Match Report - Horizon League Final Home Weekend

Match #24 – Milwaukee 3, Youngstown State 0 (25-16, 25-10, 25-16)

Match #25 – Milwaukee 3, Cleveland State 1 (25-23, 25-15, 11-25, 25-14)

Youngstown State Recap and Stats

Cleveland State Recap and Stats

Player Of The Weekend: Rachel Neuberger had an excellent weekend both offensively and defensively for the Panthers. She hit .432 and averaged 3.00 kills per set, while on defense she averaged 1.43 blocks per set.

Key Stats: Milwaukee’s offense continues to be excellent and it was again this weekend. The Panthers hit. 282 in their two wins, averaging nearly four kills per set more than their opponents.

News and Notes: The Panthers clinched their 12th Horizon League regular season title with Saturday’s win … UWM has now won 14-straight matches this season and 23-straight regular season league matches overall … Milwaukee’s 14-0 start in league play is its best-ever league start … the Panthers have now won nine of their 14 league matches in three sets and have dropped just six sets in league play this season … Milwaukee clinched its 14th 20-win season in 16 years … the Panthers are now 38-2 at home in the regular season against league opponents under Susie Johnson … UWM has won 23 of its last 24 matches with Youngstown State … the Panthers have won 10 of their last 11 against Cleveland State and the Vikings have not beaten UWM in Milwaukee since 1992 … Hannah Blanchard had a collegiate-best 15 kills in Friday’s win over Youngstown State … showing off their excellent balance, the Panthers won both matches despite Kerri Schuh not reaching double digits in kills in either contest … UWM had 12 blocks in the three-set win over Youngstown State.

Up Next: The Panthers get a full weekend off and do not return to action until a match at Valparaiso Nov. 11.

Milwaukee v. Green Bay Match Report

#15/18 Milwaukee 7, Green Bay 0
Oct. 28, 2011 – Engelmann Stadium (Milwaukee, Wis.)

Woman of the Match: Sarah Hagen. In her last regular season home game, Apple gave the home fans something to cheer about with a hat trick. Her first goal was a header off a Helen Steinhauser corner kick. Then, she earned and converted a penalty kick. Less than two minutes later, she fought for another goal.

NOTES: Milwaukee has won nine-straight meetings with Green Bay and now leads the all-time series 22-6-1 ... the Panthers' seven goals are a season-high and their most since scoring eight in an 8-0 win Oct. 9, 2009 ... Aug. 28 of that season was also the last time the team scored six goals in a half ... UWM's 16 wins this season ties the 2006 team for second-most in school history. The school record is 18 (2008) ... while the hat trick was the first of the season for Hagen, it was the fifth of her career ... she now has 22 goals and 50 points on the season, both are third in school history behind her 2008 and 2009 totals ... she is also up to 87 career goals, cracking the NCAA Division I all-time top-10 at #10 ... she is up to 201 points, 19th in history ... the Panthers finished league play 8-0 for the second time (2009) and wrapped up a sixth perfect league season ... they also scored 28 goals in league play (including 12 by Hagen). The next most goals by a team in league play was nine by two teams ... the team now has 48 goals this season and is tied for fifth in school history ... the Panthers have won their last nine Senior Day games and are 14-1 under Moynihan on Senior Day.

Up Next: The Panthers host the 2011 Horizon League Championships Nov. 4-6 at Engelmann Stadium.

Overseas List To Date

A handful of former Panthers have found homes in Europe or South America for the 2011-12 basketball season.

So far, at least six players are on rosters for this year.

Dylan Page - CHORALE DE ROANNE BASKET - France-ProA

Clay Tucker - LOTTOMATICA VIRTUS ROMA - Italy-SerieA

Boo Davis - SAN MARTIN CORRIENTES - Argentina-LigaA

Ricky Franklin - LUSITANIA ANGRA PATRIMONIO MUNDIAL - Portugal-LPB

Anthony Hill - BARREIRENSE CEPSA - Portugal-LPB

Derek Durham - ESC TRAPPES SAINT QUENTINS EN YVELINES - France-NM2

A handful of others may also sign contracts for a spot overseas by the end of the calendar year.

