Story Links
Aug. 18, 2004
2004 VIRGINIA MEN’S SOCCER PREVIEW
When the University of Virginia men’s soccer team kicks off its 2004 season, the “twelfth man” on the field for the Cavaliers will be experience. In 2004, Virginia will field a team that features every letterwinner from the previous year, including all 11 starters from its 2003 ACC Championship winning squad.
Last year’s team used youth to its advantage, resulting in a banner season by bringing the ACC Championship trophy back to Charlottesville for the first time in six years. The Cavaliers used the momentum from their ACC-topping performance as a springboard to the NCAA Tournament, where UVa made its 23rd consecutive appearance last season.
Head coach George Gelnovatch and his coaching staff hope to blend veteran experience from last year with key newcomer skillfulness to lay the framework for this season’s talented team. With returning experienced players at all positions, the challenge for starting roles should provide unprecedented competition. Virginia boasts yet another top-notch class of recruits, evidence Gelnovatch has assembled a squad capable of contending for the NCAA Tournament title in December.
UVa carried over last year’s success during its spring workouts, further strengthening hopes for the upcoming season.
“Most of our lineup will be made up of guys who played last season, as opposed to last year when half of our starting lineup was made up of first-year players,” said Gelnovatch. “That’s a huge difference and that is one of our strengths this year – our experience. We had a great spring with the 22 guys we had in training, and nine or 10 of those guys will probably be in the starting lineup for us this season. The returning experience we have this season is going to be a huge bonus for us.”
FORWARDS
When Adam Cristman (17 points, 8 goals, 1 assist in 2003) set foot on campus last year, he had some very big shoes to fill at the forward position after M.A.C. Herman Trophy winner Alecko Eskandarian took his game to Major League Soccer and Ryan Gibbs graduated. Cristman started 22 of the 23 games he appeared in last season as a true freshman and led the team in points and goals scored. In doing so, Cristman burst onto the collegiate scene, landing a spot on the ACC All-Freshman Team. He developed into Virginia’s top goal scorer after scoring twice as many goals as any other Cavalier on the roster. The coaching staff will look for more from him this season.
“I expect Cristman to come close to doubling the number of goals he scored last year,” said Gelnovatch. “Cristman is our top forward, and he’s going to be a good one. But we need a few guys to step up and score some goals for us. We’re still working on finding another proven goal scorer. Cristman really came on strong at the end of last season, but we really don’t have another returning goal scorer coming back. That is still somewhat of a concern for us.”
A potential candidate to team with Cristman to help provide a scoring punch might be first-year forward Nico Colaluca. Colaluca comes to Virginia as one of the top talents in the country and could provide the Cavaliers with another young and energetic scorer.
“Colaluca has the potential to be a very special player here,” said Gelnovatch. “He’s an attacking player and could really help us this season. Colaluca will be in the lineup as either a forward or a midfielder and will certainly be a factor in the starting rotation.”
Colaluca isn’t the only first-year player who could see some playing time up front. The incoming trio of David Rosenbaum, Matt Ayotte and Chris Tierney also bring solid resumes to Charlottesville and will look to contribute right away.
“Rosenbaum is a big, strong, athletic forward with a lot of potential,” said Gelnovatch. “Ayotte is also a big player and was one of the top players in the state of Virginia. Both guys will probably play up front as forwards. Rosenbaum has one heck of a leg and Ayotte can run like a horse. Tierney is more suited as a left-sided player. These three guys have a lot of potential to help us right away. They are all going to get some minutes, and we’ll have to see how they can help us in their first year of action.”
Lightning-quick Zola Short, another highly-touted first-year player, may also log some playing time up front or in the midfield for the Cavaliers. “Short is one of the fastest players on the team. He’s got great speed and should be able to use it to his advantage,” said Gelnovatch. “He will add some quickness to our lineup and we’ll see how he plays into the mix at forward.”
