Peter Wangechi

Men’s Soccer Matchday Preview: John Carroll University vs. Otterbein University

10/30/2024 1:20:00 PM | By: Gianluca DiGiacomo, Staff Writer

Blue Streaks Lace Their Boots for Final Home Match of the Season with Historic OAC Foe

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS – With the season dwindling down and the postseason coming into the near future, the John Carroll Blue Streaks are locking to face some of the toughest competition to date with their final two Ohio Athletic Conference battles within the next week.

To start, Wenzler's Warriors will step into Don Shula Stadium one final time this season for what might be the last OAC battle the two teams have, an endeavor that will hopefully put an exclamation point on the final sentence of one of the conference's most thrilling stories. It will be a short rest period before a hefty trip down southwest for another challenging ordeal.

Meet the Opposition: Otterbein University Cardinals

Form
Heading north to University Heights one final time, the Cardinals head into the evening matchup with an 8-6-2 record (4-3 OAC). Despite plenty of returning players and key additions alike, the team has not been quite able to get their feet off the ground like in years past, a rollercoaster ride the team has been combatting for quite some time now.

After opening the season with a hard-fought 1-0 win to nationally-ranked Case Western Reserve, the Cardinals dropped a difficult bout with Trine, losing 2-1 in the end. After bouncing back against Hanover, they dropped two consecutive matches against Texas Lutheran and Ohio Wesleyan respectively. Redeeming themselves with back-to-back 3-0 victories against Oberlin College and Franklin, the team finished non-conference play with two scoreless draws against then #3-ranked Kenyon College and currently-ranked Denison University.

Conference play has been no different, opening with a narrow 1-0 loss to Mount Union. The team rallied for two multi-goal wins against Baldwin Wallace and Marietta before dropping an unlikely loss to the underdog Wilmington College. Redemption came against Muskingum followed by a 3-1 loss to Ohio Northern, identical to their loss in the OAC Championship. The Cardinals are riding high as of late however, a goal early in the second half on Saturday from Carter Ely propelling the team past Capital.

Meet the Coaching Staff
Head Coach Jason Griffiths is now finishing up his eighth season at the helm of the Cardinals' soccer program, tallying up a 90-38-14 record to date. The Englishman has completely revamped the program since his arrival, claiming three OAC Regular Season Championships and a Tournament Championship in his first season back in 2017, giving the program their first trophies since 2003. Griffiths has won OAC Coach of the Year on two separate occasions, and has a handful of national tournament appearances to his name as well. Before his time at Otterbein, Griffiths served as a Senior Director of Coaching at Eagles Soccer Club in Columbus for over three years.

What is most impressive about Griffiths, however, is his playing career before taking up coaching and administrative roles. Born and raised in Bracknell, England, Griffiths played collegiate ball in the United States at the University of Kentucky, earning All-Conference and All-Region honors on two separate occasions.

Griffiths later got drafted into the MLS, being the 49th overall pick in 2010 to the New England Revolution. After some unfortunate runs with injury, he was forced to retire later on, but his legacy still lives on.

As a coach, Griffiths strives to be a man of the people. "We always try to set our team up to get the best out of our guys," he mentioned. "We really want their feedback, too…it's not just the coaches, and we want to make it a fun environment with high expectations."

The Cardinals are also coached by Liam Heard (2nd year), Nico Malobabic, and graduate assistant and program legend Will Isaac (1st year).

Team Style/Ones to Watch
Sticking to similar principles from last season, the Cardinals stay true to their rigid structure, direct progression, and athletic skill sprinkled throughout the pitch. For each major departure with the likes of Will Isaac and goalkeeper Casey Thompson, players have stepped up and gone beyond for Griffiths and the rest of the coaching staff.

Attacking talent has not been hard to come by, with Carter Ely spearheading the striker role on the year with six goals and three assists. Ely's pace and off-ball intelligence makes him a pesky force to deal with, and has had goal involvements in five of his last six outings. "He's a lead by example kind of guy," remarked Coach Griffiths. "There are no lost causes for him, he's a smart player and causes plenty of chaos for the opposition as well."

Wingers Drew Boettcher and Nick Isaac have also come up big in their performances on the season. Both coming from Division I institutions, their tireless efforts make them strong presences on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Isaac in particular has been a real threat to the sovereignty of opposition, following in his brothers' footsteps with seven goals and eight assists, standing third in the OAC for assists and fifth in total points (22).

