Johns Hopkins Men's Soccer Centennial Conference Tournament Notes

Third-seeded JHU to face #2 Gettysburg on Saturday

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In his first season, head coach Craig Appleby has guided JHU to the Centennial Conference Tournament.

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Nov. 4, 2008

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A Look Back: Johns Hopkins wrapped up the regular season on a down note last week, dropping back-to-back games to Gettysburg and Washington College.

The Blue Jays fell behind early to the Bullets and trailed by two at the half. Freshman Corey Adams scored in the 71st minute to cut the deficit to one, but Gettysburg answered in the 87th minute to take the 3-1 win.

The visiting Shoremen, led by freshman goalie Chris Phipps with 14 saves, held on for nearly 94 minutes before taking advantage of a miscue on the Blue Jays back line. Washington stunned Hopkins on senior day with a 1-0 overtime win, snapping the Blue Jays 15-game win streak over the Shoremen.

The Centennial Conference Tournament: Johns Hopkins will be the third seed in the 2008 Centennial Conference Tournament, hosted by Swarthmore, this weekend.

The Blue Jays will meet the second-seeded Bullets from Gettysburg in Saturday’s first semifinal at Clothier Field. In the second semifinal, Swarthmore will take on the winner of the Dickinson-Muhlenberg first round game.

Number Three: Hopkins has never been the third seed in the Centennial Conference Tournament. The Blue Jays have been the #1 seed four times and are 4-1-2 as the top seed with three titles. Hopkins has twice been the second seed and is 3-1-0 with one title (2007). The lowest the Blue Jays have ever been seeded in the CC Tournament is in 2005, when they were the #4. Hopkins lost in the first round that year to Gettysburg in penalty kicks.

Hopkins and Muhlenberg Stand Alone: Johns Hopkins and Muhlenberg are the only two teams in the Centennial Conference to make all eight conference tournaments (2001-2008).

Of the seven previous tournaments, the Blue Jays have won four (2002, 2004, 2006, 2007). Muhlenberg has claimed two (2003, 2005), while Gettysburg has one tournament title (2001).

Tournament History: Hopkins is 7-2-3 in its seven previous Centennial Conference Tournament appearances with four titles. The Blue Jays are looking to defend their 2007 title this weekend when they travel to Swarthmore, PA.

Three-Peat: Johns Hopkins is looking to pull off a three-peat this weekend. The Blue Jays won back-to-back Centennial Conference titles in 2006 and 2007. JHU is only the second team in the history of the conference to turn the trick, following Muhlenberg in 1994 and 1995. No team has ever won three straight Centennial titles.

Against the Bullets: Johns Hopkins was unbeaten in nine straight meetings (6-0-3) against Gettysburg prior to the loss on Oct. 29. It was the Blue Jays first loss to the Bullets since Nov. 2, 2001 - in the Centennial Conference Semifinals at Homewood Field and the first regular season loss since Oct. 27, 1999.

JHU is 43-20-19 all-time against Gettysburg, including a 2-2-0 mark in the Centennial Conference Tournament. The Blue Jays and the Bullets have also met once in the NCAA Tournament - Gettysburg advanced on penalty kicks in that meeting.

Hopkins and Gettysburg last met in the Centennial Conference Tournament in the 2007 Championship, which JHU won 4-1 to claim its seventh overall CC title.

At the Helm: Head coach Craig Appleby is in his first season at Johns Hopkins and carries an 11-4-3 record with the Blue Jays. Appleby came to JHU after spending six seasons as the head coach of Emory & Henry.

Welcome Back David: Sophomore forward David Drake missed six games earlier this season due to injury. He returned to action on Sept. 24 at Neumann but did not return to the starting line-up until Oct. 4 against Muhlenberg. After tallying just one assist prior to his injury, Drake has four goals in his last seven games.

The Clincher: Johns Hopkins clinched its eighth Centennial Conference Tournament appearance with a tie against Franklin & Marshall on Oct. 25. The Blue Jays are just one of two teams in the conference that have appeared in all eight Centennial Conference Tournaments.

On the Move: Senior Nick Gauna enters the postseason with 80 career points, ranking him eighth all-time in school history. In addition, he is tied for 11th with 27 career goals and fourth with 26 career assists. In Centennial Conference history, he is tied for ninth in career assists and 23rd in career points.

Scott Bukoski is also making his mark on the record book. The sophomore already ranks in the top-15 in career points and goals. He ranks 13th with 69 points and tied for eighth with 29 goals. Last season, he became just the fifth player in program history to score 20 or more goals in one season.

In the Ranks: Johns Hopkins dropped out of the NSCAA top 25 on Tuesday after going 0-2-0 last week with losses to Gettysburg and Washington. That snaps a streak of five consecutive weeks in the top 25 for the Blue Jays. The Blue Jays slipped a spot in the NSCAA Middle Atlantic regional rankings to #3. The NCAA’s regional rankings will be released on Wednesday, Nov. 5.

Leading the Way: Sophomore forward Scott Bukoski is tied for the lead in the Centennial Conference in four of the nine offensive categories, including points (23), goals (9) and game-winning goals (4).

Preseason Favorite: The Blue Jays were favored to win their eighth Centennial Conference title in the 2008 Centennial Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Hopkins picked up 77 points with seven first-place votes. The Blue Jays have been the preseason favorite for six straight years, dating back to the 2003 preseason coaches poll.