What The Preseason Basketball Magazines Are Saying

A number of preseason men’s basketball magazines have hit newsstands. So how are the Panthers stacking up?

Athlon picks the Panthers to be fourth in the Horizon League and has Tony Meier on its All-Horizon League First Team. Freshman Shaquille Boga is among “The Next 200” in the Class of 2011.

Athlon thinks the Panthers will be tested by its non-league schedule this season. The magazine has Wisconsin 14th in the country, Marquette 17th and Michigan State 19th. Plus, Texas Southern is picked to win the SWAC and IUPUI is one of the favorites in the Summit League.

Lindy’s also has UWM pegged for fourth in the league and puts Kaylon Williams on the all-league second team while also naming him the most versatile player in the league.

The Sporting News has the Panthers second in the league to Detroit with Tony Meier on the all-league team. That publication also highlights another UWM non-league opponent, with Western Michigan picked as the favorite in the MAC West.

Illinois State 3, #10/9 Milwaukee 1
Oct. 23, 2011 – Aledaide Street Field (Normal, Ill.)

Woman of the Match: Krissy Dorre. Krissy scored UWM's only goal and was a threat up top throughout the game.

NOTES: Milwaukee still leads the all-time series with Illinois State 6-3-2 … this was just the Panthers’ fourth game played on natural grass this season (3-1) … Sarah Hagen’s goal-scoring streak ended at eight games, second-longest in school history … this was UWM’s first road loss of the season (6-1) … when ISU scored in the 7th minute, it was just the second first-half goal the Panthers have allowed this season and was just the second time they trailed during a game.

Up Next: The Panthers host Green Bay Friday.

Live Blog: Milwaukee @ Illinois State

Match Report - At Wright State/Butler

Match #22 – Milwaukee 3, Wright State 0 (25-16, 25-8, 25-14)

Match #23 – Milwaukee 3, Butler 0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-23)

Wright State Recap and Stats

Butler Recap and Stats

Player Of The Weekend: Kerri Schuh another excellent all-around weekend for the Panthers. She hit .412 while averaging 4.33 kills per set. She then added 3.33 digs and 1.50 blocks per frame. Saturday alone, she had 16 kills and 15 digs in the three-set sweep of Butler.

Key Stats: Milwaukee’s blocking efforts really set the tone for the Panthers this weekend. UWM wound up averaging 2.83 blocks per set in the two wins, limiting its two opponents to a .092 hitting clip.

News and Notes: UWM has now won 12-straight matches this season and 21-straight regular season league matches overall … the Panthers have also won 15-straight league road contests … Milwaukee’s 12-0 start in league play is its best-ever league start … the Panthers have now won eight of their 12 league matches in three sets … Milwaukee has won 20 of its last 21 matches against Wright State … the Panthers’ .407 hitting percentage against Wright State was its best of the season ... it is also the best Milwaukee has recorded in a league match … the Panthers hit .317 in the two matches of the weekend while limiting its opponents to a .092 hitting clip.

Up Next: The Panthers return to the Klotsche Center next weekend for their final two regular season home matches. UWM entertains Youngstown State Friday at 7 p.m. before Cleveland State visits Saturday at 4 p.m.

Live Blog: Men's Soccer at Valparaiso

Join assistant SID Chris Zills for the live blog of the men's soccer game against the Crusaders in Valparaiso, Ind.

Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday night!

Milwaukee v. Loyola Match Report

#10/9 Milwaukee 3, Loyola 0
Oct. 20, 2011 – Loyola Soccer Park (Chicago, Ill.)

Woman of the Match: Kelsey Holbert. Kelsey scored the game-winner in just the sixth minute to give the Panthers the only lead they needed. It was a nice goal as she blasted it inside the far post. Her third goal of the season and second winner. All three of her goals were UWM's first of the game.