Veteran Paul Johnson (2 points, 1 goal) makes his way back to the forward position after being moved from forward to defender last season. In 2002, as a forward, Johnson netted six points resulting from two goals and two assists before competing as a back last season. He has had to fight through two injury-filled campaigns and looks to rebound in 2004.
“Johnson has been plagued with injuries after his first two seasons, and he’s coming into his junior year still relatively unproven,” said Gelnovatch. “I am hoping this season is going to be a breakout year for him.”
MIDFIELDERS
Two names that immediately jump out as proven leaders in the Virginia midfield are Mike Littlefield (14 points, 4 goals, 6 assists) and Will Hall (5 points, 1 goal, 3 assists). Gelnovatch believes this dynamic duo provides the type of leadership he is looking for in his midfield. Their play last season, coupled with the experience they bring to the table, should create the right mix of chemistry Gelnovatch is looking for from his deep and talented group of midfielders.
Littlefield, a second-team All-ACC selection last year as a forward, adjusted well to his first season as a Cavalier. He adapted quickly to the UVa system in 2003 after transferring from Coastal Carolina. His aerial prowess and acrobatic ball-handling make him a multi-faceted threat to score goals with his head, chest or feet. After playing Littlefield as a forward last season, Gelnovatch will look to capitalize on Littlefield’s all-around playing ability and will move him into the midfield as an attacking midfielder.
“Littlefield is going to score some more goals this year. He’s going to play deeper in the midfield, but he’ll still get into the attack for us from that position,” said Gelnovatch. ” Littlefield’s a competitor; he’s got a great engine and he can run forever. The extra dimension Littlefield gives us is when we have the ball wide. He gets himself in front of the goal by coming in on the play late. When he comes into the box, he’s hard to keep track of and he gives himself a lot of good scoring chances by coming out of the deep midfield in that fashion.”
Hall, who joined Cristman as a member of the ACC All-Freshman team last season from Virginia, showed the UVa coaching staff what he could do in just his first season of collegiate play, and they liked what they witnessed.
“I like what I saw out of Hall last season,” said Gelnovatch. “He’s a technical player with a lot of drive. I like the way he goes out there and just scraps and fights for the ball.”
Gelnovatch will look to several returning veterans to round out his starting midfield. Other veteran candidates for the starting jobs are Drew Harrison (2 points, 1 goal), Kirk Dinnall (2 points, 2 assists), Joe Vide (4 points, 4 assists) and Zane Hill (3 points, 1 goal, 1 assist).”Harrison didn’t play much last season but started for us in the spring,” said Gelnovatch. “I’m hoping to get more production out of him from an attacking standpoint. Harrison will probably see some time wide on the left side as a possible starting midfielder.
“Dinnall is also an attacking player. He’s had some big games in his career, but heading into his senior year, he also has some things to prove. I hope this is that year for him, because he is a super talent. Dinnall is an option on the wide-right side.
“Vide and Hill will also be in the mix. Both of these guys should be contending for a starting position. I also can’t count out Sean Hinkle. He played some solid minutes for us last year and he’s going to get on the field. I’m not sure what his role will be, but he’s going to play.”
Chefik Simo (15 points, 4 goals, 7 assists in 2002 at Furman) will look to make his way back onto the playing field after battling injuries that kept him sidelined and out of the action in 2003. Simo is an extremely gifted and talented player who could have a huge impact for the Cavaliers if he can return to the form that made him one of the top collegiate players in the country in 2002.Other potential starting candidates in the midfield include newcomers Jeremy Barlow and Dane Murphy. Either one of these two first-year players could break into the starting lineup.
“Barlow is a special player who’s got real potential and could really help us this year,” said Gelnovatch. “He’s good at attacking and can play as a forward or as a wide-left player. He will see some playing time for us. Murphy is one of the top prospects in the country. He is going to be in the mix for playing time as well.”
Other contenders for playing time in the midfield are the veteran trio of Brian Yi, Gifford Okatah-Boi and Chris Mein, as well as newcomers Will Fox and Matt Poole.
