Aug. 15, 2003
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - The Lafayette men's soccer program opened fall practice on Friday amid the humid conditions at Metzgar Fields.
In 2003, with nine seniors returning to the fold, Lafayette is poised to challenge for a Patriot League title.
"We have nine seniors and nine starters coming back this season. This core group has been playing together for the last two seasons," said head coach Dennis Bohn, who is beginning his third season. "Because of our strong senior leadership, we have really high expectations for this season and we plan on competing for a Patriot League championship."
The Leopards have posted consecutive winning seasons for the first time since 1994, 1995, both Patriot League championship campaigns for the program. In 2002, Lafayette finished with an 8-6-4 overall mark and a 3-2-2 record in the soccer-strong Patriot League, a league that featured three Top 25 teams at one point in the season. Lafayette wound up with victories over two of those opponents.
DEFENDERS
For the last two seasons, Lafayette has boasted a nationally-ranked defense, finishing fourth in 2001 (0.56) and 23rd in 2002 (0.90) in team goals against average. The team's focus will not change for 2003, as Bohn has built his team around hard work and unselfishness especially on the defensive end. Behind the defense, Lafayette features two top-notch goaltenders. Senior Jay Freedman has played in 29 games and started 26 of those over the past two seasons. He sports a career goals against average of 0.77 and has nine career shutouts. Freedman spent the majority of time (13 games) in goal for the Leopards in 2003, but sophomore Mike Tortora challenged Freedman during the season. Tortora played in seven games as a freshman and twice earned Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors. Tortora boasted two shutouts and a 0.78 g.a.a.
Playing in front of the goal, seniors Andrew Cottrell and Tom Wajda will look to anchor the defense. The duo will enter its third season as regulars in the starting lineup. Wajda is coming off an All-Patriot League First Team selection as a junior. He and Cottrell started every game they played in last season.
"Tom Wajda and Andrew Cottrell are tenacious defenders whom we count on to stop the opposing team's top forwards," Bohn said. "They have a lot of playing experience and will be relied upon heavily."
Senior Nick Caiella started 13 games at outside defender in 2002. Juniors Nathan Jolly and Joe Staropoli will also battle for time in the defensive backfield. Staropoli started 15 of 16 games as a sophomore and Jolly played in 15 games. Sophomore transfer Brian Dell will also add depth on defense. Dell played in 12 games as a freshman at Syracuse University.
MIDFIELDERS
In the midfield, seniors Steve Orloff and Matt Battiste and junior Victor Krasij will look for starting nods. Orloff returns to the fold after a broken foot forced him to miss the final nine games of the 2002 season. Orloff had started the first nine for the Leopards and had a goal and two assists for the season before he was knocked out of the Navy game on Oct. 6. Orloff and Krasij are more offensive-minded midfielders, while Battiste's strength lies as a defensive center midfielder.
Sophomores Ryan McCaughey and Nkosi Aberdeen are two sophomores who will compete for starting jobs in the midfield, both having played in half of the team's games in 2002. Freshmen Keon Phillip and Thomas Harju will vie for time in the midfield. Phillip is the second Lafayette signee from Trinidad in the last two seasons and third in the last 10 years, joining sophomore-to-be Nkosi Aberdeen and 1999 graduate Renaldo Trancoso. Phillip was a member of the SKHY Football Club in Port of Spain, Trinidad, a squad coached by former Columbia University All- American Dexter Skeene. Harju earned All- Dallas/Fort Worth First-Team honors in high school and also served as team captain of Andromeda SC '85 in the club ranks. Phillip and Harju are two of six incoming student-athletes in the Class of 2007.
"We feel like we have a class of incoming studentathletes who are ready to make immediate contributions to our program," Bohn said. "The quality of this incoming class comes from the hard work on the recruiting trails, especially by our assistant coaches."
FORWARDS
Up front, the Leopards are led by senior Jamie Mullarkey. Mullarkey is a talented and explosive forward who has produced much of the team's offense in his seasons on College Hill. He is the team's top returning scorer, tallying 14 points on four goals and six assists last season. "We need Jamie to score and convert on crucial plays in order for us to be successful this season," Bohn said. Seniors Ralph Rapuano and Marko Lukin are also expected to contribute heavily on offense. Rapuano is a three-year starter who netted seven points in 2002. Lukin played in 17 games, starting two as a junior.
Freshman Chris Doney will provide the three seniors with competition for playing time at the forward. He was an All-State First-Team selection at the Loomis Chafee School and helped lead his squad to the New England Prep School championship in 2002. The Longmeadow, Mass. native was an ODP East Regional Pool selection and played for the Connecticut ODP '84 team.
SCHEDULE
For the first time ever, Lafayette will open its fall campaign by playing in three-straight weekend tournaments. The Leopards will travel to Baltimore, Md. on Labor Day weekend to play in the UMBC Adidas Kick Off Classic to open the season. Lafayette will face Robert Morris on Friday Aug. 29 and will face the host on Sunday, Aug. 31. The match with UMBC pits the same two schools that met in an NCAA Play-In game in 1999 with UMBC advancing to the NCAA Tournament via penalty kicks.
The next weekend, Sept 5-7, Lafayette will return home to host the annual Lafayette Puma Soccer Classic. After an opening round game that pits Lehigh vs. Rider, Lafayette will host Hartford in a night game at 7 p.m. Lafayette will then host Rider on Sunday in the final round. A trip to Evanston, Ill. for the Northwestern University Lakefront Classic on the following weekend will bring a reunion of two soccer coaches and close friends. Current Northwestern head coach Tim Lenahan spent three seasons (1998-00) as the head coach on College Hill. During that span, Bohn was Lenahan's assistant for two seasons. Lafayette will face DePaul in the opening round on Sept. 12 and Eastern Illinois on Sept. 14.
Lafayette will play two more non-conference games before opening conference action. The Leopards travel to Albany in a homecoming game for Battiste and Wajda, who are both originally from the Albany area. Lafayette hosts Monmouth on Sept. 20, a Saturday night game. The Leopards open Patriot League play a week later at home against Colgate. Road games at Army (Oct. 3), Oneonta (Oct. 7) and Bucknell (Oct. 11) open the month of October.
Four out of the Leopards' final five games come against conference foes. Lafayette begins the stretch run at home against Navy on Oct. 18. A trip to Worcester, Mass. to face reigning Patriot League champion Holy Cross comes a week later. On Oct. 28, Bohn will take his Lafayette squad to face his alma mater, Columbia in New York. Three days later on Halloween at Metzgar Field, Lafayette and Lehigh will write the latest chapter of their intense rivalry. The Leopards will close out the regular season on Nov. 8 at American.
The 2003 Patriot League Tournament will feature the top four teams in the league and will be played Nov. 14 and 16 at the home of the regular-season champion.
