Charlotte’s Josh Beachem recorded his first career shutout as the 49ers knocked off preseason favorite Saint Louis with a 2-0 shutout on Saturday. Junior Adam Ruud scored both goals for Charlotte in the Niners’ first Conference win of the season. East Carolina also earned its first C-USA victory of the season over the weekend, while Memphis and UAB improved to perfect 3-0-0 records in league play.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Co-OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Adam Ruud, Charlotte
Junior, Forward, Hanover Park, Ill.
Ruud scored both goals in a 2-0 shutout of preseason C-USA favorite Saint Louis. He scored a goal in each half in front of a Billiken crowd of 2,453. Rudd moves into a tie for third place in the Conference standings with six goals on the year as the 49ers picked up their first C-USA win of the season.

Andy Metcalf, Memphis
Junior, Forward, Jackson, Tenn.
Metcalf scored three goals, including both game-winners this week as the Tigers posted victories against Cincinnati (2-0) and Marquette (3-1). He scored two goals within the first 15 minutes against the Golden Eagles on Saturday and moves into a tie for third place with six goals on the season. Memphis is off to its best start in C-USA play at 3-0 and 7-2 overall.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Josh Beachem, Charlotte
Junior, Goalkeeper, Jacksonville, N.C.
Beachem recorded his first career shutout as the 49ers earned a huge win on the road at C-USA preseason favorite Saint Louis. He tallied a career-high seven saves.

CONFERENCE USA MEN'S SOCCER NOTES
TEAM CAPSULES
Charlotte - The 49ers posted a big road win Saturday by shutting out Saint Louis, 2-0, in front of 2,453 fans. Junior Adam Ruud scored both Charlotte goals and keeper Josh Beachem recorded his first collegiate shutout. Ruud and Beachem were named the C-USA Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, to become the first 49ers to earn a Conference nod since 2002. Ruud also received national recognition with a selection to the College Soccer News Team of the Week.

Cincinnati - The Bearcats dropped to 1-2 in Conference play with a 1-0 loss to UAB on Saturday. Junior Jeff Hughes led the team with six shots for the week in games against UAB and Memphis.

DePaul - Overtime has given the Blue Demons a devil of a time as they played their sixth OT game Sunday at East Carolina. DePaul dropped a 2-1 loss to the Pirates and fell to 0-4-2 in overtime games this season. The Blue Demons are 2-4 in regulation play. John Partyka scored DePaul's lone goal of the week on a penalty kick.

East Carolina - The Pirates went 2-0 this week, swiping a 2-1 win from DePaul in overtime Sunday and a 5-2 non-conference victory against Campbell Wednesday. ECU sophomore Calvin Simon headed in Pat Cutler's cross in the 95th minute for the game-winning goal against DePaul. The Pirates scored five unanswered goals Wednesday - the most ever scored against a Campbell team in the history of the series. J.W. Gallagher netted two goals in the match and senior forward Michael Logan was credited with the game-winner. ECU leads the league in offense with an average of 2.40 goals per game.

Louisville - The Cardinals played to their second tie in as many games, knotting a 1-1 match with No. 13 Michigan on Sunday afternoon. Marco Terminesi scored the only goal for the Cardinals. U of L battled Marquette to a 2-2 tie Wednesday night in its Conference USA opener. David Guzman scored the first goal of the match in the 51st minute and assisted on teammate Anthony Celebre's goal later in the half.

Marquette - Sophomore Matt Blouin scored the lone goal in a 3-1 loss to Memphis on Saturday to drop the Golden Eagles to 0-3-1 in C-USA action this season. Senior Chris Lee snapped a five- match streak of scoring at least one goal. Lee netted the tying goal in a 2-2 draw with Louisville on Wednesday night. All four goals were scored in the second half of the match. Senior Danny Mullin scored the Golden Eagles first goal off a corner kick from junior Blair Kohlmeyer.

Memphis - The Tigers are riding a four-match win streak and are off to their best start since 1992. Memphis has outscored its opponents 13-3 in those four games and has moved into second place in the C-USA rankings for goals per game (2.11) and goals against average (0.86). Senior defender Justin Dyer and the entire Tiger defense held Cincinnati to just two shots on goal.

Saint Louis - Saint Louis rebounded from a 2-2 tie against USF and shut out DePaul, 4-0, on Wednesday. SLU junior midfielder Ryan Wileman scored two goals, while junior Danny Wynn and sophomore Will John each netted a goal in the victory. Goalkeeper Martin Hutton registered his first shutout of the season. The Billikens then dropped its first Conference loss to a visiting Charlotte team on Saturday.

UAB - The Blazers are lighting up their competition as their win streak improved to five matches with a 1-0 victory against Cincinnati. Sophomore Jerson Monteiro scored the lone goal as UAB improved to 3-0 in C-USA play and a No. 28 ranking from College Soccer News. UAB also remains undefeated at home with a 4-0 record.

