Men's Soccer Takes On Maryland
9/29/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 29, 2000
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The Demon Deacons and Terrapins meet Sunday at 1 p.m. at Spry Stadium. The Terps enter the game with an even 4-4 mark and 0-1 in conference play.
Maryland is coming off a convincing 3-0 win vs. American on Wednesday.
Wake Forest returns to conference action after taking a break since the opener against Virginia on Sept. 16.
Meanwhile, the Deacs are riding a three-game unbeaten streak, including a tie with seventh-ranked South Carolina and two shutout wins over UNC Wilmington (4-0) and Davidson (2-0).
WAKE FOREST demon deacons (4-3-1) vs. MARYLAND terrapins (4-4-0)
Date: October 1, 2000
Kickoff: 1:00 p.m.
Location: Winston-Salem, NC
Stadium: Spry Stadium (3,000)
Coaches: Wake Forest coach Jay Vidovich is in his seventh season at the helm of the Deacs. He has an overall record of 71-46-10. Sasho Cirovski is in his eighth year at Maryland. He has an record of 94-62-8 with the Terps.
Series: Maryland leads 11-9-2.
Last Meeting: Wake Forest 2, Maryland 1 (10/23/99 at College Park, Md.)
Wake Resumes ACC Play Against Maryland
Last Time Out
In Wednesday's game against Davidson, midfielder Jamal Seale scored his first of the season just 59 seconds into the second half and it proved to be the gamewinner. Ben Stafford gave the Deacs an insurance goal in the 78th minute to put the game away.
Rob Vartughian made three saves in goal on his way to posting his second shutout of the season.
Series history: Deacons and Terrapins
Maryland holds a slight edge in the all-time series with an 11-9-2 mark. But last year's battle in College Park belonged to the Deacons.
Jamal Seale's golden goal in the 100th minute gave Wake Forest the 2-1 overtime win, their first victory against the Terps since 1996.
Bobby Gehring also scored a goal in that game.
Like a Brick Wall
Senior goalkeeper Rob Vartughian has allowed just two goals in his last 320 minutes in net. That figure includes the final portion of the Virginia game, the South Carolina game and shutouts of UNC Wilmington and Davidson.
The St. Bonaventure transfer has lowered his goals against average from 2.11 to a mere 1.52 since Sept. 16.
Seale of Approval
After missing the preseason and playing in a limited capacity for much of the season, Jamal Seale is getting back to his 1999 form that earned him a place on the All-ACC second team as a sophomore.
Seale has started the last four games and netted his first goal of the season against Davidson.
That's a good sign for the Deacons as they face Maryland. Seale has a history of big goals against the Terps, netting the overtime winner in 1999, in the 100th minute.
Stafford Closing In On History
Ben Stafford keeps moving his way up Wake Forest's all-time scoring charts.
With his one goal and one assist performance against the Wildcats on Wednesday night, Stafford moved into third place in all-time scoring in Deacon soccer history (68) and tied for third in goals scored (26). He is just three points out of second place with plenty of time left in his senior season.
The Signal Mountain, Tenn., native scored four goals in the team's first three games, including the gamewinning tallies against UConn and UNC Greensboro. Stafford also registered the first game-tying goal against St. John's.
Stafford was the team's leading goal scorer in '99 with eight. Of those, six were game-winning or game-tying goals. Stafford netted the deciding goals against Coastal Carolina, Vanderbilt, UNC Greensboro, High Point, North Carolina and in the NCAA tournament against Virginia Commonwealth.
Scouting the Terrapins
Maryland is off to a 4-4, 1-1 start under eighth year head coach Sasho Cirovski, but their record is deceiving.
The Terrapins' four losses have come to ranked teams including Indiana, South Carolina, Maryland-Baltimore County and Duke.
Maryland has posted victories over Jacksonville, South Florida, NC State and American.
On Wednesday, the Terps knocked off American 3-0 behind defender Philip Salyer's two goals.
The team's backstop is Christian Lewis. He has seen 98% of the minutes in goal, allowing 1.01 goals per game with a .814 save percentage.
Abe Thompson and Bryan Vitagliano lead Maryland in scoring with three goals and two assists each.
2000 Pre-Season ACC Men's Soccer Poll
In the preseason ACC Coaches Poll, the Deacs were slotted to finish fifth. The team finished third in the conference in 1999 and brings back seven starters from the 13-3-5 squad.
