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Aug. 24, 2000
As the 2000 men’s soccer season inches closer and closer to its beginning, there probably isn’t a team in the country more excited to get under way than the Virginia Cavaliers. After finishing the 1999 season with a 14-9-1 mark and advancing to the NCAA Quarterfinals, UVa looks geared to make another run at a national championship title in 2000.
One of Virginia’s biggest assets this season may boil down to one key phase of the game – experience. After losing six underclassmen in the previous two seasons to the MLS, coupled with the graduation of several valuable seniors during that time span, the Cavaliers return all but one starter from last year’s squad. The returning core of UVa’s team features 14 players who recorded at least five starts last season, including 10 players with a minimum of 15 starts to their credit. With 10 of 11 starters returning, solid depth at each position and one of the most talented recruiting classes in the country, things could become very exciting in Charlottesville this season.
Head coach George Gelnovatch, 65-20-10 through four seasons at UVa, knows he has a talented team that is capable of claiming the school’s sixth national championship. But Gelnovatch also knows just how difficult the road is to reach that pinnacle.Virginia will once again prepare for a run at the national championship with a schedule loaded with top-caliber competition. Aside from its rigorous ACC regular-season slate, UVa will open the season with South Florida and Jacksonville as the host of the Virginia Soccer Classic Tournament (Sept. 1-3). Virginia will also face the likes of South Carolina and the defending national champion Indiana Hoosiers when UVa competes in the Maryland/Fila Invitational (Sept. 8-10).
On the heels of a decade where Virginia claimed four of its five national championship titles, the Cavaliers would like nothing more than to end the 2000 season with similar hardware. The task won’t be easy, however, if UVa can pick up where it left off in `99, the sky is the limit for the Cavaliers.
FORWARDS
Speed. That’s one of the first thing that comes to mind and sight when dealing with Virginia’s front line. The Cavaliers may have one of the best forward duos in the country with the return of Sheldon Barnes and Ryan Gibbs. The pair of players displayed eye-opening quickness and athletic ability as they combined for 44 points last season.Barnes, a junior from Miramar, Fla., finished with a team-high nine goals (tying teammate Ryan Trout). Two of his goals were game-winning markers and he also recorded four assists last season. Barnes finished second on the squad with 22 points and came up huge for the Cavaliers down the stretch. In the final game of the regular season, Barnes netted the lone goal in a 1-0 victory over Ohio State, and followed that scoring performance with a goal in UVa’s next contest – a 2-0 victory over Maryland in the ACC Tournament. Barnes gathered All ACC-Tournament honors for his performance in the conference tournament.
Returning up front with Barnes is Gibbs, a second-year player from West Chester, Pa. Gibbs had a stellar freshman campaign and became an immediate contributor at his position. He finished third on the team with eight goals, (along with four assists) and was fourth on the squad with 20 points. After scoring a goal in his third game as a Cavalier, Gibbs went on to score a goal in six of his next eight contests. Two of his goals during that span were game-winning scores to give Virginia a 2-1 victory over Virginia Tech and a 2-0 win over American. Gibbs also came up huge in UVa’s 3-1 victory over Brown in the NCAA Tournament, when he scored a goal and added an assist in the win.
Eric Solomon, a sophomore from Livingston, N.J., and junior Rob Wright, a native of Virginia Beach, Va., will also challenge for playing time at the forward position. Solomon started five games in `99, and the two players each recorded an assist in UVa’s 8-1 victory over Appalachian State. Both players held a reserve role and logged 894 minutes of combined playing time last season. Talented first-year player Alecko Eskandarian will also push Barnes and Gibbs for time up front. Eskandarian, a proven goal-scorer after leading the state of New Jersey in scoring with 66 goals and 15 assists his senior year, will challenge for a starting spot and add solid depth at the position.
MIDFIELDERS
The Cavaliers lone departed starter from last season’s team – Drew O’Donnell – is the only hole that needs to be filled in the the midfield heading into 2000. Although O’Donnell played a vital role for UVa, don’t expect the team to miss a beat with his departure. Virginia is loaded at the midfielder position which is highlighted by the potent duo of Kyle Martino and Ryan Trout. Like Barnes and Gibbs, Martino and Trout were proven scorers as they posted 49 points en route to earning `99 All-ACC Tournament honors together.
Martino, the 1999 ACC Rookie of the Year and First Team All-ACC selection, was spectacular in his first season in orange and blue. The native from Westport, Conn. started all 23 games he participated in and finished third on the team with 21 points on seven goals and seven assists (second on the squad). Martino displayed dazzling ball handling skills and was a dual-threat to either set up a score or score himself. He was instrumental to UVa’s success late in the season after he recorded three goals in the Cavaliers final four contests, including markers in Virginia’s 2-1 win over Princeton and 3-1 victory over Brown in the NCAA Tournament. Martino scored goals in back-to-back games four times last season.
Trout, a senior from Media, Pa., enters 2000 as Virginia’s top returning player in points, goals and assists. He led the Cavaliers in all three categories after recording 28 points on 10 assists and nine goals. His prolific attack earned him NSCAA Third Team All-American honors en route to being tabbed a Second Team All-ACC selection. Trout became the 44th Cavalier to post a hat trick and only the eighth player ever at Virginia to score four goals in a single game when he did so in an 8-1 rout over Appalachian State (9/8/99). He elevated his game and overshadowed his competition in the ACC Tournament by scoring three goals (two game-winners) in Virginia’s 2-0 win over Maryland and 2-1 victory over Wake Forest. Trout scored both of UVa’s goals in the WFU contest. Trout may also see time up front in the forward position.
