Sept. 16, 2012
OMAHA, NE--Jordan LeBlanc (Haverford, PA.) scored twice and Chris Harmon (Downington, PA.) assisted on two goals to lead the Monarchs (6-0) of Old Dominion to a 4-1 victory over Drake in the Creighton Soccer Classic. In winning both games, ODU captures the Classic Title.
The Monarchs who beat second ranked Creighton Friday night rank fifth by Soccer America, 11th by College Soccer News and 14th by the NSCAA Coaches poll.
"It was a very rewarding weekend with two good wins.We showed great poise on the road and look forward to returning home to face Maryland Tuesday Night in a National Showdown." - Alan Dawson, ODU head coach.
After a Drake foul in the box, Jordan LeBlanc put the Monarchs on the board first on a penalty kick at the 23:05 mark in the first half. 13 minutes later, freshman midfielder Sidney Rivera (Hampton, NJ.) hit an unassisted goal from 12 yards away for a 2-0 ODU halftime lead.
In the second half, Drake cut the lead to 2-1 with a goal midway through by Jared Arde with an assist from Austin Reutzel.
The Monarchs answered right back with two goals within a couple of minutes of each other. LeBlanc got a crossing pass from Chris Harmon to make it 3-1, then two minutes later Harmon fed Yannick Smith for the game's final goal and a 4-1 Monarch win.
Senior goalkeeper Victor Francoz (Fleurieu Sur Saone, France) came up with three saves on the day, while ODU outshot Drake, 25-7 overall and 15-4 in shots on goal.
Tim Hopkinson was named the Classic MVP and he was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammates Victor Francoz, Jordan LeBlanc and Chris Harmon.
The Monarchs host unbeaten Maryland (5-0-1) Tuesday night at 7 p.m. Maryland defeated No 17 N.C. State on Friday night 3-2. The Terps rank No. 1 by Soccer America, and No. 3 by the NSCAA Coaches and College Soccer News.
The last top five nationally ranked teams to visit the ODU Soccer Complex were: No. 2 North Carolina on Sept. 28 of 2010 (ODU won 2-1); No. 1 Maryland on Aug. 25, 2006 (No. 20 ODU lost 2-0); No. 4 Virginia (No. 18 ODU wins, 3-0); No. 5 Wake Forest on Sept. 21, 2003 (No. 7 ODU wins, 2-0); No. 5 JMU on Oct. 7, 1995 (ODU wins, 1-0), No. 2 UCLA on Sept. 28, 1992 ODU Metlife Classic (ODU loses, 1-0) and No. 2 Virginia in 1984 (ODU loses 1-0) at Foreman Field.
ODU 2-2=4Drake 0-1=1
23:05 ODU Jordan LeBlanc on penalty Kick38:58 ODU Sidney Rivera63:21 DU Jarred Arde from Sutin Reutzel67:14 ODU Jordan LeBlanc from Chris Harmon69:21 ODU Yannick Smith from Chris Harmon
Shots: ODU (25), DU (7)SOG: ODU (15), DU (4)Corners: ODU (7),, DU (4)Saves: ODU- Francoz (3), DU- Rich Gallagher (11)
CREIGHTON ALL TOURNAMENT TEAM1. Old Dominion (2-0-0)2. Creighton (1-1-0)3. William & Mary (1-1-0)4. Drake (0-2-0)
All-Tournament Team
MVP: Tim Hopkinson, Old DominionVictor Francos, Old Dominion (Goalkeeper)Jordan LeBlanc, Old DominionChris Harmon, Old DominionZach Barnes, CreightonJose Ribas, CreightonAndrew Ribeiro, CreightonMarcus Luster, William & MaryChris Perez, William & MaryJarred Arde, DrakeMichael Thaden, Drake