The Deacs have been ranked as high as fifth in the NSCAA, Soccer America and Soccer Times polls.
| School | Points | '99 Record | '99 Finish |
| 1. Duke | 45 | 16-1-3, 4-0-2 | 1st |
| 2. UVa | 38 | 14-9-1, 1-4-1 | T6th |
| 3. Clemson | 31 | 9-8-2, 2-2-2 | 4th |
| 4. UNC | 27 | 12-7-1, 2-3-1 | 5th |
| 5. Wake | 25 | 13-3-5, 2-1-3 | 3rd |
| 6. Md. | 22 | 14-6, 4-2 | 2nd |
| 7. NCSU | 8 | 7-7-3, 1-4-1 | T6th |
Wake Forest - Maryland Connections
- Wake Forest freshman Brian Carroll and Maryland freshman Clarence Goodson are both from Springfield, Va. They played against each other when Carroll attended West Springfield and Goodson prepped at W.T. Woodson.
- Wake freshman forward Jeremiah White and Maryland's junior co-captain, Beckett Hollenbach, are alumni of The Haverford School in Pennsylvania.
- Deacon midfielder Adam Hakes (Phoenix) and Terrapin midfielder/forward Bryan Vitagliano (Scottsdale) are both from Arizona.
- Wake Forest freshman goalkeeper Shaun Kalnasy (Mercer Island) and Maryland defender Nick Downing (Redmond) both hail from Washington.
In case of emergency, break glass
Last season, the Deacons received a huge boost off the bench from forward Jaron Barbee.
In 2000, Barbee's role has varied, starting some games while coming off the bench in others. Either way, Barbee has been effective. He ranks as the team's fourth leading scorer with four points, all assists.
The Greensboro, N.C., senior assisted on Stafford's gamewinner against UNC Greensboro and on Adam Hakes' goal against Liberty.
When Barbee entered the lineup with 23 minutes remaining against UConn, Wake Forest picked up its intensity and began to pressure the Huskies. Shortly after, Wake tied the game, eventually winning in overtime.
Coach Vidovich calls Barbee a "vulture" who converts on his chances. The coaching staff also likes his versatility.
Thomas Named Preseason All-American
Sophomore midfielder Aaron Thomas was named to College Soccer Online's preseason All-American team. After playing defender last year, Thomas has already proved to be a dangerous threat in the penalty area. He scored a gametying goal against St. John's on a diving header during a scramble in the box.
Facing the Nation's Best
Halfway through the season, Wake Forest has played four top-10 teams. That number could grow with North Carolina and Duke still on the slate.
The Deacs opened with an overtime win over Connecticut (currently ranked #2), and an overtime loss to St. John's. On Sept. 16, Virginia shutout Wake Forest 2-0.
The remaining non-conference schedules includes UNC Asheville, George Mason, who was ranked earlier this year in some national polls, Charlotte and High Point.
ACC rivals Maryland and Clemson will visit Spry Stadium while Wake travels to face in-state ACC rivals NC State, North Carolina and Duke.
Three Deacons Earn Spots on Bob's Stores/UConn All-Tournament Team
Seniors Ben Stafford and Rob Vartughian and sophomore Aaron Thomas were named to the Bob's Stores/UConn All-Tournament thanks to their outstanding performances against Connecticut and St. John's.
Vartughian made ten saves against UConn, including three saves within a eight second span in overtime.
Just 34 seconds after Vartughian's saves, Stafford scored the overtime gamewinner against the Huskies. Stafford finished the trip with three goals.
Thomas earned his place on the team in large part because of his game-tying goal against St. John's with less than ten minutes remaining in regulation.
His diving header tied the game at two and forced the teams to play overtime.
Vidovich in seventh season at WFU
Head Coach Jay Vidovich is in his seventh season at the helm of the Wake Forest men's soccer program. He has a career record of 71-46-10 and is just seven wins shy of becoming the all-time winningest coach in Wake Forest history, surpassing mentor and friend, Walt Chyzowych.
Looking Back at the First Half
The Maryland game is the team's ninth game and sits exactly in the middle of the regular season schedule.
Through eight games, the Deacs have certainly experienced their ups and downs. Injuries have limited players at all positions as the season has progressed. With the team getting healthier, the Deacs are gearing up for another run at the NCAA tournament.
Here's a look back at the first half:
Wake started the year in grand fashion with an upset win at Connecticut. The team played well the next night but took an overtime loss against St. John's.
The Deacs won their home opener against UNC Greensboro and rose to #5 in the national rankings before slipping at Liberty and at home against Virginia.
After sliding out of the polls entirely, Wake rebounded with its most lopsided win of the season, shooting down the Seahawks of UNC Wilmington, 4-0.
The Deacons followed up that effort with a 2-2 tie of seventh-ranked South Carolina and a 2-0 shutout of Davidson.
