consecutive home matches (spanning across two seasons).Â
CU finished the 2016 season 9-2-2 at home, including 4-1-0 during BIG EAST regular-season play.
Valdivia Forced Into Action
Sophomore Collin Valdivia appeared in his second career match as a Bluejay on Saturday following the ejection of starting goalkeeper Michael Kluver because of a red card during the ninth minute.
Valdivia played the final 81:46 against Seton Hall and made four saves. He also allowed two goals, including a PK during his first shot faced after coming off the bench.Â
Valdivia or true freshman Austin Wormell will start in goal for the Bluejays on Friday -- marking the first career start for either player -- because Kluver will serve a one-game suspension and not play against St. John's.
Brothers Valdivia
Both Dominic Valdivia and Collin Valdivia appeared during Saturday's match at Seton Hall and played on the field at the same time for 18 minutes, marking the first match since Dec. 13, 2002 (College Cup vs. Stanford) in which brothers were on the field at the same for the Bluejays when Joe Wieland and Matt Wieland both started.Â
Collin and Dominic are also the first set of brothers to appear in at least one match for Creighton during the same season since the Wieland brothers in 2002.Â
Dominic, a true freshman, made his Creighton debut during the second half of the Bluejays' overtime victory against Tulsa on Sept. 19.Â
Collin made his Bluejay debut earlier this season against Cal (Sept. 3, 2017).
Vince Odorisio and Tony Odorisio both played at Creighton during the 2004 and 2005 seasons, but Vince and Tony were cousins.
Bolowich Earns 100th Win At Creighton
Head coach Elmar Bolowich earned his 100th victory at Creighton on Sept. 23 against Villanova.
He is the second head coach in program history to achieve 100 or more wins.Â
Bolowich moved into second  place on Creighton's all-time wins list with a 3-0 victory over Cal on Sept. 3, and is currently 101-33-12 as head man of the Bluejays since taking over before the 2011 season.
Bolowich passed Bret Simon, who coached at Creighton from 1995-2000 and was inducted into the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame on April 23, 2017.Â
Bolowich now trails only Bob Warming on Creighton's all-time wins list.Â
Coach   W-L-T     Years  with program
Bob Warming    190-61-34   1990-94, 2001-09
Elmar Bolowich  101-33-12   2011-PresentÂ
Bret Simon   96-26-8    1995-2000Â
Senior Contributions
The Bluejays' 2017 roster features six seniors (Noah Franke, Michael Kluver, Marios Lomis, Ricky Lopez-Espin, Lucas Stauffer, Stefan Wutte).
The seniors have scored nine of Creighton's 13 goals and contributed with seven of the team's 13 assists.Â
Lopez-Espin leads the team with five goals, including four during the past four matches. The Miami, Florida, native, also has two assists.
Franke owns two goals and one assist to rank third on the squad in points with five.
Stauffer is tied for the team lead with three assists, has one goal and leads the team with 894 minutes played this season.
Lomis has one goal, the game-winner during Creighton's 1-0 double overtime victory over Grand Canyon (Aug. 27).
Wutte has played nine minutes this season.Â
Kluver, during his fifth year with the program, claims four shutouts during 10 starts. He also holds a 0.97 goals against average.
Iron Men Stauffer and FrankeÂ
Seniors Lucas Stauffer and Noah Franke rank first and second in Division I Men's Soccer for matches played among active players.
Stauffer has played in 78 matches, while Franke currently owns 77 appearances.
Stauffer also played in his 47th match at Morrison Stadium against Villanova (Sept. 23), which is tied for third-most in program history. Ricardo Perez holds the record for matches played at Morrison Stadium with 52 appearances (2013-16).
The Creighton record for matches played in a career is 90, set by David Wagenfuhr (2000-2003).
The Bluejays have seven matches remaining (including Friday) during the 2017 regular-season, including four scheduled to be played at Morrison Stadium.Â
Bluejays Rank Among Top in Attendance
Creighton is currently ranked ninth in total home attendance (13,502) and fourth in average home attendance (2,700).
Below is a list of the average attendance leaders during the 2017 season (as of Oct. 3).