USF - Head Coach George Kiefer earned his first win over Florida International as his 17th-ranked Bulls took a 2-1 victory in non-conference play Sunday night. Freshman Rodrigo Hidalgo netted the winning goal. USF is off to a 6-0-2 start, tied for the fourth-best in school history. The Bulls have only trailed opponents a total of 24 minutes all season. The Bulls' match originally scheduled for Sept. 29 with another in-state rival, Florida Atlantic, was cancelled due to inclement weather.

Good Company - USF moved up to 11th on the College Soccer News Top 30 National Poll rankings this week. The Bulls are off to a 6-0-2 start and are one of only seven NCAA Division I teams without a loss, along with California (7-0-2), UC-Santa Barbara (8-0-1), Duke (11-0-0), James Madison (9-0-1), New Mexico (8-0-0) and UNC-Greensboro (8-0-1).

Tenth Annual Championship - Louisville will host the 2004 Dr. Mark Lynn & Associates, PLLC Conference USA men's soccer championship on November 11-14. This will be the first time the Championship will be held in Louisville and the Derby City becomes the sixth site in 10 seasons.

C-USA 10th ANNIVERSARY


Conference USA celebrates its 10th anniversary during the 2004-05 season. The league kicked off its 10th year with the introduction of "Conference USA: Top 10 Moments in History." There will also be a 10th Anniversary C-USA men's soccer team selected by a panel of the league's coaches and select media members. For more information about C-USA's 10th anniversary, please log onto www.ConferenceUSA.com.

ACHIEVEMENTS
* The league has produced 20 NCAA Tournament appearances in its nine-year history, with two teams advancing to the Final Four and six playing in the final eight.

* Twice Conference USA has advanced a team to the College Cup (Saint Louis in 1997 and Charlotte in 1996).

* C-USA has advanced four different schools (Charlotte, Saint Louis, South Florida and UAB) to the final eight of the NCAA championship over the last five years.

* The teams that comprise C-USA have combined to make 64 NCAA Tournament appearances all-time.

* Six different schools (Charlotte, Cincinnati, Marquette, Saint Louis, UAB and USF) have won at least a share of the regular season championship in the league's first nine seasons.

* Thirty C-USA players have earned All-American honors in the league's nine seasons. Nine players have earned Academic All-American honors during that time.

* Conference USA has placed 74 players on Soccer America's Team of the Week since 1995.

CONFERENCE USA MEN'S SOCCER NOTES

POLLING PLACE
Here's a look at the 2004 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), Soccer America, Soccer Times and College Soccer News men's polls.
NSCAA (Sept. 27)
1. UC-Santa Barbara
2. UNC-Greensboro
3. Penn State
4. Creighton
5. New Mexico
6. Indiana
7. Duke
8. William & Mary
9. Boston College
10. California
11. St. John's
12. Old Dominion
13. Michigan
14. Maryland
15. South Carolina
16. Santa Clara
17. SMU
18. Hartwick
19. USF
20. Brown
21. Seton Hall
22. Virginia
23. Notre Dame
24. Tulsa
25. Coastal Carolina

Soccer America (Sept. 27)
1. UC-Santa Barbara
2. Duke
3. California
4. Santa Clara
5. New Mexico
6. Indiana
7. Stanford
8. Creighton
9. Penn State
10. UNC-Greensboro
11. Boston College
12. UCLA
13. St. John's
14. Notre Dame
15. South Carolina
16. William & Mary
17. USF
18. Maryland
19. SMU
20. Portland
21. Akron
22. Virginia
23. Coastal Carolina
24. Washington
25. Southwest Missouri State

College Soccer News (Oct. 3)
1. UC-Santa Barbara
2. Indiana
3. California
4. Santa Clara
5. New Mexico
6. UNC-Greensboro
7. Duke
8. Virginia
9. Creighton
10. Penn State
11. USF
12. Stanford
13. SMU
14. Notre Dame
15. Va. Commonwealth
16. Boston College
17. Michigan
18. St. John's
19. South Carolina
20. UCLA
21. Wake Forest
22. Maryland
23. Akron
24. Washington
25. James Madison
26. William & Mary
27. Old Dominion
28. UAB
29. Villanova
30. Brown

ARV - MEMPHIS

Soccer Times (Sept. 27)
1. UC-Santa Barbara
2. Penn State
3. California
4. Duke
5. UNC-Greensboro
6. Santa Clara
7. Indiana
8. Creighton
9. New Mexico
10. Boston College
11. St. John's
12. Maryland
13. UCLA
14. Michigan
15. Old Dominion
16. Stanford
17. USF
18. Notre Dame
19. Coastal Carolina
20. William & Mary
21. Virginia
22. SMU
23. South Carolina
24. Washington
25. Tulsa

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
C-USA names an Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week during the 2004 season. The awards are announced on Mondays throughout the season. Players of the Week are selected by the conference office.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
S7 Will John, Saint Louis
S13 Will John, Saint Louis
S20 Maurice Hughes, UAB
Hunter West, USF
S27 Dayton O'Brien, Memphis
O4 Adam Ruud, Charlotte
Andy Metcalf, Memphis
O11
O18
O25
N1
N8

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
S7 A.J. Robles, UAB
S13 Dane Brenner, USF
S20 Dane Brenner, USF
S27 Kareem Smith, USF
Sebastian Vecchio, Memphis
O4 Josh Beachem, Charlotte
O11
O18
O25
N1
N8

NATIONAL TEAMS
In addition to the C-USA Players of the Week, league players are honored for their superior performances on a national level throughout the season by Soccer America and College Soccer News.

