Zips salvage third

Men's soccer

Akron beat St. John's 1-0 thanks to a John McClain assist to Sinisa Ubiparipovic.

Maybe we can spare Caleb Porter's job after all.

• Despite the loss to Creighton, the athletic department has to be pleased with this weekend's Westfield Cup. Fan turnout was spectacular -- especially when you consider these games don't even count.


• In case you're wondering who Akron will battle this season to return to No. 1, here is a season preview for SoccerAmerica.com's top 10 teams.


• ESPN.com calls Akron one of its two wildcards to win the national championship.


• The Zips will play next in Virginia against UC Santa Barbara (Friday) and Davidson (Sunday). These games will actually count.

Women's soccer

The women also won the consolation match at the Westfield Cup, beating Temple on penalty kicks in a scoreless game.

• The Zips recently got a commitment for one of Pennsylvania's top recruits, Jordan Baranowski.


• Akron will host the Caroline Pardee Invitational this weekend, playing The Citadel in Friday's opening round.

Volleyball

Akron will open its season in Bloomington, Ind., against the Hoosiers on Friday.

Playing a Big 10 school early should give veteran coach Mike Sweitzer an idea of where his team's weaknesses are heading into the regular season.

He has eight letter winners returning from the 2005 team that went 10-20. Still, the team is fairly young, with Kim Horn being the only senior.

Ohio is the clear favorite to repeat as MAC Champs after going 16-0 in the conference last year. They open the season at No. 15 in the country.