VIDEO: MEN'S SOCCER 2010 SEASON PREVIEW

MEN’S SOCCER (ANNOUNCEMENT)
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2010
LEAGUE OPENER FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 AT UBC - 7 PM

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VIDEO: MEN"S SOCCER 2010 SEASON PREVIEW
YOUNG SPARTANS HAVE BIG SHOES TO FILL AS THEY MOVE FORWARD

LANGLEY, British Columbia - Second year TWU head coach Pat Rohla is going to need his young Spartans to step up quickly if Trinity Western is to make it to their sixth straight CIS national championship and improve on last year’s CIS championship bronze medal.

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The Spartans, who have almost half of their roster, 14 of 30, in their second year or less have some very big shoes to fill if they are to vie for a post season spot in the highly competitive Canada West. TWU has lost 17 of their 29 goals scored last season as well as their mainstays on defence. Gone are Canada West goal scoring leader Nathan Pogue, who finished with 11 goals and CIS Player of the Year defender Paul Hamilton. Also weakening the backline is the potential season ending injury to fourth year defender Jake Jorgensen.

“Replacing the goals that Pogue has scored over the past couple of years is a daunting task. However, I think that being able to rely on an improved overall athletic team. Where we don’t have a single dimension on how we play I think that we can play a number of different formations and styles so that we don’t become predictable,” commented TWU head coach Pat Rohla. “How do you replace the MVP? By the same token a lot of these players have been waiting in the wings for their chance and this is their opportunity.”

That being said the Spartans haven’t had five straight CIS appearances without being able to rebuild on the fly. TWU has brought in a strong recruiting class, of 10 players, with hopes of repeating in their quest to return to the CIS championship. Rookies who could have an immediate impact are: defender Denny Serifovic of Surrey, BC, midfielder Chase Wickham of Richmond, B.C. and forward Andre Costa of Ipatinga, Brazil. Tranfer forward Danfi Parker of Woodbridge, Va will also look to have an impact on the program.

Returning starters from last year’s CIS bronze medal team are: keepers Andrew Fink and Andrew Kowan, defenders Jordan Whitehead, Rhys Volkenant, Brayden Volkenant and Cardin Davis, midfielder/defender Jason Wiens and forward Ioannis Tsoulouhas.

“They got a taste of the national championship at home last year, and the taste that they were left with was not good enough, they want more and they want to get to the final,” added Rohla. “The appetite to move forward and to play for each other and to play hard and sharpen each other has really improved significantly over the last year.”

The Spartans won’t have to wait long to find out if they have what it takes to make it to another national championship as TWU opens the Canada West season against longtime rival the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds on Friday, September 10 in Vancouver. Win, lose or draw it will be a bench mark point for these young Spartans to build on as the head into the always difficult Canada West season.

Key additions: defender: Denny Serifovic, midfielders Chase Wickham and forwards Andre Costa and Danfi Parker.
Key departures: Paul Hamilton – 2009 CIS Player of the Year, Nathan Pogue – 2009 CW goal scoring leader.
CIS ranking: 3rd
CW ranking: 4th

2009-10 CW Tournament placing: 4th
2009-10 CIS Tournament Placing: 3rd
2009-10 Conference Record: 8-2-4
Last CW (men's) Title: 3 (2007, 2006, 2005)
Last CIS (men's) Title: none – 2 silver (2008, 2006), 2 bronze (2009, 2005)

About TWU:

Trinity Western University, located in Langley, B.C., is a not-for-profit Christian liberal arts university enrolling over 4,000 students this year. With a broad based, liberal arts and sciences curriculum, the University offers undergraduate degrees in 41 major areas of study ranging from business, education and computer science to biology and nursing, and 17 other graduate degrees including counselling psychology, theology and administrative leadership. For more information, visit TWU's Official Athletics site at gospartans.ca.

About Canadian Interuniversity Sport:

Canadian Interuniversity Sport is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Fifty-two universities, 10,000 student-athletes and 550 coaches vie for 21 national championships in 12 different sports. The CIS also provides high performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, and 32 World University Championships. For further information, visit www.universitysport.ca.

About CWUAA:

"Canada West is consistently the most decorated of the four conferences in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), winning at least 10 CIS national titles every year since 1997-98. Comprised of 13 schools, from Manitoba to B.C., the CWUAA produces numerous major award winners and Academic All-Canadian student-athletes each year, with many going on to athletic success around the globe in events such as the Olympics or Universiade Games."

-TW-

Last Updated: 2010-09-08
Author: Scott Stewart