NOTES: Milwaukee now leads the all-time series with Loyola, 19-2-3 ... Sarah Hagen's eight-game goal-scoring streak is the second-longest in school history (nine games) ... Keara Thompson scored her 16th career goal, tied for ninth-most in school history ... With a goal and assist, Hagen moved up to 21st in NCAA Division I history with 195 career points ... Jamie Forbes returned from injury (she missed one game) to collect her ninth shutout of the season, tied with her freshman season (2009) for fourth-most in school history ... her 18 career shutouts are also fourth ... the Panthers were outshot for just the fourth time this season and are 3-1 in such games ... Milwaukee's nine-game winning streak is tied for the third-longest in school history ... the team has scored 2+ goals in each of the nine wins, matching the longest multi-goal streak in school history (2008) ... during the streak, UWM is outscoring opponents 27-4.

Up Next: The Panthers play at Loyola Wednesday.

Live Blog: Milwaukee @ Loyola

Okay... I think I got the Live Blog issue fixed. Kick off is at 7 p.m. from Loyola Soccer Park. - kc

Milwaukee vs. Wright State Match Report

Milwaukee 2; Wright State 2 (OT2)
Oct. 15, 2011 - Engelmann Stadium

Man of the Match: I give the nod to junior Cody Banks, who ended up with assists on both of the UWM goals in the match. Another top nominee would be senior Robert Refai, who netted his seventh goal of the season - the highest total for a UWM player since Neil Dombrowski had nine in 2005.

Offensive Charge: The UWM offense continues to find the net, scoring two more goals to give the team 25 goals on the season. For perspective, the Panthers tallied 17 goals in all of 2010 and just 12 in the 2009 campaign. The team recorded 17 more shots tonight with senior Ross Van Osdol getting credited with his first assist of the season - making him the 14th different Panther to record at least a point this year.

Up next: The Panthers head to Valparaiso next Saturday night, starting at 7 p.m.

Milwaukee v. Butler Match Report

#12 Milwaukee 4, Butler 1
Oct. 15, 2011 – Butler Bowl (Indianapolis, Ind.)

Woman of the Match: Sarah Hagen. Apple scored two goals, including a free kick shot that was described in the box score as "sick." It was a bomb from the 21 yard line (31 yards to goal) that went upper 90 and might have been still going up when it hit the net. She finished with nine shots, as many as Butler had.

NOTES: Milwaukee leads the all-time series with Butler, 21-6-2 … the Panthers have won eight-straight meetings in Indianapolis … Sarah Hagen has now scored goals in seven-straight games, tied for the second-longest streak in school history (with herself) … Natalie Fettinger made her first collegiate start … she is the sixth freshman to make a start for the Panthers this season … Morgan LaPlant’s goal was the first of her career and Vienna Behnke’s assist was her first … Krissy Dorre and Laurel Ragalie scored points in a second-straight game with assists … Hagen now has 85 career goals, 13th-most in NCAA Division I history … her 192 points cracked the are now tied for 22nd all-time ... Forbes was the last player on the team who had played every minute this season ... UWM is one win away from clinching at least a share of the league regular season title and the No. 1 seed in the league tournament.

Iron Woman Watch (Played every minute this season): 1285+ minutes (None)

Up Next: The Panthers play at Loyola Wednesday.

Match Report - Weekend At Loyola/Green Bay

Match #20 – Milwaukee 3, Loyola 1 (25-23, 25-20, 22-25, 25-16)

Match #21 – Milwaukee 3, Green Bay 2 (17-25, 16-25, 25-11, 25-22, 15-12)

Loyola Recap and Stats
Green Bay Recap and Stats

Player Of The Weekend: It hasn’t always been easy this season to pick out just one player of the week for the Panthers, and that has been a good thing. But this weekend Kerri Schuh played like the Horizon League Player of the Year and in many ways carried the Panthers to their two wins. Friday at Loyola, Schuh had 23 kills and hit .583 in Milwaukee’s four-set win. Then Saturday, Schuh led the way with 20 kills while adding 16 digs and seven blocks in the five-set victory at Green Bay. Schuh leads the Panthers in kills, is second in digs and is one of three players averaging better than a block per set.