Junior Mitchell Patterson has also had an impressive climb in the ranks of the Cardinals team through the last three years, accompanied by a rise in position on the pitch, going from wingback and wing midfielder roles to having a far greater offensive contribution this year.

The central midfield's skill complements the wings well, accomplished conference midfielder Drew Holman and Purdue Northwest transfer Colm Oneacre complement each other extremely well as box-to-box pieces. Holman has been a sure-fire player in particular, being one of just five players to start in all 16 matches.

The back line is perhaps the scariest aspect of his team, combining for an excellent blend of ball-playing ability, soccer IQ, and physicality. Graduate student Mark Wischmeyer will look to be a thorn in the side of the Blue and Gold one final time, being a huge factor in the Cardinals' two shutouts against the Blue Streaks last year. The coaching staff also had particularly good things to say about the Michigan native. "He's great in the air, composed on the ball, has great game-IQ, you just always know what you are going to get," said Coach Griffiths. Hayden Vu accompanies him as a center half, adapting well and striving to bolster his already impressive OAC resume.

Prior midfielders have also been pushed to the back for stronger offensive stability, as Jacob Irani has embraced a fullback position as well, with some rotation with guys off of the bench.

Finally, freshman Jason Villalobos has taken the reins in between the sticks, being thrown into the deep end after an arrival and departure of former Wilmington keeper Thomas Grimes before the beginning of their 2024 campaign. Villalobos has adapted extremely well, ranked fifth in the OAC in total saves (50) and just outside of the pedestal in save percentage (0.758%).

Your John Carroll Blue Streaks

Form
Running rampant against the OAC in recent weeks, the Blue Streaks head down for tonight's battle with a 12-3-2 record (6-1 OAC). A topsy-turvy season for certain, the Blue and Gold need to be in the shape of their lives, both physically and mentally, for this final run of matches in the team's last dance in the Ohio Athletic Conference.

The beginning of non-conference play begged some great results, winning five of their first six games, only marred by a loss in the squad's home opener over Kenyon thanks to a goal conceded in the 83rd minute.

After McCarthy Weekend, the team took a slight decline, drawing an incredible game with Ohio Wesleyan and getting a scoreless draw result in Pennsylvania the following weekend. Coming back to Cleveland the following Wednesday, the squad dropped a 2-0 game against Case Western Reserve. Facing adversity, Wenzler's Warriors rallied back home, taking home a 3-1 victory over Calvin University.

Conference play has been a mixed bag for the Blue Streaks, getting results but perhaps not with the flying colors they may have been planning on for a few matches. Before their 7-0 thrashing of Heidelberg this past Wednesday, every Blue Streaks victory in OAC play has only been within one goal, with a loss to Mount Union in Alliance their only true setback. The team is coming off of a thrilling seven-goal contest in southern Ohio, defeating the Quakers with a 4-3 scoreline courtesy of a Logan Penton hat trick.

With a flurry of 11 goals in the last two matches, the team's offensive momentum has picked up, and their attacking infantry will be further put to the test against the Cardinals' notoriously rigid back four.

Meet the Coaching Staff
Athletic Hall of Famer and Head Coach Dejan Mladenovic has been taking on his fourth season as head coach after 15 years as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Through his first three seasons, Mladenovic has captured two OAC Tournament Championships, one OAC Regular Season Championship, and three NCAA Tournament berths to complement a 56-18-9 record to date. He was recently inducted into the JCU Athletic Hall of Fame last season for his playing career.

Accompanying Mladenovic on the coaching staff are assistant coaches Ante Pilekic (4th year) and Michael Adelman (3rd year), as well as Athletic Trainer Eddie Dobrowolski.

Team Style/Ones to Watch
Continuing their run of form, the Blue Streaks' identity has stayed true through and through, putting faith in their players in the attacking third and blending team play with individual brilliance.

It has been evidently hard to nail down who exactly are the "go-to" guys for the Blue Streaks, which can be met with a simple response—there aren't any. Offensive leaders shift on a match-by-match basis, and no one player has dominated the ranks in any regard.

Fifth years Jaden Wright and Logan Penton currently lead the charge, combining for 11 goals and five more assists to date.

Penton jumped his fifth-year partner in crime after recording a hat trick in a span of seven minutes during a chaotic second half from Williams Stadium this weekend. Penton is certainly a momentum-based guy, and given his acumen against the Quakers a few days ago, the Cardinals will have to expend every resource possible to put his aspirations to rest.

