Tournament Central

Thursday, Nov. 10
No. 2 UIC vs. No. 3 Milwaukee - 3 p.m. CT - ESPN3 | Live Stats

CHICAGO – The No. 2 seeded UIC men's soccer team will open play in the Horizon League Tournament Thursday when its goes head-to-head with No. 3 Milwaukee in the semifinals in Dayton, Ohio. Kickoff is slated for 3 p.m. CT at Alumni Field.
 
The winner will move on to the championship game set for Saturday and will face the winner of No. 1 Wright State and No. 4 Oakland at 5 p.m.
 
The Flames clinched the No. 2 seed after turning out a 5-3-1 conference record despite falling to Oakland, 5-2, in the regular season finale. Against the Golden Grizzlies, UIC put up 19 shots as Max Todd and Mike Jimenez scored, with Todd additionally getting an assist.
 
Throughout the season, the Flames have put up some of the best numbers in the Horizon League with 23 goals, 20 assists and a league-best 285 shots. In conference games alone, they have secured 13 goals, 12 assists and 179 shots.
 
A total of nine players have scored for UIC and nine have added assists while nine have taken 10 or more shots. Max Todd has led the way while placing in the top three in the Horizon League with eight goals, seven assists, 23 points and 62 shots, as more than half of those totals came in conference play. Jose Fuentes has additionally been a factor with five goals, three in conference, two assists and 37 shots.
 
Andrew Putna has been reliant all season. In more than 1,400 minutes, he has made 42 saves and acquired six shutouts while posting a 1.39 goals-against-average. Five of his shutouts have been against league opponents as he has allowed just eight goals, with three combined for seven opponents, to collect a 0.97 GAA.
 
The Flames were awarded for their efforts as the Horizon League unveiled its postseason honors. Putna was named the Goalkeeper of the Year and earned a spot on the All-League First Team with Todd and Fuentes, as Cristian Sanchez and Alex Cervantes rounded out the accolades with placement on the All-Freshman Team.
 
Milwaukee reached the semifinals on a penalty-kick shootout, 5-3, over Valparaiso after the teams played a scoreless 110 minutes in the quarterfinals. It was able to garner the third seed following a 1-0 win over Cleveland State in the final game of the regular season.
 
The Panthers have come up with 24 goals and assists this season while taking 248 shots, with 11 of their goals and assists and 126 of their shots coming in conference play. Evan Conway (6g, 3a), Francesco Saporito (4g, 7a) and Nick Moon (3g, 4a) have been the top offensive contributors and have combined for 132 of the team's shots.
 
Sam Glass (1.15 GAA) and Oliver Haslund (1.32 GAA) have split time in goal all season while Haslund has earned the start in the last five matches. The pair each owns three shutouts as Glass has made 33 saves and Haslund has added 27.
 
Four of the Panthers garnered postseason awards for the Horizon League as Conway was named Freshman of the Year and placed on the All-Freshman Team, while Moon, Saporito and Jon Stadler were recognized on the All-League Second Team.
 
UIC has not seen Milwaukee since Sept. 10 when it opened the conference season with a 1-0 win at Flames Field on the lone goal scored by Oscar Rivero and assisted by Todd. The all-time series puts the Flames at 14-14-4, with the last postseason meeting occurring in 2013 in the championship final where the Panthers came out on top.