Key Stats: Defense is a big key for Milwaukee and it was UWM’s defense that came through when it counted late in each match. Friday at Loyola, the Ramblers hit just .152 in the third set and .088 in the fourth frame. Then Saturday at Green Bay, the Phoenix hit -.075 in the third, .220 in the fourth and .071 in the fifth. In the win over the Phoenix, UWM had just 22 digs total in the first two sets, then had 59 over the final three frames.

News and Notes: With Cleveland State’s loss at home to Butler Saturday, Milwaukee is now two matches ahead of the Vikings in the loss column. Every other team has at least three losses … UWM’s 10-0 league start has tied its best league start in school history. The Panthers also opened the league campaign 10-0 in 2003 … UWM has now won 13-straight league road matches … the Panthers have won 19-straight league regular season matches overall … Milwaukee has won 12 in a row over Loyola and 17 of its last 18 over Green Bay … Mary Beth O’Brien entered the match with Green Bay in the fourth set and tallied six kills … Kerri Schuh has now passed 1,100 career kills … this is the first time in her career she has collected 20-plus kills in consecutive matches … she is the first Panther to collect back-to-back 20-plus kill outings since Becky Peters did it in 2008 … Peters had 24 kills against Oregon State and 20 against Wright State that year.

Up Next: UWM heads back to the road next weekend, playing at Wright State Friday night and at Butler Saturday afternoon.

Live Blog: Milwaukee @ Butler

Sorry... we are having live blog technical issues. For goal scoring information, follow Kevin Conway's Twitter feed -- twitter.com/@k_conway2.

#12 Milwaukee 3, Youngstown State 0
Oct. 9, 2011 – Engelmann Stadium (Milwaukee, Wis.)

Woman of the Match: Krissy Dorre. Since joining the team during the season, Krissy has shown a steady improvement. Wednesday was her best performance of the season, topped then by her game Sunday. She tallied her first collegiate goal and assist against YSU. More importantly, she is emerging as another dangerous scorer for Milwaukee.

NOTES: Milwaukee is now 11-0 all-time vs. Youngstown State ... Keara Thompson's two assists give her 24 for her career, tied with Nicole Sperl for fourth in school history ... her now 54 career points put her seventh all-time ... Sarah Hagen returned from a one-game absence and extended her goal-scoring streak to six games, tied for fourth-longest streak in school history ... with her 83rd career goal, she now has sole possession of 15th in NCAA Division I history for goals scored ... with 11 assists this season, Thompson leads the league and is fifth in school history for a season ... Hagen's now 16 goals this season are tied for fourth, giving her the top four goal-scoring totals in school history ... UWM's seven-game winning streak is its longest since a nine-game streak in 2009.

Iron Woman Watch (Played every minute this season): 1285+ minutes (Forbes)

Up Next: The Panthers hit the road to play at Butler in Indianapolis next Saturday.

Match Report - Horizon League Weekday Series

Match #18 – Milwaukee 3, UIC 0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-17)

Match #19 – Milwaukee 3, Valparaiso 2 (20-25, 21-25, 25-20, 25-19, 15-10)

UIC Recap and Stats

Valparaiso Recap and Stats

Player Of The Week: Morgan Potter has a stellar week in the back row and passed a career milestone, as well. Potter went past 1,000 career digs in Wednesday’s win over Valparaiso, becoming just the ninth Panther in the school’s Division I era to do so. She averaged an astounding 6.62 digs per set in the two victories during the week, collecting 21 against UIC and 32 vs. Valpo. The 32 marked the fourth-most in a five-set match in school history.

Key Stats: Defense was again a key for the Panthers this week. UWM averaged three blocks per set in two matches, including 13 blocks in a three-set win over UIC Tuesday. The blocking – and an average of 17.62 digs per set – helped Milwaukee limit its two opponents to a .150 hitting clip.

