The regular season comes to a close Wednesday afternoon for the Milwaukee men's soccer team, with the postseason quickly looming right around the corner. Up first, the Panthers will host Purdue Fort Wayne Wednesday to close out the slate, with numerous possibilities existing for postseason seeding. The team currently holds the No. 3 position and will stay there with a victory. Seeds three and four host and, with 16 points (5-3-1 record), Milwaukee has already secured its spot in the Top 6, but could fall to No. 5 with a loss. The one thing Milwaukee does know is that it will be playing in the first round of the Horizon League Tournament Sunday. The squad will begin the quest for its seventh Horizon League Tournament Championship and 11th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history that afternoon.

Both games this week will start at 1 p.m. (Sunday's game will be a 1 p.m. local start, depending where the contest ends up) and will be streamed live on ESPN+. Wednesday's matinee with the Mastodons will be called by Matt Menzl and both games will also have live statistics available. All links are posted to the Milwaukee website.

The Panthers are 3-2 all-time against Purdue Fort Wayne, claiming a 3-2 victory last season in the first Horizon League battle between the two programs. The series dates back to MKE wins in 2006 (3-0) and 2002 (6-1).

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS:
PURDUE FORT WAYNE: The Mastodons went 3-6 in their first run-through in the Horizon League in the spring 2020 campaign and were selected to place ninth in the HL preseason poll.

So far this season, the team will enter play Wednesday with an overall record of 5-8-2. That includes a league ledger of 3-5-1 and will need a win and lots of help to continue in the postseason. But the team is playing much better of late, going 2-0-1 since knocking off UIC Oct. 16 and have allowed no goals in that span of three matches. Three different players lead the offense with three goals and six points, with Keith Larson's 30 shot attempts a team best. In net, Erik Josson has played the large majority of time, posting a 1.55 goals-against average, .691 save percentage, and 3-8 record in 11 starts.

POSTSEASON UNDER KELDERMAN
Kris Kelderman has his team in the postseason for the ninth time in his 10 years at the helm, including title runs in the unprecedented 2020 slate and the memorable 2013 postseason. Overall, his team has gone 6-3-5 in the Horizon League Tournament and is currently on a five-game unbeaten streak in the HL postseason (3-0-2), making back-to-back title game appearances. The 2020 version saw MKE top No. 2 UIC on the road, 2-1, and then knock off nationally-ranked Northern Kentucky in the title game on its home field. The Panthers topped the Norse - ranked #22 at the time - by a final score of 1-0 to punch their ticket to the 2020 NCAA Tournament.

The Panthers start the trek to what would be a 12th NCAA Tournament appearance (2020/2013/2005/2004/2003/2002/2001/1990/1980/1979).

CONGRATS SENIORS!
The Panthers honored the members of the roster who will be moving on next year (not all are currently listed as seniors due to COVID eligibility options) in a pregame ceremony Oct. 26. Congratulations to #2 Shawn Azcueta, #14 Jake Kelderman, #27 Andreas Soerensen, and #32 Paolo Gratton.

REGASSA RECHARGE
Abdu Regassa picked a great time to shine against Northern Kentucky Oct. 23, scoring a pair of goals for his first career brace. Even more impressive, coming into play against NKU, Regassa had netted two goals in 43 career games as a Panther before finding the back of the net twice in a span of 27 minutes to help MKE to the huge 3-1 comeback win. For his efforts, he was named Horizon League Player of the Week.

In addition, Gijs Van Schouten gave the Panthers a pair of weekly winners, earning Defensive Player of the Week accolades after a triumphant return to the starting lineup. He posted seven saves, with two of them near-identical in leaving his feet to get just enough of attempts in the 62nd and 89th minutes to knock them over the bar and out of harm's way.

ALL IN THE FAMILY
A unique situation takes place for the final time this fall for the Milwaukee men's soccer team. Kris Kelderman will get the chance to again be the head coach for his son, Jake, for a fifth - and final - campaign (Jake redshirted in 2016). A two-year team captain, Kelderman continues to climb the chart on all-time games played and games started in program history. Coming into this fall, he had 66 career games played and 63 career starts. Chris Brisson (2001-04) holds the MKE marks in both (88/87), but Kelderman can approach spot No. 3 all-time with a deep postseason run (he is currently at 81 career games and 78 career starts).

