 "Photo: Daily File Photo")
By Ben Larrison The Daily Northwestern
In his green, number-27 jersey, keeper Will Briley seems to make the net look smaller. A tall, imposing figure standing between the posts with four shutouts in ten games, Briley has had the same effect on Wildcats' opponents.
"(Briley's) doing well," senior Brad North said. "He's manning his goal well. He's a huge presence in the box. He's a big guy in there, so it's like another comfort safety net he gets above everyone else."
Briley, a redshirt sophomore, is in his first full season as the starting keeper for NU (8-2, 1-1 Big Ten). He made his first appearances for the Cats in 2005, when he stepped in midseason for then-freshman Misha Rosenthal to start nine of NU's final 12 games. Aided by his three shutouts and a team-leading 1.14 goals against average, Briley was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team.
At spring practices a few months later, Briley was named the starter for the 2006 Cats, and he has so far given NU coach Tim Lenahan every reason to be satisfied with the decision. On a team with three goalies boasting Big Ten experience, Briley has been the anchor for one of the conference's most consistent defenses.
"Our whole defensive unit has been very solid, so we know that if we can just keep a team in the game, we're going to find a way to score some goals," Lenahan said. "I think the team feels confident with Will in the back."
Ten games into the year, Briley has been a case study in disproving the (redshirt) sophomore slump. The Longview, Texas native is among the Big Ten leaders in several statistical categories.
Entering the week, he ranked second in the conference in save percentage (.811) and fourth in the league in saves (30).
Briley was also tied for third in shutouts, and that was before posting his fourth of the season in Wednesday's 2-0 win over Loyola.
Perhaps most comforting for the Cats is that Briley seems to be improving through the course of the season, getting more saves against more aggressive offenses.
Over the past six games, Briley has allowed just three goals while posting three shutouts.
"Will has done a great job," junior Drew Ratner said. "He's made some great saves, and he's been there when he's needed to. None of the goals he's allowed I think he could really stop."
Despite his strong play, Briley has been taken out of games at times this season for strategic reasons - a rare tactical advantage for a college team to have.
Senior Justin Pines is placed in games where NU trails and his powerful leg is needed for an offensive push.
"Justin can kick the ball a mile," Lenahan said.
Roesnthal, last year's opening-game starter, and senior Rich Nassif are also capable backups in case any of the goalkeepers get injured, but have not been utilized this season the same way that Pines and Briley have. But the Cats said they feel confident in the capabilities of all of their goalkeepers going into this weekend's matchup against
"Will, he's a great goalie," Ratner said, "and all of our goalies are great goalies. We're lucky to go four deep, so I think we're lucky in that regard. Most teams don't even have one (good) goalie."
Reach Ben Larrison at blarrison@northwestern.edu.
Be the first to comment on this article!