News and Notes: Wednesday’s win marked the 100th in the UWM head coaching career of Susie Johnson … the Panthers are now 36-2 in home regular season league contests under Johnson and 68-13 against league opponents overall … UWM’s 8-0 start to the league schedule is its best since 2003, when the Panthers started 11-0 … Milwaukee has now won 17-straight and 31 of its last 32 regular season league contests … Wednesday marked the fourth time in the last five seasons that UWM and Valpo have played a five-set match … UWM is now 24-12 in five-set matches under Susie Johnson … the Panthers came back from a two-set deficit for the first time since 2007, when Milwaukee did it three times … Elizabeth Egerer averaged 4.50 kills per set in the two wins, including a collegiate-best 23 in the win over Valparaiso … UWM did have its streak of six-straight 3-set wins snapped Wednesday. When Milwaukee lost the first set to Valpo, it marked the first loss of a set since Sept. 16.

Up Next: UWM gets the weekend off and then starts the second half of league play at Loyola (Oct. 14) and Green Bay (Oct. 15).

Milwaukee v. Valparaiso Match Report

#14/12 Milwaukee 3, Wright State 1
Oct. 1, 2011 – Alumni Field (Dayton, Ohio)

Woman of the Match: Keara Thompson. With Sarah Hagen unavailable, Thompson stepped up as an offensive leader. Her hustle set up Kelsey Holbert's first career goal and she came back with a great free kick score.

NOTES: Milwaukee is now 13-0 all-time vs. Valparaiso ... Hagen's consecutive start streak ended at 77 games ... Thompson surpassed the 50-point mark for her career and now has 52 ... she took sole possession of both fifth in school history for career assists (22) and 10th in goals (15) ... Morgan LaPlant made her second start of the season ... the shutout was the seventh of the season for Forbes and the 16th of her career ... the Panthers have now won six-straight games for the second time this season.

Iron Woman Watch (Played every minute this season): 1195+ minutes (Forbes)

Up Next: The Panthers host Youngstown State Sunday at Engelmann Stadium.

Milwaukee Women’s Soccer Is Ninth In This Week’s RPI

The Milwaukee women’s soccer team is ninth in the latest Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) released by the NCAA Wednesday.

The Panthers have been nationally ranked for much of the season and improved their RPI standing one spot over the No. 10 rating they had in the first RPI released last week.

Milwaukee also features some nationally-ranked players, as the NCAA released updated statistical rankings earlier this week.

- Sarah Hagen has 15 goals and 34 points in 12 games this season. She leads the league and is No. 2 in both goals per game (1.25) and points per game (2.83). Her eight game-winning goals, already a school record, are two more than any other player in the country. Her 15 goals are tied for third nationally and her 34 points are fourth.

- Keara Thompson shares the league lead with eight assists. She is tied for sixth in the nation for total assists and is tied for seventh in assists per game (0.67).

- Jamie Forbes leads the league in goals against average (0.65), save percentage (.860) and shutouts (6). Her GAA is 29th and save percentage is 34th.

- As a team, Milwaukee’s winning percentage of .917 is sixth in the country, while the Panthers are also 24th in save percentage (.871), 27th in goals against average (0.65), 32nd in goals per game (2.33) and 39th in shutout percentage (0.5).

The Panthers are in action today, hosting Valparaiso at 7 p.m. at Engelmann Stadium.

Live Blog: Men's Soccer at Michigan State

Join assistant SID Chris Zills for the live blog of the men's soccer game at Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich.

Kick-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. CST Tuesday!

Men's Soccer Players Make Top 20 List

The topdrawersoccer.com website has a "Players To Watch" feature and this week highlights the Horizon League.

Milwaukee has three players on the list: senior Keegan Ziada (pictured) and freshmen Gerardo Saavedra and Adam Hutchinson.

The website link is available HERE.

