The third-seeded University of Southern Indiana men’s soccer team will face the seventh-seeded University of Indianapolis in the second semifinal match of the 2016 Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament Friday at 7:30 p.m. (CDT) at Carroll Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. USI (13-2-3) advanced to the semifinals after a victory over sixth-seeded University of Missouri-St. Louis, 1-0, Sunday afternoon, while UIndy (9-5-4) defeated second-seed Missouri University of Science & Technology by the identical 1-0 margin.
Prior to the USI and the UIndy match, top-seeded and sixth-ranked Rockhurst University (15-2-1) and fifth-seeded Quincy University (12-4-2) play in the first semifinal contest at 1:30 p.m. (CDT). The semifinal winners advance to play in the GLVC championship match in Carroll Stadium Sunday at 2 p.m. (CDT).
Carroll Stadium, the first neutral site for the GLVC soccer championships in the history of the 38 year-old league, also is host to the GLVC women’s soccer semifinal games that are slated for 11 a.m. (CDT) and 5 p.m. (CDT).
Live coverage of USI’s run through the post-season, including live statistics and video, can be found on GoUSIEagles.com.
Week 11 Eagle Notes:Â
Eagles advance with Tuma’s second half goal: USI advanced to the GLVC Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2012 when junior midfielder Stephen Tuma (Pekin, Indiana) scored at 80:10 of the second half.
USI extends home winning streak in the GLVC Tournament:Â The victory over UMSL on Sunday extended the Eagles’ home winning streak in GLVC Tournament games to three, dating back to 2003.
GLVC leader in championships:Â USI has 10 GLVC men’s soccer titles since the conference was created in 1979, the most by any program in the league. The Eagles won the conference championships in 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1990, and 1991.
Between the posts: Junior goalkeeper Adam Zehme (Orland Park, Illinois) leads the Eagles between the posts with a 13-2-3 mark and a 0.85 goals against average. Zehme has a career-best 13 wins, 68 saves, and seven shutouts this fall. He needs two victories to tie the USI single-season record for wins and two shutouts to move into fourth all-time.
Scoring leaders: USI freshman midfielder Sean Rickey (Columbia, Illinois) is USI’s current scoring leader with 19 points on six goals and a team-high seven assists. The Eagles will be without their one-two punch of freshman forward Eric Ramirez (Vincennes, Indiana) and junior midfielder Kyle Richardville (Vincennes, Indiana), who will miss the GLVC Tournament with injuries. Ramirez and Richardville had recorded 21 points (10 goals, one assist) and 19 points (seven goals, five assists), respectively, before suffering the injuries.
Ramirez having best freshman year:  Despite going down with a hamstring injury and missing the last match, freshman forward Eric Ramirez has had the best freshman season ever for a USI player, posting a team-high 21 points on 10 goals and one assist. Ramirez broke the freshman record of nine goals set by Eric Schoenstein in 1988.
USI is 4th in region; receives votes nationally: The Eagles dropped two spots to fourth in the second NCAA Division II Midwest Region poll and closed in on reentering the NSCAA NCAA II Top 25 by receiving votes (as of October 26).
USI vs. UIndy:Â The Eagles snapped their three-match losing streak with the Greyhounds by posting a 1-0 victory on October 2. USI holds a commanding all-time series lead, 21-12-0.
USI vs. Rockhurst:Â USI lost a heartbreaker to Rockhurst, 2-1, in overtime when the Hawks were ranked number one nationally back in October. The Eagles have a lot of ground to make up in the all-time series against Hawks, trailing17-1-3.
USI vs. Quincy:Â The Eagles trail the Hawks in the all-time series, 17-4-1, but have posted back-to-back wins over Quincy, winning 2-0 last fall at Strassweg Field and 2-1 this year in Quincy, Illinois.
