Red hot Jays victorious in Challenge

Photo by Sarah Borer

By Michael Stacy
Assitant Sports Editor

You just cannot take this Creighton men’s soccer team anywhere.

They have been far from hospitable to guests, and they do not seem to know how to behave in someone else’s house. After beating up on visitors Memphis and Mercer in last weekend’s Diadora Challenge, the Jays will try to topple Tulsa Southern Methodist and host Tulsa at this weekend’s Golden Hurricane Classic.

The Jays are off to their best start since 2000, sporting a 4-0-1 record and a No. 9 ranking in the National Soccer Coaches of America Association’s poll released on Tuesday. As the Jays’ ranking and win totals rise, so does their confidence level.

“ Our confidence is high, and we’re playing together,” said senior defender Matt Wieland. “When you play together, your potential is almost endless.”

That means little to Tulsa or Southern Methodist, however. Both teams are former Missouri Valley Conference affiliate members and longtime Creighton rivals, and junior forward Michael Kraus knows both will present major challenges.

“ We have one of our toughest weekends of the year against Tulsa and SMU,” Kraus said. “If we can we prove ourselves against those two teams, we’ll show we’re one of the top teams in the nation.”

The team’s quest to prove itself as one of the nation’s best begins Friday against Tulsa. Earlier this season, Tulsa dismantled St. Louis, a team that beat Creighton in exhibition play. Benefitting from home field advantage and a veteran-laden lineup, Tulsa will look to handle Creighton like they did St. Louis.

“ They return pretty much everybody from last year,” Wieland said. “They’ve got a tight-knit unit; it’s going to be tough going down to Tulsa and beating them on their field.”
What Southern Methodist lacks in home field advantage it compensates for with a lineup loaded with heavily recruited, highly skilled players.

“ SMU has always been known as a skillful team,” Kraus said. “We need to be hard on them man-to-man, especially in back, and not give any of their forwards time.”

If Creighton’s performance last weekend against Memphis, another team with dangerous forwards and a high-octane offense, is any indication, the Jays are up to the challenge.

Kraus, a Memphis native, scored the game-winning goal against his hometown team as the Jays topped then-No. 23 Memphis 3-1. Creighton followed that with a 1-0 shutout of Mercer in which Kraus again provided the decisive goal, and Kraus picked up Diadora Challenge MVP honors for his big weekend.

While Kraus and fellow all-tournament team honorees Wieland, senior defender Brian Kallman and sophomore goalie Matt Allen may have gotten the accolades, they emphasize that last weekend’s wins were total team efforts.

“ Our motto is 11 as one,” Wieland said. “We’re all just one big unit. There are so many guys who go under the radar and don’t get recognized, and they’re just as important.”
One player who has flown under the radar but drawn high praise from teammates is junior sweeper Tony Odorisio.

“ He’s just a hawk,” Wieland said. “He doesn’t do anything spectacular, but he does everything right. You rarely see him giving the ball away or getting beat one-on-one.”

Playing the fundamentally sound, team-oriented brand of soccer epitomized by Odorisio and other unsung heroes, the Jays hope to continue their winning ways — even if that means becoming an unwelcome visitor in opponents’ homes.

“ We like going into the other team’s hometown and taking a victory away from them,” Kraus said. “It’s great to get a win at home, but it’s maybe a little sweeter to go in and steal a win from a team on the road.”