He was also recently selected as a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award, a list that includes just 30 of the top candidates who excel both on and off the field across the NCAA Division I level. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

OFFENSIVE BARRAGE
The Panthers netted a season-high total for goals in their 4-1 victory over IUPUI Oct. 2 and the charge was led by Logan Farrington. His efforts resulted in playing a role in each score, netting a pair of goals while also recording a pair of assists. That gave him a career-best six points against the Jaguars - the highest single-game scoring effort for the Panthers since Aaron Horvat had eight points (four goals) against Detroit Mercy in September of 2013. He added two more goals his next outing against Western Illinois, giving him the fourth brace of his young career, over his first 23 college games. It also gave him back-to-back multi-goal outings - something done only one other time since 2004 - when Paolo Gratton accomplished the feat during the 2020 campaign (against Oakland and IUPUI). Prior to that, the last to do so was Antou Jallow in 2004. Farrington is also ranked No. 66 on the "Top 100 Freshmen" this season by Top Drawer Soccer.

DOUBLE-VISION
Logan Farrington not only netted a pair of goals against Western Illinois Oct. 5, but he did it in a flash, coming just 1:50 apart on the clock (55:46 and 57:36). That marked the fastest goals by the same MKE player since Edison Crespo found the back of the net at the 87:24 and 88:34 marks (just 1:10) in a 4-2 victory over Marquette to open the 2010 schedule.

The pair of goals came after Adi Vaknin had tied the contest at the 54:30 mark, giving the Panthers a total of three goals in a span of just 3:06 on the scoreboard - the quickest trio in at least 25 years of Panther soccer.

CHANCELLOR'S CUP DRAMA
The battle for the Chancellor's Cup has seen some thrillers over the years, but if it feels like the drama and intensity has been higher lately, you would be correct. Jake Kelderman scored the only goal just 91 seconds into the 1-0 victory earlier this fall and David Cox was the hero in 2020's version, netting the game-winner with 36 seconds left in regulation.

The Chancellor's Cup, which originally began as a tournament of Wisconsin state schools in the 1980's, continues to be given to the winner in the annual Milwaukee/Green Bay game. As an extra storyline, Kris Kelderman spent the 2011 season as the head coach at Green Bay.

It happened again in 2018, with Sean Holmes golden goal coming in the 99th minute. The year prior, MKE tied the game with just eight seconds remaining in regulation on a goal by Jonathan Stadler to force overtime before falling. And again in 2016, when Milwaukee reclaimed the Cup with a thrilling 1-0 victory Oct. 22 on a goal by Magnus Flaatedal. Seven of the past 12 occasions these two teams have now played, the game has gone into overtime (5 of 7 into double-overtime), with five of the seven ending in victories for one team or the other. Eight years ago it was an own goal that won it for Green Bay, snapping Milwaukee's 10-game unbeaten streak (9-0-1) to start the 2013 season. The 2012 version ended in a draw but the 2011 edition provided one of the most memorable finishes to a game in program history, with Cody Banks netting the winner at the 109:53 mark.

THE PLACE FOR A BRACE
Paolo Gratton scored a pair of goals to lead Milwaukee to a 2-1 victory over Robert Morris Sept. 18, helping him earn Horizon League Player of the Week honors for the first time in his career. He opened the scoring midway through the first half and then added the eventual game-winner on a beautiful header early in the second half to help the Panthers move to 2-0 in Horizon League play for the first time since the 2013 campaign. It's the third multi-goal outing of Gratton's career, joining his two-goal outbursts against Oakland and IUPUI.

