A-10 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME BOUND! Men's Soccer Defeats No. 2 Seed Rhode Island, 1-0

Minutemen reach Atlantic 10 Championship game for first time since 2001; Get first win over URI since 2000.

Nov. 16, 2007

DAYTON, Ohio - When Rhode Island defeated UMass during the regular-season in Amherst, the men's soccer team made it their goal to force a rematch in the Atlantic 10 Tournament. They achieved that goal on Thursday night getting past tourney host Dayton on penalty kicks after two overtimes to get another shot at the No. 2 seed Rams in the Atlantic 10 Semifinal game. When the clock hit zero on Friday night, the third-seeded Minutemen walked away with a 1-0 victory and a spot in the A-10 Championship Game which will be held on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Charlotte.

"We talked about this before we left. It's one game at a time. This was a team that we wanted to play. They dominated us and outplayed us in the first game," said UMass head coach Sam Koch. "Tonight they had a lot of shots, but we controlled where they shot. I was proud of how the guys stuck with the game plan coming off a tough game with tired legs."

It is the first time the UMass men's soccer team has reached the league title since 2001.

"I have to give Rhode Island a ton of credit. They are a great team and really played well throughout the game. They outshot us, but we kept them to shots from 30-yards and out for the most part. They were shots that were easy for Zack to handle. They had a couple of dangerous shots, but we played them well and worked to limit those chances," said Koch.

UMass improves to 12-7-1 overall, while Rhode Island falls to 9-8-2 overall. The Rams were the two-time defending Atlantic 10 Champions. The Minutemen will face Charlotte who got past top-seeded No. 12 Saint Louis 3-2 on penalty kicks after a scoreless 110 minutes of play in the early game.

Redshirt junior defender Doug Rappaport (Tucson, Ariz.) scored the game's only goal just two minutes into the second half when he struck a corner kick just inside the right post. His third goal of the season and his second game-winner.

"Zack Simmons made some fantastic saves to keep us in the game," said Koch. "However, credit has to go completely to the team for playing back-to-back games like they did. I can't say enough how proud of them I am. They played their hearts out tonight."

UMass managed just five shots throughout the game. The Rams also doubled-up the Minutemen on corner kicks 8-to-4.

The last time UMass played in the A-10 Championship game was in 2001 when the Minutemen advanced to the NCAA Tournament by downing Richmond on penalty kicks after a 0-0 regulation and overtime session. Ironically, that Tournament was also hosted by Dayton.

This will be the fourth time UMass has reached the league championship game. Along with the 2000 game, UMass also reached the title mathc in 1995 (L, 5-2, Rhode Island), in 1994 (L, 4-3, Rutgers), and in 1992 (T, 0-0, West Virginia - won on PK's).

The 12 wins for UMass is the most in a season since winning 15 matches in 2001.

"The team is walking on air right now and has a high level of excitement," said Koch. "They also realize that we have one more game to play and that our job is not done yet. We came here to win three games and we have two. They can enjoy it tonight and then it's back to work tomorrow to get ready for Charlotte."