DETROIT (9-24-26) – Detroit Mercy men's soccer royalty will return to campus for 2026 Homecoming Saturday (Sept. 26) as members of the 1996 Midwestern Collegiate Conference Championship (MCC) team will be in attendance to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the program's first conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance. The current team will take on Purdue Fort Wayne in #HLMSOC action at 4 p.m. on Titan Field.

1996 – A Look Back:
 
Coaching Staff:


Roster:

How it went down:
• The 1996 team (which consisted of 10 seniors) went 14-4-4 overall (8-1-1 at home) and 5-2-1 in MCC play, good for a third-place finish after winning the regular season crown in 1995.
• The Titans defeated Loyola (2-0) in the opening round, tied Milwaukee (1-1), but advanced to the finals on penalty kicks (5-4).
• UDM shutout Butler (2-0) in the championship match, avenging a regular season loss and setback to the Bulldogs in the 1995 championship game.
 
Game-by-game Results:
September
4 at Western Mich. - T, 2-2 (OT)
7 at Loyola* - W, 2-0 (OT)
11 at Butler* - L, 0-1
13 GREEN BAY* - W, 4-1
15 DAYTON - T, 2-2 (OT)
21 NIAGARA - W, 2-0
22 CANISIUS - W, 4-1
25 BOWLING GREEN - W, 3-1
29 UIC* - W, 4-3
October
4 at Akron - W, 2-0
8 at Cleveland State* - T, 2-2 (OT)
12 at Wright State* - L, 0-3
16 MICHIGAN STATE - L, 0-2
19 vs. Central Florida& - W, 2-1
20 at Stetson& - W, 4-1
24 EASTERN MICH. - W, 4-1
27 NIU* - W, 1-0
November
3 MILWAUKEE* - W, 1-0
8 vs. Loyola% - W, 2-1
9 Milwaukee% - T, 1-1 (UDM advances on PKs, 5-4)
10 Butler% - W, 2-0
23 at Bowling Green@ - L, 0-4
* - MCC Match | & - Stetson Tournament (DeLand, Fla.) | % - MCC Tournament (Indianapolis, Ind.) | @ - NCAA 1st Round
 
MCC Awards:
• All-MCC:
Tim Blackwell – Player of the Year
Tim Blackwell (First Team), Jorge Ferreira (First Team), Jeff Thomas (Second Team)
Matt Quinter (All-Newcomer Team), Dan Savich (All-Newcomer Team)
Morris Lupenec – Coach of the Year
• MCC All-Tournament Team:
Jeff Thomas (MVP), Tim Blackwell, Jorge Ferreira, Kal Kaliszewski

Extra, Extra, Read All About It!!:



NCAA First Round:
• The first-round match of the 1996 NCAA tournament was a rematch against Bowling Green who UDM defeated 3-1 at home during the regular season.
• However, the Falcons won the rematch 4-0, ending the Titans' historic season.


 
Final Stats:

 

Back in the Day - 1996 Style:
In The Oval Office…
Bill Clinton was the president of the United States, and Al Gore was the nation's vice president.
 
On the big screen...
The English Patient, starring Ralph Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas and Juliette Binoche, won the Oscar for Best Picture made in 1996. Other nominees included Fargo, Jerry Maguire, Secrets & Lies, and Shine. Independence Day, Twister, Mission: Impossible, and Jerry Maguire were among the top box office hits for the year.
 
On the small screen…
Top-rated T.V. shows of 1996 included E.R., Seinfeld, Friends, and Suddenly Susan.
 
We are the champions...
MLB: New York Yankees won their 23rd World Series
NFL: Dallas Cowboys won Super Bowl XXX.
NBA: Chicago Bulls
NCAA basketball: Kentucky
NCAA football: Florida
U.S. Open Golf: Steve Jones
Atlanta hosted the 1996 Olympics, and the U.S. Women's National Team notably won the first-ever women's Olympic gold medal in soccer.
Kentucky Derby winner: Grindstone
 
Common cents...
Gas prices averaged $1.23/gallon for regular gas, while stamps were $0.32.
 
What the kids were saying...
Slang words of choice included "Booyah," "Word," "Psych!", and "Fly,"
 
What they were buying…
Favorite toys included Tickle Me Elmo, Beanie Babies, and Barbie dolls.
 
World Wide Web…
By the end of 1996, there were about 100,000 websites online. The most-visited web destinations were AOL, Yahoo!, and Infoseek. Popular search engines included WebCrawler, AltaVista, Yahoo!, Excite, and Lycos. Most people used dial-up Internet connections "with mighty speeds ranging from 28.8 Kbps to 33.6 Kbps. Highly modern 56 Kbps modems would arrive in 1997."
 
What is your name…
Popular baby names for the year were Ashley, Emily, Jessica, Samantha, Jacob, Joshua, Michael, and Matthew.