Wright's foot has been the factor for three game-winning goals, including two separate occasions of scoring the sole goals with ten minutes left (1-0 wins against Carnegie Mellon and Baldwin Wallace). He opened the scoring this past weekend in Wilmington, and his direct and explosive nature ought to cause problems.

Following close behind are the fifth year Patrick Koenig who jumped the ranks with his hat trick in the last affair against Heidelberg, and the freshman Dylan Halm, who has one of the many excellent additions from the freshmen class with contributions in a spread of affairs this season.

Luka Pranjeta and Hayden Haffner follow with three goals each, all respectively coming up huge in games to secure victories. Pranjeta also linked up with Penton on two different occasions this past weekend with balls across the center.

Coming into the midfield, senior Nicholas Graeca leads the charge, being one of the vital organs of this Blue Streaks team. With consistent high energy and a newfound sense of composure, the DuBois, Pennsylvania native will make his mark on both sides of the ball this evening.

Other midfielders such as Guilherme Wanderley, Andrew Ruggiero, and Logan Brown also use their dynamic playstyles to control the middle third and push momentum forward.

Perhaps the most important piece of this John Carroll squad on the year, however, is their defensive line. Constantly switching personnel due to injury, the Blue Streaks have never lost the form on their back four, only conceding twelve goals on the year.

Both of the team's goalkeepers lead the OAC in goals against average, and junior keeper Brenden Moher sits towards the top of the rankings in the country in the statistics. The Blue Streaks have shut out nine different opponents this year, including four of their six OAC games.

Despite trial and tribulation, the defenders of Izac Coleman, Nathan Monastra, and Daniel Kalic have all been the loyal subjects of one of the most impenetrable defenses in the region. Freshmen Nick Mikulec has also shifted to be back with injuries and settles in nicely along with a fellow former Saint Ignatius center back in Kalic.

Matchup History
The Blue Streaks hold a record of 26-11-4 in all competitions over the Cardinals. With dozens of classical bouts in recent memory, the Cardinals and Blue Streaks have situated themselves in the conversation for one of the best rivalries in OAC history across all sports.

Instead of the stereotypical quick facts, a year-by-year dive from the last decade would do this rivalry far more justice. Since 2019, here is a quick recap of each derby match between the two programs:

2023, OAC Semifinal – Blue Streaks and Cardinals held each other scoreless in Westerville before the Cardinals took home a battle in penalty kicks, 4-3 to advance to the OAC Championship.
2023 Regular Season – Carter Ely's goal with eight minutes remaining gives the Cardinals a 1-0 and their first three points at Don Shula Stadium since 2004.
2022, OAC Semifinal – After a 1-1 scoreline going into the half, fullback Michael Kelly would score with eight minutes left in overtime in his second game back from injury, helping them advance and win the OAC Championship.
2022 Regular Season – An early goal from Hayden Haffner was capped off in Westerville by a goal from fifth year Michael Burrington with 40 seconds left.
2021, OAC Championship – A scoreless regulation paved the way for then-freshmen Nicholas Graeca to send in a cross to fifth year Benjamin Hryszko in overtime for a dramatic OAC Tournament Championship win for the Blue Streaks.
2021 Regular Season – a nail biting 0-0 overtime draw in Westerville, replete of some big chances from both teams post-regulation.
Spring 2021 – A 1-0 win for the Blue Streaks after John Carroll's Jared Mattei scored just six minutes into the contest.
2019, OAC Championship – Mario Aboumitri's goal in the 13th minute gave John Carroll a foundation to win their second consecutive OAC Championship for yet another 1-0 win.
2019, Regular Season – A thrilling 2-1 win in overtime, scoring started with five minutes left as Matt Nigro scored off of a Will Turritin assist; the Cardinals' Gabe Sharrock scored with 16 seconds to send it to overtime, and Turritin would send a corner in to Matt Nigro with under three seconds on the clock to win the game.

Up Next
The Blue Streaks will suit up for their final Ohio Athletic Conference regular season game in Ada, taking on nationally-ranked Ohio Northern University—a match that will hold significant implications for the OAC Tournament. Kickoff will be set for 1 pm.

The Cardinals will play their final conference match back in Westerville against Heidelberg University for Senior Day, kickoff set for 5 pm.

Where to Follow
Coverage of today's match will be available on @jcusports and @jcumenssoccer accounts on X, Instagram, and Facebook. The stream for the match will be located on jcusports.com and OAC TV.

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