WILMINGTON, Ohio – For the first time since 2006, the Wilmington College men's soccer team is making an appearance in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament title game as the Fightin' Quakers will travel to John Carroll University for a 7 p.m. contest on Saturday evening.
The Teams: Wilmington and John Carroll (JCU). The Quakers, the No. 4 seed in the tournament, enter the matchup with a 12-5-3 record having defeated top-seeded Ohio Northern University 2-1 in double overtime on Thursday. The Blue Streaks, the No. 2 seed, also came from behind to earn a 2-1 double overtime victory over No. 3 Otterbein University on Thursday. JCU is 14-4-1 overall.
The Coaches: Wilmington is led by first-year Head Coach Cory Bucur, who came to WC from Defiance College. Bucur led the Yellow Jackets to their best season in over a decade in the fall of 2021 as DC went 11-11-1, upset Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Tournament before coming a penalty shootout victory away from appearing in the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament. Dejan Mladenovic, a 2006 JCU alumnus, has been a part of Blue Streak men's soccer for over two decades. He spent four years as a player, 10 years as an assistant coach, five years as an associate head coach and is in his second season leading the program.
The Players: Offensively, Wilmington is led by four seniors as Elorm Dogbey, Grant Murray, Casey Miller and Yusef Muqtadir have all tallied at least 13 points on the season. Dogbey leads the squad in goals with eight while Murray has a team-high seven assists. Recently, however, the Quakers have relied on younger players as Nick In'tZand has scored three goals in the last four games and Sakarias Bahamondez has found the back of the net in both OAC Tournament contests. Goalkeeper Thomas Grimes allowed 0.89 goals per game. A trio of Blue Streaks - Jack Foht, Patrick Koenig and Nicholas Felician - have scored four or more goals. Defensively, JCU allows just 0.52 goals per contest.
Series History: Wilmington is 5-24-3 against John Carroll since becoming an NCAA Division III member in the early 1990s. The Blue Streaks, courtesy of a Quakers own goal late in the game, won the regular season matchup 1-0. More information on the series history can be viewed by visiting the link above.
OAC Tournament History: Wilmington is making its 11th appearance in the OAC Tournament since joining the league prior to the 2000 season. The Quakers, who have a 9-8-1 all-time record in the postseason tournament, are making their first appearance in the OAC title game since 2006. More information on Wilmington's history in the OAC Tournament can be viewed by visiting the link above.
House of Horrors: Don Shula Stadium has not been kind to Wilmington as the Quakers are 0-14-1 all-time at the facility against JCU. Coincidentally, all four of the Blue Streaks losses on the season have come at home.
Regional Rankings: John Carroll checks in at No. 3 the final Region VII rankings, published by the NCAA.
Tickets: The OAC is a proud partner of Hometown Ticketing. Fans are encouraged to purchase digital tickets ahead of time at the link above. Though students and children under seven will gain free admission with a valid identification, season passes will not be accepted per the OAC postseason ticketing policy.
Coverage: Live statistics and live video of the contest will be available – visit the links above.
Social Media: Follow Wilmington athletics on social media! The Fightin' Quakers have a presence on Facebook (Wilmington College Athletics) as well as Twitter and Instagram (@DubCQuakers).
Up Next: The winner of the game will receive the OAC's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament. The field will be released on Monday, Nov. 7.
