The Georgetown men's soccer team concluded the 2005 season with double-figure wins for the second consecutive year as the Hoyas posted a 10-9-1 overall mark, 6-5 vs. BIG EAST foes. GU squared off against what Head Coach Keith Tabatznik described as its "most difficult schedule ever" with the Hoyas facing ten teams that made an appearance in the 2005 NCAA Tournament.
GU qualified for the BIG EAST Championship for the 13th time in the last 14 years and advanced to the Quarterfinal Round of the league tournament. Georgetown earned the No. 5 seed in the Blue Division and went on the road and topped No. 4 seed Villanova in penalty kicks in the BIG EAST First Round before falling to No. 1 seed Connecticut in the Quarterfinals.
Tabatznik compiled his 210th career victory and several Hoya student-athletes were recognized with BIG EAST post-season accolades while others continued their climb up the school's all-time leaderboard. Senior defender Jeff Curtin earned his fourth career spot on the All-BIG EAST Second Team while junior forward Ricky Schramm was tabbed All-BIG EAST Third Team. Senior midfielder Ben Jefferson-Dow was tabbed BIG EAST Honorable Mention. The trio combined for 15 of the team's 28 goals. Schramm and Jefferson-Dow tied for the team lead with seven goals. Schramm now ranks sixth on the school's all-time list with 29 goals and eighth all-time with 69 points. Curtin moved into a tie for 23rd on the school's all-time list with 31 career points. Junior goalkeeper Andrew Keszler recorded five shutouts this season and now has nine for his career to move into fifth place on GU's all-time list.
Georgetown played eight games against teams ranked in the Top 20, winning two. The Hoyas were ranked in the national rankings on two separate occasions and were ranked among the Top 10 in the South Atlantic region all season.
The Hoyas got off to a strong start as senior Jeff Curtin was named BIG EAST Pre-season Defensive Player of the Year while junior Ricky Schramm was named BIG EAST Pre-season Offensive Player of the Year. Two weeks later, Curtin picked up his second pre-season award when he earned a spot on the 2005 College Soccer News All-America First Team.
Once the regular-season began, the Hoyas sprinted to consecutive wins over Howard and American to win the Fifth Annual D.C. College Cup. In the 1-0 overtime victory over Howard, freshman Sean Bellomy scored the first goal of his career in the game's 93rd minute. Two days later, in the D.C. College Cup Finals, the Hoyas won the Craig Tartasky Trophy when senior Benjamin Jefferson-Dow scored in the 21st minute for a 1-0 win over American. Following the game, Jefferson-Dow, junior goaltender Andrew Keszler and junior Tim Convey were named to the All-D.C. College Cup Team and Jeff Curtin was named Tournament MVP after helping to lead GU to two shutouts.
Georgetown then made the short trip to the Maryland/adidas Classic. Georgetown ran its record to 3-0 with a 3-1 win over 14th-ranked Virginia Commonwealth. GU fell behind the Rams 1-0 early in the second half but battled back and received a goal and an assist from freshman Richard Frank in the victory.
Georgetown went up against fifth-ranked Santa Clara in the second day of the Maryland/adidas Classic and dropped a 4-0 decision to the Broncos. Santa Clara and Georgetown played a scoreless game early until SCU scored twice within a minute's time to steal and momentum en route to a 4-0 win.
Despite their 1-1 record in the Maryland/adidas Classic, Georgetown earned the No. 25 ranking by Soccer America.
The Hoyas jumped into the BIG EAST portion of their schedule by winning three of their first four league games.
GU persevered through deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 to capture a 4-3 overtime win at DePaul. Ricky Schramm notched his first two goals of the season, including the game-winner six minutes into OT to give GU a 4-1 overall mark.
Georgetown then fell 1-1 in league play with a 3-1 loss at USF. Once again, the Hoyas battled back, this time from a 2-0 deficit to close to within 2-1 on another Schramm goal but USF would defend its' home turf for the win.
The Hoyas reeled off three straight wins at the end of September to improve to 7-2 overall, 3-1 in BIG EAST action. Georgetown earned a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Villanova when Jefferson-Dow scissor-kicked a first half goal past the Wildcats' keeper before Richard Frank notched an unassisted tally in the second half.
GU continued to win at home and improved to 3-0 in overtime games with a 3-2 extra time victory over Rutgers. With the Hoyas trailing 2-1 with just five minutes to go in regulation, Curtin bicycled-kicked a ball into a crowd of bodies. Senior Danny McAnally found the ball at his feet and hammered home the game-tying goal to send the game in OT. Less than three minutes into overtime, Schramm notched his second goal of the game to the delight of the Hoya faithful.
Georgetown hit a rough stretch in the month of October, when the Hoyas lost five of their next six games as a host of injuries to key contributors halted some momentum. GU dropped a 4-1 decision at Seton Hall before falling 1-0 at West Virginia. Georgetown then sandwiched 6-0 losses to Maryland and Creighton around a 1-0 win over Notre Dame.
Junior Daniel Grasso intercepted an errant pass from a Fighting Irish defender and drilled a 25-footer into the back of the net for the game's only goal in a 1-0 over ND. It was Grasso's third goal of the season and started a stretch of four goals in four games for the Burr Ridge, Ill. native.
Georgetown won two of its final three to stay in the middle of the pack in the BIG EAST Blue Division. The Hoyas clinched a spot in the league tournament with a 1-0 at Marquette when Grasso stole a Golden Eagle pass and lofted a beautiful shot into the net as Keszler recorded his fifth shutout of the season.
The Hoyas sent off their six seniors Ethan Caskey, Jeff Curtin, Danny McAnally, Brent Plumley, Kevin Sindelar and Chris Tansey with a 3-1 win over Pittsburgh in GU's final home game. Grasso tallied two markers while McAnally and Tansey each handed out assists.
Georgetown then hit the road for their season-finale with No. 7 Connecticut. UConn scored in the 28th minute and held off the Hoyas who had four great opportunities to score in the second half. Georgetown finished the season with a 10-8 overall mark, 6-5 in league play.
In BIG EAST Tournament First Round play, Georgetown took on Villanova for the second time in 2005. The Hoyas went on the road and once again scored a late goal when McAnally took passes from Curtin and Glaccum to tie the game. GU battled the wind to force the Wildcats into penalty kicks. Keszler made two saves on Villanova PKs while Curtin, McAnally and Convey all converted on PK opportunities to send the squad to the BIG EAST Quarterfinals.
Georgetown faced UConn for the second time in a week in the Championship Quarters. UConn opened the scoring with a goal in the first ten minutes and Keszler kept the Hoyas close with a save on a penalty kick midway through the first half as the Hoyas went into intermission trailing1-0.
Twenty minutes into the second half, a questionable call in the box gave the Huskies another PK and this time, Keszler was beaten as UConn went up 2-0 en route to 5-0 victory.
Double-digit wins and another trip to the BIG EAST Championships marked another successful season in the long tradition of Georgetown soccer.