   Rk.   Team      Games   Total   Avg
   1.   Maryland      6   25,935   4,323
   2.   UConn      9   31,664   3,518
   3.   South Carolina      8   25,318   3,165
   4.   Creighton      5   13,502   2,700
   5.   Clemson      7   18,566   2,652
   6.   Michigan State      4   13,130   2,626
   7.   Indiana      7   17,927   2,561
   8.   Wake Forest      8   18,566   2,362
   9.   UCLA      4   9,446   2,362
   10.   Utah Valley      5   11,675   2,335
Creighton ended the 2016 season ranked sixth nationally in total home attendance (33,836) and sixth in average home attendance (2,608).Â
Last season marked the 13th straight season the Bluejays have finished in the top-10 nationally in average home attendance.
Below is a list of the top 10 nationally in average home attendance for the 2016 season.
   Rk.   Team      Games   Total   Avg
   1.   Maryland      13   52,189   4,015
   2.   UConn      10   38,225   3,823
   3.   UC Santa Barbara      11   38,093   3,463
   4.   Cal Poly      8   22,762   2,845
   5.   Clemson      14   36,903   2,636
   6.   Creighton      13   33,836   2,603
   7.   Grand Canyon      9   22,568   2,508
   8.   South Carolina      12   29,493   2,458
   9.   Louisville      14   32,463   2,319
   10.   Portland      8   18,382   2,298
Â
Friday, Oct. 6Â | St. John's at Creighton | Omaha, Neb. | 7:00 p.m. (CST)
Up Next
Creighton returns to Morrison Stadium after playing two consecutive road matches, and will host St. John's on Friday night for the first of three straight contests at home.
Follow The Match
Friday's match will be broadcast on FOX Sports Go, which can be found at FOXSportsGo.com or on the FOX Sports Go app. Donny Baarns will handle the play-by-play, while Rob Simms will provide color commentary.Â
Live stats for the contest can be found at www.creighton.statbroadcast.com.
Bluejay fans can also stay updated through the Creighton men's soccer Twitter feed: Twitter.com/CreightonMSoc.
Scouting Creighton (6-4-0, 1-2-0 BE)
The Bluejays enter Friday's match with four wins during their past six matches.Â
Senior forward Ricky Lopez-Espin leads the Bluejays and is tied for fourth in the BIG EAST with five goals. He also owns two assists to pace the squad with 12 points.
Joel Rydstrand and Lucas Stauffer each have three assists to lead Creighton. Â
Creighton ranks second in the  BIG EAST in shots per match (14.10) and third in corner kicks per contest (6.40).Â
Defensively, the Bluejays own five shutouts and are tied for 22nd in the nation and atop the BIG EAST (with St. John's) with a 0.50 shutout percentage (five shutouts through 10Â matches).
Last Time Out
The No. 25 Creighton men's soccer team fell 2-0 to Seton Hall on Saturday afternoon during a BIG EAST match at Owen T. Carroll Field.Â
The momentum of Saturday's match shifted to Seton Hall after Creighton goalkeeper Michael Kluver received a red card during the ninth minute for his challenge in the box.
Kluver appeared to be going for the ball but ended up making contact with a Pirate attacker making a run towards the end line. The ejection forced Creighton to play a man down for the final 81:46.Â
Following the foul in the box, Andres Arcila converted a penalty kick to give the Pirates an early 1-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the match.
Creighton recorded its first shot during the 23rd minute as Noah Franke's shot went wide.Â
Seton Hall held a 5-3 edge in shots after the first half of play, while the Bluejays did not record a shot on goal.
The Pirates extended their lead during the 52nd minute as Francisco Alderete converted on a shot from about 25 yards out.
Scouting St. John's (5-4-1, 2-1-0 BE)
The Red Storm enter the week with a two-match losing streak after winning four consecutive matches, including back-to-back shutouts against Seton Hall and No. 19 Xavier.
