SENIOR GOALKEEPER MICHAEL DROZD takes a goal kick in the first round of the NCAA Championship tournament against Western Illinois at Cownie Soccer Complex. Drozd suffered a game-ending injury in the sweet sixteen match against Boston College Sunday. Photo: Sarah Andrews

The Drake men’s soccer team took off from Des Moines International Airport yesterday morning en route to its NCAA Championship Tournament quarterfinal match against North Carolina, scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. East­ern Time.

After defeating Boston College 6-4 Sunday, the Bulldogs advanced to the Elite Eight (Fri­day’s game).

The winner of the match will go on to the NCAA College Cup at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., and will either face No. 1 seed Akron or No. 8 Tulsa Dec. 11.

Friday’s match will mark the first time the two teams will faceoff, but the Bulldogs are not going into the competition blind.

In preparation for the game, Head Coach Sean Holmes said he watched video of the op­ponents to scout their strengths, weaknesses and style of play.

“We’re completely confident,” Holmes said. “We’re unfazed about playing anyone, anywhere.”

North Carolina defeated Indiana en route to the Elite Eight.

Holmes said he doesn’t plan to change the team’s lineup at all for the game, although he said he was not sure of the status of goalkeeper Michael Drozd, who sustained an injury in the game against Boston College that benched him for the second half of the match. Senior midfielder Luke Gorczyca said the team is not worried about potentially having to switch keepers.

“Drozd has been a building block of our defense, but we have confidence in Jordan Ka­dlec,” Gorczyca said. “He’s a strong keeper and he’s done well.”

Gorczyca scored two of Drake’s six goals in the game against BC — his first multi-goal tally in one game this season.

Gorczyca’s scoring was not the only thing out of the ordinary during the match. The win over BC was the result of a game Holmes de­scribed as “wacky.”

“It was the most unbelievable game I’ve ever been a part of, as a coach or as a player,” Holmes said.

Boston College scored the first two goals while holding Drake to a shutout until the 31st minute of the first half. The Bulldogs recov­ered from the 2-0 deficit with goals by junior midfielder Michael Noonan and senior mid­fielder Kevin Shrout.

“To be down 2-0 on the road and to come back is incredible,” Holmes said.

The team carried the momentum through the first 45 minutes of play.

“Once you get that first goal after being down, it just gets everyone into the game,” Noonan said. “We were all pretty pumped up at half.”

Just before the halftime whistle blew, start­ing goalkeeper Drozd suffered an injury that benched him for the remainder of the game. Sophomore keeper Jordan Kadlec replaced Drozd in the second half.

“Our backup keeper really inspired us with the way he played, being big in the box and making saves in the second half,” Noonan said.

Less than two minutes into the second half, BC freshman standout Charlie Rugg found the back of the net, putting the Eagles ahead 3-2.

Senior forward Garret Webb answered back, scoring at the 56:42 minute-mark. The referees contested the goal, calling it back for a moment. After deliberation, the refs awarded the tying goal to Drake.

The tug-of-war scoring pattern continued for the next 13 minutes as Drake took the lead at 4-3 after senior midfielder Luke Gorczyca scored. BC tied the match at 4-4 as another freshman, Kyle Bekker, scored off of a Rugg assist.

That was the last time Drake would lose its lead as Gorczyca scored the fifth goal in the 70th minute.

Noonan said the team’s strategy changed after the fifth goal. The team kept the forwards back and focused on defense to remain in con­trol and in the lead.

Junior midfielder Matt Kuhn’s goal in the 83rd minute solidified Drake’s lead, lifting the Bulldogs to 6-4 over the Eagles.

“Everyone was ready to fight for the ball in the box, and that’s how we scored,” Noonan said. “But it was a fight to keep the lead until that sixth goal was scored.”

The action-packed game was the highest scoring so far in the 2009 NCAA Tourna­ment.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Noonan said.