KINGSTON, R.I. - Saint Louis won its first Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament championship Sunday afternoon with a 2-0 victory against Dayton in the A-10 final at the URI Soccer Complex on the campus of the University of Rhode Island. Freshman Michael Robson's second-half tally and Mike Roach's late insurance marker vaulted the Billikens to the victory and an automatic berth into the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament.
The NCAA Tournament bracket will be announced Monday, Nov. 16, between 4:30 and 5 p.m. St. Louis time on ESPNews. First-round action begins Thursday, Nov. 19, with the second round games scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 22. Saint Louis put in bids to host games through the NCAA quarterfinals at Robert R. Hermann Stadium.
"I can't begin to express how happy and excited I am for my team," SLU head coach Dan Donigan said. "It was a tremendous effort by everybody today. It was truly a full-team effort and the guys are feeling fantastic for themselves, which they absolutely deserve. It is a tremendous feeling and everyone is excited to have the post-season title back in St. Louis.
"We have had a number of obstacles throughout the regular season that we have had to overcome - from injuries, to guys changing positions, etc," Donigan continued. "It was a crazy year where we never really had a set lineup game-to-game. We've taken some tough losses and had a few decent wins, but this weekend we had two great victories to solidify our position as one of the better teams around. We're excited to move on and anxious to get ready for next week. They guys feel very rewarded right now, and it's a great feeling."
Robson's goal, his second of the season, came at 58:18 after the Billikens launched a barrage of corner kicks on the Dayton defense. On their 10th try, they connected. Sophomore Alex Johnston headed a ball that was saved by UD keeper Tyler Picard, but Robson was there to knock in the rebound and give the Bills a 1-0 advantage.
"It was a lively ball in the box that our guys continued to pounce on," Donigan said. "Michael buried it, and it seemed like the ball had eyes for the corner in the back of the net. It was a big goal for us."
Roach, who scored and assisted on another in SLU's semifinal win against Rhode Island Friday night, put the Billikens up 2-0 with a key insurance goal in the waning minutes of the contest. Senior Scott Wisniewski raced down the left flank and sent a perfect pass to Roach, who buried it for his team-leading 10th goal of the season.
The SLU defense, anchored by senior keeper Ross Kaufman, was sharp all day. Kaufman's two saves came in the second half, and the Billiken defense fought off 10 shots and five Dayton corner kicks.
It is the first A-10 Championship title for the Billikens after claiming two A-10 regular-season titles since joining the league in 2005. Since 1991, the Bills have captured nine conference championship titles (two Great Midwest championships, six Conference USA championships and one A-10 championship). It is Donigan's fourth conference championship in nine years at the helm, having also led the Bills to C-USA titles in 2001, 2002 and 2003.
SLU, which has won 11 of its last 13 contests, entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed, while Dayton was the top seed. SLU topped fifth-seed Rhode Island Friday to earn a spot in the final, while Dayton posted a 3-1 victory against No. 6 St. Bonaventure in the semifinals.
"Hats off to the Atlantic 10 and the University of Rhode Island for managing a great tournament," Donigan said. "I don't think the conference gets the respect it deserves. We had to beat two tough teams to win this thing, and I think the caliber and level of Atlantic 10 soccer was on display all weekend. People need to take a closer look at our conference because there are a number of really talented teams in this league."