Goalkeeper Andrew Withers leads the BIG EAST and ranks 10th nationally with a 0.578 goals against average. He also paces the conference in save percentage (.846) and shutouts (5). Withers ranks 13th in Division I in save percentage and his shutout total is tied for 16th nationally.Â
Offensively, Alistair Johnston leads the Red Storm with four goals, while three players have two assists a piece.Â
Unanimous Preseason All-BIG EAST selection Harry Cooksley has appeared in five of St. John's 10 matches while battling an injury.Â
Series History vs. Red Storm
Creighton leads the all-time series against St. John's 4-2-1.Â
The Bluejays and Red Storm tied 1-1 (2OT) last season in Queens, N.Y.
Creighton is 2-0-0 against St. John's at Morrison Stadium.
Three of the seven meetings have gone to overtime, including the 2013 matchup during Creighton's first BIG EAST match (1-0 CU win).Â
First RPI Rankings
The Bluejays were ranked 16th in the intial RPI rankings that were released on Monday, Oct. 2.
Creighton is one of six BIG EAST teams listed in the top 60 (of 205 Division I programs).
8. Â Butler
16. Creighton
22. Georgetown
42. Xavier
51. St. John's
60. Villanova
The top 10 includes 1) Michigan State, 2) North Carolina, 3) Columbia, 4) Virginia, 5) Wake Forest, 6) Louisville, 7) Notre Dame, 8) Butler, 9) Indiana, and 10) Clemson.Â
Fortress Morrison
Creighton is 127-23-17 overall at Morrison Stadium, including a 4-1-0 record at home so far this season.
The Bluejays are 15-4 during BIG EASTÂ regular-season matches at home, including a 1-0 mark this season (2-0 W vs. Villanova, Sept. 23).Â
Creighton has never lost consecutive matches at Morrison Stadium during the same season (since 2003).Â
The Bluejays' loss at Morrison Stadium against No. 17 Virginia Tech to open the 2017 season followed the team's loss at home to end last season (2-1 vs. Providence), marking the first time since 1985 that Creighton had lost consecutive home matches (spanning across two seasons).Â
CU finished the 2016 season 9-2-2 at home, including 4-1-0 during BIG EAST regular-season play.
Valdivia Forced Into Action
Sophomore Collin Valdivia appeared in his second career match as a Bluejay on Saturday following the ejection of starting goalkeeper Michael Kluver because of a red card during the ninth minute.
Valdivia played the final 81:46 against Seton Hall and made four saves. He also allowed two goals, including a PK during his first shot faced after coming off the bench.Â
Valdivia or true freshman Austin Wormell will start in goal for the Bluejays on Friday -- marking the first career start for either player -- because Kluver will serve a one-game suspension and not play against St. John's.
Brothers Valdivia
Both Dominic Valdivia and Collin Valdivia appeared during Saturday's match at Seton Hall and played on the field at the same time for 18 minutes, marking the first match since Dec. 13, 2002 (College Cup vs. Stanford) in which brothers were on the field at the same for the Bluejays when Joe Wieland and Matt Wieland both started.Â
Collin and Dominic are also the first set of brothers to appear in at least one match for Creighton during the same season since the Wieland brothers in 2002.Â
Dominic, a true freshman, made his Creighton debut during the second half of the Bluejays' overtime victory against Tulsa on Sept. 19.Â
Collin made his Bluejay debut earlier this season against Cal (Sept. 3, 2017).
Vince Odorisio and Tony Odorisio both played at Creighton during the 2004 and 2005 seasons, but Vince and Tony were cousins.
Bolowich Earns 100th Win At Creighton
Head coach Elmar Bolowich earned his 100th victory at Creighton on Sept. 23 against Villanova.
He is the second head coach in program history to achieve 100 or more wins.Â
Bolowich moved into second  place on Creighton's all-time wins list with a 3-0 victory over Cal on Sept. 3, and is currently 101-33-12 as head man of the Bluejays since taking over before the 2011 season.