Steve Totten, a third-year midfielder from Allentown, N.J., returns after another solid campaign in `99. He finished the year with 17 points after posting six goals and five assists en route to being named Second Team All-ACC. Totten scored UVa’s season opening, game-winning goal in the Cavaliers 4-3 overtime win over Seton Hall and assisted on Drew O’Donnell’s game-winning goal in a 2-1, triple overtime victory over Princeton in the NCAA Tournament. He began the 1999 season red-hot by scoring four goals in Virginia’s first three contests.Curtis Bush, a fourth-year from New Orleans, La., will look to increase his role this season after producing great results in 1999. Bush logged nine starts and scored four points on two goals. Both of his goals were huge for UVa. Bush recorded the game-tying goal in Virginia’s 1-1 tie with Wake Forest and scored the game-winning goal in UVa’s 2-1 victory over Cal State Fullerton in the Pacific Soccer Classic.
Central midfielder Kenny Arena, a second-year from Fairfax, Va., gives Virginia a needed dimension in the midfield. Arena played his way into a starting role down the stretch of the `99 season and earned nine starts. He is a physical, aggressive type of a player and he uses his size to his advantage to win head balls.
Senior Kito Pruitt, a native of Richmond, Va., and second-year player Sean Feeney, Manasquan, N.J., add depth and experience in the midfield area. Pruitt hopes to rebound from an injury that kept him sidelined in `99 and Feeney will look to increase his role after seeing action in three games last year.
Neil Bianco, a third-year from Glen Ellyn, Ill., is back with the team after missing the `99 season and looks to pick up where he left off in 1998. Prior to missing the `99 season, Bianco made two starts and recorded 404 minutes of action in 1998.Keep an eye on the first-year duo of Ryan Kelly, Marlton, N.J., and Jacob LeBlanc, Palo Alto, Calif. Both players will challenge for a spot in the midfield and have the talent and ability to step in and contribute right away.
DEFENSE
In 24 contests last season, Virginia’s opponents only managed to score 29 goals. As tough as it was to get within scoring distance on UVa in `99, it may be even tougher in 2000 with every starter back this season.
Virginia’s defensive unit revolves around the core of four returning players who combined for 88 starts last season. Two of those players, Mike Feller and Marshall Leonard, return after starting all 24 games. Feller, a fourth-year from Richmond, Va., and Leonard, a third-year from Midland, Ga., are both dual-threats with the ability to defend or handle the ball in the backfield. Both players are capable of not only stopping opposing offensive players dead in their tracks, but regaining possession and pushing the ball upfield. This was evident in `99 after Feller (three points) came up huge offensively by scoring a goal in Virginia’s 4-3 season opening win over Seton Hall, and dishing out an assist in UVa’s 2-1 victory over Virginia Tech. Leonard also scratched in the scoring column and recorded an assist on Barnes’ game-winning goal in a 3-0 victory over Mount St. Mary’s.
Jonathan Cole, a second-year from Annapolis, Md., and Chad Prince, a fourth-year from Woodbury, N.Y., also return to UVa’s defense. Cole made opposing offensive players work extremely hard for shot attempts with his physical play. A strong defender, Cole also combines his strength with good speed. Prince came up big for Virginia time and time again with his defensive stops as he stepped up and became one of UVa’s top stoppers in the backfield. He also posted an assist in the Cavs 8-1 victory over Appalachian State.
Carter Burgess, a second-year defender from Virginia Beach, Va., appeared in seven games in `99 and hopes to expand his role in Virginia’s defensive rotation. Matt Beran, a third-year from Strongsville, Ohio, looks to rebound from an injury that kept him sidelined in `99. First-year Mahatha Oliver will also push for playing time and could see a good deal of it if he steps in and plays as effectively as he did in the high school ranks.
GOALKEEPER
Following the `99 season, if there’s one thing Virginia found out about its goalkeepers it’s this – they have solid depth at the position. David Comfort and Kyle Singer split duties between the pipes last year, with both keepers excelling in the goalkeeper position. Singer, a second-year from Plymouth, Minn., started in Virginia’s first 15 games last season. He recorded 33 saves with a 1.22 GAA and UVa was 8-6-1 with him as the starting keeper. During that stretch of games, Singer helped to shutout four opponents.Before Virginia headed off to compete in UCLA’s Pacific Soccer Classic, Singer became ill and the goalkeeping duties were handed over to Comfort, a second-year from Richmond, Va. Comfort picked right up where Singer left off, only to remain in goal and start in UVa’s last nine contests, which included three ACC and three NCAA Tournament games. Comfort gathered 44 saves and posted a 1.03 GAA en route to two shutouts. The Cavaliers were 6-3-0 with him as the starting goalkeeper.
With Comfort and Singer battling for the starting position in goal, third-year keeper Nelson Cupello knows that playing time won’t be easy to come by – but he appears up for the challenge. Cupello is aware he has to compete at all times and must be ready to step in and play when called upon, as was evident last season when he made his lone appearance in goal against Marshall to help preserve a 3-0 shutout. Joining Cupello in a battle for playing time will be first-year walk-on Brett Mayer-Aschhoff, a local product from Charlottesville, Va. Mayer-Aschhoff impressed the coaching staff with his work ethic and figures to work his way into an important part of the goalkeeping foundation.