DEFENDERS
Virginia’s defense steadily improved as the season wore on last year. UVa’s backs helped solidify a defense that yielded only four goals in the Cavaliers’ final six contests. The Virginia defense posted seven shutouts on the season, including four in the postseason. UVa recorded a pair of shutouts in the ACC and NCAA Tournaments, respectively.
Virginia returns four candidates as potential starters across the back in veterans Matt Oliver (4 points, 2 goals), John Hartman (7 points, 2 goals, three assists), Jeff Tuman (4 points, 2 goals) and Hunter Freeman (4 points, 4 assists). UVa may also turn to converted forward Ian Holder (5 points, 2 goals, 1 assist) and first-year talent Matt Williams to man the positions. Together, this talented group should prove to be one of the top defensive units in the country.
Oliver, an All-America defender, headlines the group of backs and is coming off another banner season where he received All-America honors from Soccer America and College Soccer News. He also landed a spot on the All-ACC first team and on the ACC All-Tournament Team.”Oliver is one of the best, if not the best, player at his position in the country,” stated Gelnovatch. “He was a little banged up down the stretch last season. We held him out some in the spring so he could get himself healthy for the fall.”
Hartman and Tuman have played three seasons together and have developed into a solid one-two punch. The coaching staff has also experimented with moving Freeman into the midfield and using him out wide if he doesn’t log time as a starting back.
Holder’s focus will shift from scoring goals to preventing them in 2004. Last season, he made seven starts and appeared in every game for UVa as a forward. This season, as he did last year with Johnson, Gelnovatch has asked an athletic forward to convert himself into a back.”Holder will see some time as either a center back or as an outside back,” said Gelnovatch. “I’m not sure if he’ll compete as a starter or as a reserve. We’ll have to see how it all plays out. So far, the move he has made has been a nice transition.”
New to the team and to the position of defender is Williams, but he could make his mark on the team very early on. “Williams could very well end up being a starter for us,” said Gelnovatch. “He has the ability to step in and help us right away.”
Returning player Joe Villanueva and newcomer Pat Philbin will also vie for playing time in the Virginia defense.
GOALKEEPERS
Virginia turned to two unproven and inexperienced goalkeepers to man the starting duties last season in Ryan Burke and Ryan Best. Gelnovatch knew the two keepers each brought something special to the team, but wasn’t sure what to expect in a game situation. That all changed once the season got underway.
Best started the first eight games of the year before an injury sidelined him and the starting responsibilities shifted to Burke. Burke stepped in and quickly made the position his own. He was rewarded with Freshman All-America honors from Soccer America and College Soccer News. He also was chosen to the ACC All-Tournament Team and was selected as the ACC Tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
Gelnovatch knows it is once again going to be a battle between Burke and Best for the starting position. However, heading into the preseason, he knows his decision for the time being.”Both keepers are still very young,” said Gelnovatch. “If I had to do a lineup right now, Burke would be the starting goalkeeper. Burke is the guy right now, but Best is going to give him a run for the spot. I told both guys I’ll have an open mind as to who will start out there. I think we have a great duo, but it has to play itself out. Best is a very talented athlete and is probably the most athletic player on the team. His attitude is very good and he is ready to compete. Burke obviously proved what he could do and had a great season last year. The competition is healthy and there is no animosity between the two players.”
Two new faces to the team who will add depth to the goalkeeping position are newcomer Kyle Eisenmann and Boston University transfer Kyle Rudzinski. Eisenmann and Rudzinski bring the goalkeeper total up to four on the roster. Gelnovatch feels the group is a very good foursome of players and probably make up the deepest field of players at the goalkeeper position ever at Virginia.
“Eisenmann was a walk-on who joined the team in the spring,” said Gelnovatch. “He’s got potential and is a good athlete with a great work ethic. Rudzinski is a transfer and we had a chance to see him play a few times. We’re anxious to see where he fits in. With these two guys, our third and fourth goalkeepers are probably the two best this program has ever had.”