Men’s soccer team travels to play Hope in MIAA Tournament semifinals

OLIVET, Mich. – The Olivet College men's soccer team travels to play Hope College in the semifinals of the 2013 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Tournament Thursday, Nov. 7, at the Van Andel Soccer Stadium in Holland.

THE MATCHUP: Olivet (10-8-1, 8-5 MIAA) vs. Hope (15-4-1, 11-3 MIAA)
DATE/TIME: Thursday, Nov. 7 at 7 p.m.
VENUE: Van Andel Soccer Stadium; Holland, Mich.
LIVE STATS: http://livestats.hope.edu/so

MIAA TOURNAMENT: The Comets are the No. 3 seed, while the Flying Dutchmen are the No. 2 seed. The other semifinal features #1 seed Calvin College hosting No. 4 seed Kalamazoo College. The winners of the two semifinal games will play in the tournament championship game Saturday, Nov. 9, at a time to be determined. The game will be played at the highest remaining seed.

SEASON SERIES: Olivet and Hope split their two regular season meetings. On Oct. 5, the Comets beat the Flying Dutchmen, 2-1, in overtime at the Van Andel Soccer Stadium in Holland. Hope defeated Olivet, 3-0, on Oct. 29 at the Cutler Athletic Complex.

OLIVET HEAD COACH DAN BULLEY: Dan Bulley is in his first season as the Comets' head coach. He was an assistant coach at Western Michigan University for three seasons before joining Olivet's staff in March 2013. Bulley played three years of soccer at University at Buffalo after transferring from West Texas A & M University.

HOPE HEAD COACH STEVEN SMITH:  Steven Smith is in his 24th season at the helm of the Flying Dutchmen. A 1982 graduate of Grand Rapids Baptist College, he has posted a 335-112-38 record.

CAPTAINS: The 2013 team captains are senior Fred Smyser, of Grand Rapids, and junior John Leutzinger, of Washington Township.

LEADING SCORER: Junior Jon Puente, of Kalamazoo, leads Olivet with 21 points (eight goals and five assists). Smyser is second with 18 points (six goals and six assists). Senior Adam Wright, of Southend, England, also had six assists before suffering a season-ending knee injury.

GAME-WINNING GOALS: Puente has scored three game-winning goals this season, while junior Matt Meldrum, of Chesterfield Township, has two game-winners.

GAME-WINNING ASSISTS: Smyser has assisted on four game-winning goals, including three in 1-0 contests against MIAA opponents.

GUARDING THE NET: Junior keeper Alex Lang, of West Bloomfield, has started 13 games in net, and allowed only 19 goals in 1,153 minutes for a 1.48 goals against average.

LEAGUE LEADERS: In only MIAA games, Smyser is third in assists per game (0.50), tied for third in total assists (six), tied for fifth in points per game (1.33), sixth in total points (16), seventh in goals per game (0.42) and tied for seventh in total goals (five). Puente is tied for second with three game-winning goals. Lang is first in goals against average (0.85) and saves percentage (80.6).

CAREER RANKS: Smyser is third all-time at Olivet in assists (21) and fourth in points (65). He needs two assists to pass Mike May for second all-time. The career record for assists is 23.

WINNING SEASON: The Comets have secured a sixth straight winning season. This year's senior class has posted a 52-27-4 record during their time at Olivet.

MIAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY: The MIAA Men's Soccer Tournament is only its third year of existence, and the Comets are the only school to advance to the championship game each of the first two years.

In the 2011 MIAA Men's Soccer Tournament, Olivet was the No. 4 seed and upset No. 1 Calvin in the semifinals before losing to Hope in the championship game. Hope was No. 2 seed and beat No. 3 Trine (Ind.) University, 2-0, in the other semifinal.

Last season, Olivet was the No. 2 seed and beat Hope, 2-1, in the semifinals before losing to Calvin in the championship game. Calvin beat No. 4 seed Kalamazoo, 1-0, in double overtime in the other semifinal.