SAVING THE DAY
Gijs Van Schouten was brilliant in leading Milwaukee to a 2-1 victory over UIC in the Horizon League opener Sept. 11, finishing the evening with 12 saves. The total marked the most for a Panther since 2011. It was also the 10th-most in a game in program history and the third-most for a freshman GK all-time in school history. Four of them came over the final 15 minutes of regulation as Van Schouten was up to the task to finish out the one-goal decision. The 12-save total has now been accomplished four times, most recently by Ryan Germann against Wright State in October, 2008. The only other totals higher by an MKE freshman include 14 by Josh Rohde (10/4/11) and 24 by John Fetzer (11/11/73).

FROM ZERO TO 100
Following injury, Kasper Davidsson made his first appearance of the 2021 campaign against UIC Sept. 11. He didn't wait long to make it a memorable debut, scoring the eventual game-winner at the 61:09 mark, just 2:27 after subbing in. He followed that up with a defensive highlight, coming up with a key team save in the 85th minute to preserve the victory.

LEAGUE LIFTOFF
The Panthers are now 24-11-3 all-time in league openers in seasons in which they have been affiliated with a conference following the 2-1 victory over UIC. Head coach Kris Kelderman is 5-4-2 in his 11 seasons, with the team also knocking off Purdue Fort Wayne, 3-2, last year.

AN IMPRESSIVE LIST
Paolo Gratton was named to the 2021 Men's Soccer Hermann Trophy Preseason Watch List. The Hermann Trophy, presented annually by the Missouri Athletic Club, is the nation's highest individual honor recognizing the nation's National Player of the Year. Division I coaches who are members of the United Soccer Coaches College Services program vote for the award. Gratton put together a breakout 2020 campaign, earning United Soccer Coaches All-North Region First Team and Horizon League First-Team All-Conference accolades in a season in which he scored 22 points. He led the Horizon League with 11 goals - a total that ranked fourth in the NCAA. In addition, Gratton was also ranked as the No. 53 player on the preseason men's NCAA Division I Top 100 list put out by Top Drawer Soccer.

GOAL!
Freshman Adi Vaknin scored a big goal for the Panthers, netting the game-winner against Drake Aug. 26. In doing so, he became the 10th freshman since 2000 to score in the season opener, joining Antou Jallow (2001), Adam Skalecki (2005), Edison Crespo (2010), Declan Rodriguez (2012), Petter Ingebrigtsen (2014), Matthias Binder (2015), Francesco Saporito (2015), Henrik Fennefoss (2017), and Logan Farrington (2020) on that list.

DANDY DEBUT
Gijs Van Schouten posted a victory in his collegiate debut, becoming the fifth freshman to start a season opener in net since 2000 (and first since Freddy Lorenzen in 2017). He made six saves to help the Panthers overcome a 1-0 deficit and claim a 2-1 victory over Drake Aug. 26. The only goal he allowed came on a penalty kick and he made two of his saves in succession just after MKE had gone ahead and preserved the one-goal advantage.

FOR OPENERS
Milwaukee is now 27-17-5 all-time in season openers following a 2-1 victory over Drake Aug. 26 to open 2021. Head coach Kris Kelderman now has 11 season openers on his resume at the NCAA Division I collegiate level, going 10-1-0. In addition to the wins over Purdue Fort Wayne (2020), WIU (2017-2019), Eastern Illinois (2016), Evansville (2015), DePaul (2014) and a nationally-ranked Marquette squad (2013), his Green Bay squad topped SIU Edwardsville, 1-0, in 2011.

2021 EXHIBITION REWIND
Milwaukee went 1-1-1 in its three exhibition matches, falling to DePaul (2-1, goal by Adi Vaknin), drawing with Loyola Chicago (1-1, goal by Gabe Anguil), before closing things out with a 4-0 victory over Parkside. Logan Farrington led the way against the Rangers, recording the hat trick with Andreas Soerensen adding the final tally.

RECAPPING THE 2020 SPRING NCAA TRIP
Milwaukee made its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2013 and 10th in the history of the program (1979, 1980, 1990, 2001-05, 2013, 2020) this past spring, ending the season receiving votes in the final College Soccer News national poll. The Panthers claimed an automatic bid courtesy of their 1-0 victory in the Horizon League Tournament Championship. Milwaukee is now 4-9-1 all-time in its 10 NCAA Tournament appearances and are 4-6 in their last six NCAA Tournament berths, with most of those appearances coming over a four-year span of 2002-05. The program's 10 NCAA Tournament appearances overall are tops among all Horizon League schools.