College Soccer News Team of the Week
S7 John DiRaimondo, Saint Louis
S19 Hunter West, USF
S26 Dayton O'Brien, Memphis
O3 Adam Ruud, Charlotte

Soccer America Team of the Week
S7 Will John, Saint Louis
S20 Simon Schoendorf, USF


CONFERENCE USA MEN'S SOCCER NOTES

C-USA PRESEASON AWARDS
Saint Louis, who has taken at least a share of every Conference USA men's soccer title every year since 1997, is the unanimous choice by the coaches as the preseason favorite to win the 2004 Championship. The Billikens' top returning scorer Will John, a sophomore midfielder/forward, shares Preseason Player-of-the-Year honors with junior midfielder Leandro de Oliveira from UAB.
The top six finishers in the regular season earn a spot in the 2004 Conference USA Tournament, November 11-14 in Louisville.

2004 C-USA PRESEASON POLL
(as selected by C-USA coaches)
1. Saint Louis
2. UAB
3. USF
4. Charlotte
5. Cincinnati
6. Marquette
7. Louisville
8. DePaul
9. Memphis
10. East Carolina

2004 C-USA PRESEASON AWARDS

CO-PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
Leandro de Oliveira, Jr., MF, UAB
Will John, So., MF/F, Saint Louis

ALL-CONFERENCE
Leandro de Oliveira, Jr., MF, UAB
John DiRaimondo, So., MF, Saint Louis
Floyd Franks, Jr., MF, Charlotte
Brian Grazier, So., MF, Saint Louis
Martin Hutton, Sr., GK, Saint Louis
Will John, So., MF/F, Saint Louis
Chris Lee, Sr., MF, Marquette
Andy Metcalf, Jr., F, Memphis
Jerson Monteiro, So., F, UAB
Mira Mupier, Sr., F, Charlotte
Dayton O'Brien, Jr., MF, Memphis
Wiremu Patrick, Sr., F, Cincinnati
Hunter West, Jr., MF/F, USF

OUT OF LEAGUE
Here's a summary of the non-conference records of Conference USA teams in 2004:
Charlotte 3-0-1
Cincinnati 1-5-0
DePaul 2-5-2
East Carolina 4-4-0
Louisville 3-3-2
Marquette 2-3-0
Memphis 4-2-0
Saint Louis 2-3-0
UAB 3-3-0
USF 4-0-1
Total 28-28-6 (.500)


CONFERENCE SUMMARY
Here's a summary of C-USA's record vs. other conferences in non-conference play in 2004:

Conference Record
ACC 1-2-0
America East 0-0-0
Atlantic Soccer 0-0-0
Atlantic Sun 3-0-1
Atlantic 10 0-1-0
Big East 0-1-0
Big South 3-2-1
Big Ten 0-1-1
Big West 0-1-0
Colonial 0-2-0
Horizon 5-2-1
Independent 2-0-0
Ivy 0-0-0
Metro Atlantic 0-0-0
Mid-American 0-1-0
Mid-Continent 2-4-1
Missouri Valley 6-6-0
Northeast 0-0-0
Pac-10 0-0-0
Patriot 0-0-0
Southern 3-4-1
WCC 1-1-0
Non-Division I 2-0-0
TOTAL 28-28-6

NCAA STAT LEADERS
Here is where Conference USA schools and players stand in the national rankings following matches through September 26:
Points Per Game
14t. Terron Amos, ECU 7g/2a/16p/2.29pg

Goals Per Game
11t. Terron Amos, ECU 7gms/7gls/1.00pg
23t. Will John, SLU 7gms/6gls/0.86pg

Assists Per Game
1t. Dayton O'Brien, MEM 7gms/7ast/1.00pg
17t. Simon Schoendorf 7gms/5ast/0.71pg

Saves
3. A.J. Robles, UAB 5gms/42svs/8.4pg
18. Michael Timlin, DPU 4gms/22svs/5.5pg

Team Scoring Offense
32t. Saint Louis 7gms/15gls/2.14pg
37t. East Carolina 8gms/17gls/2.13pg
47t. UAB 7gms/14gls/2.00pg

Team Shutout Percentage
7t. USF 7gms/4sho/0.57pg

Team Goals Against Average
28. USF 7gms 0.79gaa



C-USA SUCCESS
Here's a look at each school's records since the league began play in 1995:
Charlotte 95-75-19
Cincinnati 75-83-24
DePaul 55-110-7
East Carolina 20-35-4
Louisville 76-100-15
Marquette 95-79-15
Memphis 69-106-9
Saint Louis 122-47-20
UAB 118-56-12
USF 106-62-9


C-USA ON TV
The championship match of the 2004 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament will be televised by affiliates of the Conference USA Television Network. The championship match will be played on Sunday, November 14 in Louisville. More details will be released as the championship approaches.