Bolowich passed Bret Simon, who coached at Creighton from 1995-2000 and was inducted into the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame on April 23, 2017.Â
Bolowich now trails only Bob Warming on Creighton's all-time wins list.Â
Coach   W-L-T     Years  with program
Bob Warming    190-61-34   1990-94, 2001-09
Elmar Bolowich  101-33-12   2011-PresentÂ
Bret Simon   96-26-8    1995-2000Â
Senior Contributions
The Bluejays' 2017 roster features six seniors (Noah Franke, Michael Kluver, Marios Lomis, Ricky Lopez-Espin, Lucas Stauffer, Stefan Wutte).
The seniors have scored nine of Creighton's 13 goals and contributed with seven of the team's 13 assists.Â
Lopez-Espin leads the team with five goals, including four during the past four matches. The Miami, Florida, native, also has two assists.
Franke owns two goals and one assist to rank third on the squad in points with five.
Stauffer is tied for the team lead with three assists, has one goal and leads the team with 894 minutes played this season.
Lomis has one goal, the game-winner during Creighton's 1-0 double overtime victory over Grand Canyon (Aug. 27).
Wutte has played nine minutes this season.Â
Kluver, during his fifth year with the program, claims four shutouts during 10 starts. He also holds a 0.97 goals against average.
Iron Men Stauffer and FrankeÂ
Seniors Lucas Stauffer and Noah Franke rank first and second in Division I Men's Soccer for matches played among active players.
Stauffer has played in 78 matches, while Franke currently owns 77 appearances.
Stauffer also played in his 47th match at Morrison Stadium against Villanova (Sept. 23), which is tied for third-most in program history. Ricardo Perez holds the record for matches played at Morrison Stadium with 52 appearances (2013-16).
The Creighton record for matches played in a career is 90, set by David Wagenfuhr (2000-2003).
The Bluejays have seven matches remaining (including Friday) during the 2017 regular-season, including four scheduled to be played at Morrison Stadium.Â
Bluejays Rank Among Top in Attendance
Creighton is currently ranked ninth in total home attendance (13,502) and fourth in average home attendance (2,700).
Below is a list of the average attendance leaders during the 2017 season (as of Oct. 3).
   Rk.   Team      Games   Total   Avg
   1.   Maryland      6   25,935   4,323
   2.   UConn      9   31,664   3,518
   3.   South Carolina      8   25,318   3,165
   4.   Creighton      5   13,502   2,700
   5.   Clemson      7   18,566   2,652
   6.   Michigan State      4   13,130   2,626
   7.   Indiana      7   17,927   2,561
   8.   Wake Forest      8   18,566   2,362
   9.   UCLA      4   9,446   2,362
   10.   Utah Valley      5   11,675   2,335
Creighton ended the 2016 season ranked sixth nationally in total home attendance (33,836) and sixth in average home attendance (2,608).Â
Last season marked the 13th straight season the Bluejays have finished in the top-10 nationally in average home attendance.
Below is a list of the top 10 nationally in average home attendance for the 2016 season.
   Rk.   Team      Games   Total   Avg
   1.   Maryland      13   52,189   4,015
   2.   UConn      10   38,225   3,823
   3.   UC Santa Barbara      11   38,093   3,463
   4.   Cal Poly      8   22,762   2,845
   5.   Clemson      14   36,903   2,636
   6.   Creighton      13   33,836   2,603
   7.   Grand Canyon      9   22,568   2,508
   8.   South Carolina      12   29,493   2,458
   9.   Louisville      14   32,463   2,319
   10.   Portland      8   18,382   2,298
Â
Players Mentioned
M
/ Men's Soccer
GK
/ Men's Soccer
F
/ Men's Soccer
F
/ Men's Soccer
M/F
/ Men's Soccer
M
/ Men's Soccer
D
/ Men's Soccer
GK
/ Men's Soccer
F
/ Men's Soccer
GK
/ Men's Soccer
D
/ Men's SoccerCreighton MSOC Highlights & Postgame vs Oral Roberts--9-13-25
Sunday, September 14
Creighton MSOC Highlights & Postgame vs Omaha 9-10-25
Thursday, September 11
Creighton Men's Soccer Media Availability September 9
Tuesday, September 09
Creighton Men's Soccer Highlights & Postgame vs Denver 9-5-25
Saturday, September 06
