Scouting The Falcons
Messiah arrives to its seventh ‘Final Four’ with a record of 23-0-1, the sixth time in program history that a Falcons team has arrived to the biggest stage with an unbeaten record. The others occurred in the ’02, ’04, ’05, ’07 and ‘08 seasons. Messiah won the national championship in both the 2005 and 2008 campaigns, defeating The College of New Jersey by a 1-0 score in the ’05 title match and handling Wheaton College (Ill.) by a 5-0 count last year.

The Falcons advanced to this weekend’s event behind a 3-1 victory over Johns Hopkins University in NCAA third round action at Homewood Field in Baltimore, Md. two weeks ago. It was the second time Messiah beat Hopkins on the year; the previous being a 2-0 win on Sept. 9 on Shoemaker Field.

Messiah is led offensively by 2009 Commonwealth Conference Player of the Year Erin Hench (junior) and 2008 NSCAA Division III National Player of the Year Amanda Naeher (senior), who sits atop Messiah’s all-time career points and career goals scored lists. Naeher and Hench are one-two in goals, assists and points this year for the Falcons – Naeher with 30 goals, 11 assists and 71 points; Hench with 16 goals, 17 assists and 49 points.

Defensively, the Falcons’ back row has not missed a beat. Anchored by senior center back Carey Cortese, Messiah has posted 17 shutouts, 12 accredited to sophomore goalie Autumn Reilly, who has allowed just seven goals on the year.

The Falcons have out-everythinged their opponents this season, leading in goals (102 to 7), shots per game (25.5 to 3.3), and corner kicks (178 to 32).

Target on Their Backs ...
Messiah enters this weekend’s action ranked No. 1 in the D3soccer.com Top 25 Poll. Messiah has faced arguably the toughest schedule in the country this year, playing six teams that made an appearance in this year’s NCAA Tournament during the regular season, with three of those teams making it to the ‘Elite 8’ — Johns Hopkins University, Lynchburg College and Ithaca College.

Frey’s 200
As a byproduct of a Messiah’s 6-1 win over Farmingdale State University in the NCAA Tournament’s first round, 10th year head coach Scott Frey recorded his 200th career victory. Currently, Frey has an incredible 203-12-11 career record and a 28-6-4 record in Messiah’s 10 NCAA Tournament appearances — all of which have occurred under Frey.

Currently, Frey is No. 2 all time in career win percentage in any division of NCAA women’s soccer, posting a .923 mark, second only to Anson Dorrance, head coach at The University of North Carolina.

Frey already holds the NCAA Division III mark for career win percentage, while his 203 wins are just 43
shy of the all-time record for Messiah College soccer. Former men’s head coach Dave Brandt currently
holds that honor, posting a 246-25-14 record during his 12 years at the helm.

Dynamic Duo
Junior Erin Hench and senior Amanda Naeher may be the greatest one-two punch in the history of Messiah women’s soccer, and the numbers are there to prove it:

The combination of Hench-to-Naeher has connected 18 times on the year for goals, 10 of which were game winners. On the season, Hench has become Messiah’s all-time and single-season assists leader, pushing her career total to 38 helpers. Her 17 dimes this year was also a single-season best, bettering a mark of 16 that both she and 2008 senior Rachel Horning set last season.

Naeher, meanwhile, has shattered the program record for goals scored, charting 75 markers in just three seasons of play: The Seymour, Conn., native did not play collegiate soccer as a freshman at Messiah, instead playing as a member of the Falcons’ women’s basketball team — a club that also reached the NCAA Division III national championship game that year.

Before Naeher’s dominance, Messiah’s all-time career goal scorer was 2008 graduate and First Team All-American Steph Rowe, who posted 61 scores. Naeher’s 30 goals this year are just three off her single-season best mark of 33, set in last year’s national championship season.

Statistically Speaking ...
Messiah ranks FIRST nationally in won-lost-tied percentage, boasting a 97.9 percent clip.
Messiah ranks SECOND nationally in scoring, averaging 4.25 goals per game.
Messiah ranks FOURTH nationally in goals-against average, giving up just 0.287 goals per game.
Messiah ranks NINTH nationally in shutout percentage, posting 17 shutouts in 24 games — a 70.8 percent clip.

Sophomore goalkeeper Autumn Reilly ranks SEVENTH nationally in goals-against average, allowing just 0.318.
Senior forward Amanda Naeher ranks NINTH nationally in points per game, averaging 2.96 per.
Senior forward Amanda Naeher ranks NINTH nationally in goals per game, averaging 1.25 per.
Junior forward Erin Hench ranks TENTH nationally in assists per game, averaging 0.71 per.

Twice As Nice
Messiah’s men’s and women’s soccer teams are appearing together in a ‘Final Four’ for the sixth straight season, and seventh overall. The Falcons’ men have appeared on the biggest stage in 1986, 1988, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. Messiah’s women have appeared in the ‘Final Four’ in 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Both teams won the national championship in the 2005 and 2008 seasons. Messiah College remains as the only NCAA institution — regardless of level — to claim men’s and women’s soccer national championships in the same season. In addition to those seasons, the Falcons’ men’s team won national championships in 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006. The men have never lost when advancing to the national championship game; the women finished as runners-up in 2002 and 2007.

Also, the 2008 season marked the first time that the men’s and women’s national players of the year came from the same school — at any level: Then-junior Amanda Naeher was the 2008 NSCAA Division III National Player of the Year, while 2008 senior JD Binger earned the same honor on the men’s side.

Against The Field
Messiah played at Lynchburg College on Sept. 19 of this season, suffering its only tie result of the year in a 1-1, double-overtime draw. Sophomore Jessica Shirk scored in the game’s 37th minute off a corner kick from junior Katie Hoffsmith, but Lynchburg responded 20 minutes later, notching the equalizer off a free kick from freshman Jessie Gonzalez. Sophomore Shelley Hoath finished the serve with a firm shot.

Lynchburg tallied 14 total shots against Messiah in the tie — including eight on goal. Both were season highs allowed by the Falcons.

While the Falcons have not played The College of New Jersey this year, the Lions have been a common opponent in NCAA Tournament play, facing Messiah four times over the past five years in postseason play. Messiah has recorded a 3-1 record against TCNJ during that time, winning the teams’ last meeting in a 2-0 decision in the 2007 national semifinal. The Falcons also won their 2005 national championship over TCNJ, winning 1-0 in regulation.

Messiah and Washington University in St. Louis have never met.