September 14, 2000
Men's Soccer Comes Home to Host Tournament
THE TOURNAMENT: Truman Classic
DATE: September 16 & 17, 2000
TIME: Noon & 2 p.m. (CDT)
LOCATION: Truman Soccer Park, Kirksville, Missouri
GAME 1: Rockhurst University Hawks (Independent/NCAA Division II) vs. Mercyhurst (Pa.) College Lakers (Great Lakes Intercollegiate/NCAA Division II), Saturday, Noon.
GAME 2: Truman State University Bulldogs (Independent/NCAA Division II) vs. Columbia College Cougars (American Midwest/NAIA), Saturday, 2 p.m.
GAME 3: Truman vs. Mercyhurst, Sunday, Noon.
GAME 4: Rockhurst vs. Columbia, Sunday, 2 p.m.
TRUMAN: After opening the 2000 schedule with four road wins and climbing all the way to No. 4 in the national Division II rankings, the Bulldogs stumbled last weekend and dropped a pair of contests to regional opponents. Truman suffered its first loss of the season at Lewis University on Saturday, 1-2 in overtime. Matt Byers (Moville, Iowa/Woodbury Central) scored the 'Dogs lone goal of the weekend, his eighth in the first six games. The sudden hard luck continued on Sunday, as Truman was held to only seven shots and was shut out at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 0-2. TJ Dube (Columbia, Mo./Hickman) played the entirety of each game for the Bulldogs, earning both losses. Dube has made 20 saves on the season and has posted a goals against average of 1.19.
SERIES RECORD AND RECAP: The Bulldogs hit the road last season to take on each of the weekend's opponents. Truman battled the MC Lakers to a scoreless tie, leaving the all-time mark at 4-3-1 in favor of Truman. The 'Dogs picked up a 2-1 win at Columbia, improving their record against the Cougars to 6-2-1.
THE POLLS: The pair of weekend defeats sent Truman spiraling out of the Division II national poll. The Bulldogs also tumbled to No. 4 in the Central region.
THE OPONENT: The Columbia Cougars bring a spotless 5-0 mark into the weekend after disposing of Baker University (Kan.) on Wednesday night by a 5-2 margin. The Mercyhurst Lakers are nearly perfect thus far in 2000, sporting a 5-1 record after defeating Slippery Rock University (Pa.) Wednesday. Rockhurst has struggled in the early going this year. The Hawks bring a 1-4-1 record into the weekend, in the wake of a tough 2-1 loss to Lewis in overtime. Their lone win thus far came against Northern Kentucky University at the University of Missouri-St. Louis Classic.