The Panthers rose to the occasion during the adversity-filled spring campaign, winning each of their final three regular-season matches to reach the postseason as the No. 4 seed. From there, the squad topped No. 2 UIC on the road, 2-1, and then knocked off nationally-ranked Northern Kentucky in the title game on its home field. The Panthers topped the Norse - ranked #22 at the time - by a final score of 1-0 to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament. Three players were named National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-Region, with the team finishing 8-5 overall.

GREAT THINGS FOR GRATTON
Paolo Gratton put together a breakout 2020 campaign, earning United Soccer Coaches All-North Region First Team and Horizon League First-Team All-Conference accolades in a season in which he scored 22 points, leading the Horizon League with 11 goals - a total that ranked fourth in the NCAA this season.  In netting his 10th goal against UIC in the semifinals, he became the first MKE player to reach double-figures in goals since Laurie Bell recorded 13 goals back in 2013. Gratton has also scored a goal in six consecutive games coming into play in the NCAA Tournament - a streak not seen since Antou Jallow found the back of the net in each of the final seven outings of 2002 (posting 14G/4A).

After scoring in the Horizon League Tournament Championship in the final game of 2019, Gratton carried that momentum into the spring campaign. He stayed strong on offense, establishing career-highs (by week 4) in all categories with his 22 points and 42 shot attempts. In addition to tying for first in the Horizon League in points, he also placed second in both total shots (42) and shots on goal (21), and first in game-winning goals (2)

HE IS FARR-OUT
Logan Farrington enjoyed one of the more impressive freshman campaigns in program history, capped off with Horizon League Freshman of the Year honors (just the second in program history). He was also selected to the United Soccer Coaches All-North Region Second Team and as a member of the Horizon League First-Team and All-Freshmen squads and became first MKE freshman to earn all-region or first-team all-league status since Tony Sanneh in 1990. Logan started all 13 games on the spring, finishing with 14 points on five goals and four assists. He led the Horizon League with 55 shots and 22 shots on goal, with those numbers also ranking high nationally, finishing fourth in the NCAA in shots per game (4.23/leader was 4.5) and 17th in shots on-goal per game (1.69). He joined Gratton with the first pair of multi-goal matches in the same season since Declan Rodriguez in 2015. He was also the first Panther freshman to pick up HL weekly honors since goalkeeper Freddy Lorenzen in 2017.

A TRIO ON THE TOP SQUAD
Three members of the team were named First-Team All-Horizon League – highlighted by Logan Farrington earning Horizon League Freshman of the Year honors – when the league office announced the all-league teams and specialty award winners. Farrington was joined on the first-team by Paolo Gratton and Jake Kelderman. Farrington also picked up a spot on the Horizon League All-Freshmen Team, where he was joined by fellow newcomer Raul Medina. It's the first time MKE MSOC has had a trio of players on the first team since 2003. Farrington joins Evan Conway (2016) as the only Panthers to be honored as league freshmen of the year.

MAKING GOOD THINGS HAPPEN IN THREE'S
Josh Kidder continued to bring his playmaking skills to the field in 2020, finishing second in the Horizon League (and tied for fourth in the NCAA) with his nine assists. His outing April 5 against Robert Morris was no different. He finished the afternoon with three assists, setting up each of the first three strikes in the 4-0 victory. Kidder is the second Panther to record three assists in a game this season, joining Raul Medina who accomplished the feat against IUPUI March 24 (after not having been done since Dale Weiler did so against Marquette in October 2004). The trio of helpers ties for fifth-best in a game in program history and gives him nine on the season, good for a career-high (he had seven as a freshman in 2019) and currently second in the Horizon League as well as fourth in the nation. He nearly became the first MKE player with 10 assists in a season since Craig Mallace had 10 in 2005.