Here is the full list:
1 Tony Walls / Midfielder / Wisconsin-Green Bay
2 Ivan Stanisavljevic / Midfielder / UIC
3 Austin Oldham / Forward / Butler
4 Gerardo Saavedra / Midfielder / Milwaukee
5 Eric Frazier / Forward / UIC
6 Jesus Torres / Forward / UIC
7 Adekunle Oluyedun / Forward / Butler
8 Stefan Antonijevic / Defender / Valparaiso
9 Justin Laird / Midfielder / Wright State
10 Jordan Burt / Defender / Butler
11 Keegan Ziada / Midfielder / Milwaukee
12 Bryce Rockwell-Ashton / Forward / Wright State
13 Aslinn Rodas / Midfielder / Cleveland State
14 Zach Steinberger / Midfielder / Butler
15 Derek Zuniga / Midfielder / Wright State
16 Admir Suljevic / Forward / Cleveland State
17 Ya Ya Toure / Forward / Detroit
18 Adam Hutchinson / Defender / Milwaukee
19 Manual Conde / Midfielder / Cleveland State
20 Craig Feehan / Goalkeeper / Wright State

Milwaukee v. Wright State Match Report

#14/12 Milwaukee 3, Wright State 1
Oct. 1, 2011 – Alumni Field (Dayton, Ohio)

Woman of the Match: Sarah Hagen. Sarah had two goals for the third time in five games and has had the game-winning goal and her hand in multiple goals in each of the last five games.

NOTES: Milwaukee avenged its regular season loss at Wright State last season and now leads the all-time series with the Raiders, 19-6-5 … Demi Price made her first start of the season in place of Makenzie Gillaspie, who suffered an injury against Detroit last Sunday … Hagen extended her school record with her fifth-straight game-winning goal … her five-game goal scoring streak is the fifth-longest streak in school history (she owns the top five streaks) … she has 8 goals and 2 assists in that time … she now has 82 career goals, tied for 15th in NCAA Division I history … she is also up to 185 career points … Keara Thompson moved into a tie for fifth in school history with her 21st career assist … she is also up to 49 career points, putting her on the verge of becoming the eighth player in school history with 50 points … the Panthers played on a Saturday for the first time this season … UWM scored at least three goals in a game for the sixth time this season … Thompson and Hagen combined on a goal for the 22nd time in their careers.

Iron Woman Watch (Played every minute this season): 1105+ minutes (Forbes)

Up Next: The Panthers host Valparaiso Wednesday at Engelmann Stadium.

Match Report - Horizon League Weekend #3

Match #16 – Milwaukee 3, Cleveland State 0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-20)

Match #17 – Milwaukee 3, Youngstown State 0 (25-16, 25-12, 25-21)

Cleveland State Recap and Stats

Youngstown State Recap and Stats

Player Of The Weekend: Once again UWM had great balance on offense and defense but the continued steady play of Rachel Neuberger grabs the honor this weekend. She was one of three players who averaged 2.6 kills per set or better this weekend, but she did not commit a hitting error in 35 attempts (.457 hitting clip). She also added eight blocks.

Key Stats: Last weekend it was the offense that stole this show, but this weekend it was the defense. UWM’s two opponents hit a combined .064 for the weekend, with Youngstown State hitting -.018. Milwaukee forced CSU and YSU into a combined 52 hitting errors and the Panthers averaged 3.33 blocks per set.

News and Notes: UWM is off to a 6-0 start in league play for the second-straight season … the Panthers have won 15-straight regular season league matches … Milwaukee has won 11-straight league regular season road matches … UWM tied a school record with its fifth-straight 3-set win … the last time that happened was 2006, and it has never before happened in league play … YSU hit -.018 Saturday, the first time this season UWM has forced an opponent into a negative hitting percentage. SIU Edwardsville hit negative against the Panthers last season, committing 34 hitting errors. The last time a league opponent hit negative against Milwaukee was UIC, which hit -.037 in 2007 … UWM had 10 service aces in the win Saturday, the first time it has reached double figures in the category since it had 11 against Alcorn State in 2009 … this was the first time the Panthers reached double figures in aces in a league match since 2008 (12 vs. Youngstown State) … the Panthers have now won five in a row and nine of their last 10 over Cleveland State … UWM has won 22 of its last 23 matches against Youngstown State … Morgan Potter is now up to 972 career digs.

Up Next: UWM heads back home for a pair of midweek matches, playing UIC Tuesday night and Valparaiso Wednesday.