Nov. 6, 2001

Evanston, Ill. - The Northwestern men's soccer team have a tough road ahead this weekend as they travel to Madison, Wis., for the Big Ten Soccer Tournament. The 'Cats received the seventh seed and will see the nationally ranked Nittany Lions-the second seed-in the opening round.

"We are excited about playing in the Big Ten Tournament," said Wildcat head coach Tim Lenahan. "Everyone is 0-0 as far as the playoffs are concerned. We have done a good job of scoring some goals in recent games, and in the beginning of the year we defended well. Now we are just hoping to combine the two and pull off a surprise."

The 'Cats lost to PSU earlier in the season, 3-0, in University Park, Pa. The Nittany Lions are led by All-American senior Ricardo Villar. Villar has 8 goals this season, and also leads the Big Ten with 12 assists.

As a team, PSU is at the top of the conference in points (105), assists (37) and shots (238).

"We have our work cut out for us against Penn State, but we have the potential to be competitive," said Lenahan.

Wildcat senior Daniel Doman (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Detroit Country Day) has been on a roll the past week, netting two goals and adding two assists. He currently leads the squad in points.

If the 'Cats lose on Thursday their season will not be over quite yet. They have set tentative plans to play at Valparaiso on Sunday at 1 p.m. if they do not make the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. The original game between the Crusaders and Wildcats was supposed to be played Sept. 12.