MEDINA MAGIC
Raul Medina has made a solid first impression with the Panthers, earning a spot on the Horizon League All-Freshmen team after the newcomer finished with 14 points (4G/6A). He made 11 starts in 12 appearances, finishing with 16 shot attempts. Medina tied for seventh in the Horizon League and second on the team in points (14 was most for any freshman), was fourth in assists, ninth in goals and tied for first in game-winning goals (2). He played the hero role in the overtime win at Detroit Mercy and converted a PK against Wright State that stood up as the game-winner. That made him the fourth player to record back-to-back game winners since Kris Kelderman took over as head coach before the 2012 campaign. He joins Evan Conway (2019 vs. Eastern Illinois and Valparaiso), Robbie Boyd (2013 vs. DePaul and IUPUI), and Laurie Bell (2012 vs. IUPUI and Eastern Illinois). Medina also put his talent to work against IUPUI March 24, assisting three of the four goals in the 4-0 win. Medina's three assists tied for the fifth-most in a game in program history, marking the first time since 2004 that the feat was accomplished. That season, Dale Weiler notched three helpers against Marquette in late October, setting up each strike in a 3-1 victory.

EYE OPENER
Freshman Logan Farrington made quite the first impression with his outing against Purdue Fort Wayne in the 2020 season opener. He scored twice, netting the first goal of the game at the 15:09 mark while also accounting for what stood up as the game-winner when he made it 3-0 at the 57:35 mark. The brace in the 3-2 victory marked a first for an MKE freshman in a season opener since Edison Crespo did the same in the 2010 opener. It also marked just the third time in program history the feat has been recorded (Dan Day actually had three back in 1984).

STEADY DOSE OF OFFENSE
Farrington did set some history while he played all 90 minutes against the Mastodons Feb. 4, as his nine shots are the most-ever for a Panther freshman debut outing. To compare to the other multi-goal debuts mentioned above, Crespo pulled off the task in stunning fashion, playing just 13 minutes and scoring in the 88th and 89th minutes (four total shots) of a 4-2 win to secure the "Milwaukee Cup" against Marquette. Day's day in 1984 consisted of six shots and included an assist. Farrington finished just one shot away from what would have been the third double-figure shot outing since 2006. Vuk Latinovich had 11 shot attempts against IUPUI in 2019, while Steve Sperl had 10 against Cleveland State in October of 2006.

GETTING TO TWO
The Milwaukee defense was stingy in 2019, producing eight shutouts which was good for second in the league. The team goals-against average of 1.00 was also good for the top spot. Offensively, once the team found a second goal, the Panthers continue to be very tough to beat. The squad went 6-1-0 in 2020 and 10-0-1 in 2019 when scoring two or more goals. That brings the five-plus year tally (also counting the 2021 campaign) to 44-5-6 (.856) when finding the back of the net at least twice in a match.

NOW THIS IS HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
When it comes to home field advantage, the Panthers have historically ranked right up there with the best in the business. From 2001 through 2006, Milwaukee turned Engelmann Stadium into a place visiting teams did not want to see on their schedule, going 49-8-2 in that time. After a few down seasons by MKE standards, the magic is getting brought back - the Panthers have compiled a record of 46-22-12 (.650) at home in Kris Kelderman's nine-plus years as the head coach.

CATCH THEM IN ACTION
Milwaukee men's soccer will be available for the viewing pleasure of MKE fans this season, as five of the eight home games are scheduled to be streamed live on ESPN+ (subject to change due to weather and location). The Horizon League and ESPN have an agreement that includes ESPN hosting the league's digital network on the ESPN+ platform. ESPN+, which will host the Horizon League women's soccer, men's soccer and volleyball championships this season, offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content and original programming not available on ESPN's linear TV or digital networks. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $6.99 a month (or $69.99 per year) and cancel at any time. Launched in April of 2018, ESPN+ is an integrated part of a completely redesigned ESPN App. MKE games that are not scheduled to appear on ESPN+ will have an audio stream available (for free) on the team's schedule page.

ON TAP
Up next, the Panthers would advance to the semifinals of the Horizon League Tournament on Thursday, November 11, with a victory Sunday. The location of that event will also be determined this week.