2005 Men s Soccer Prospectus

Transcription

1 NCAA CHAMPIONS 1973, 1972, 1970, 1969, 1967, 1965, 1963, 1962, 1960, Men s Soccer Prospectus Junior Forward John DiRaimondo 2004 Second-Team NSCAA All-Midwest Region Senior Midfielder Ryan Wileman 2004 First-Team All-Conference USA Dan Donigan 2003 NSCAA Midwest Region Coach of the Year Senior Midfielder/Back Danny Wynn 2004 SLU Assist Leader Junior Midfielder Alex Matteson 2004 Conference USA All-Tournament Team IN A U G U R A L AT L A N T I C 10 CO N F E R E N C E S E A S O N

2 GENERAL COACHING STAFF NAME OF SCHOOL Saint Louis University CITY/ZIP St. Louis, MO FOUNDED ENROLLMENT ,422 NICKNAME Billikens SCHOOL COLORS Blue and White FIELD NAME (CAPACITY).R o b e rt R. Hermann Stadium (6,045) AFFILIATION NCAA Division I CONFERENCE Atlantic 10 PRESIDENT Lawrence Biondi, SJ ALMA MATER, YR Loyola (Ill.), 1962 ATHLETICS DIRECTOR Cheryl L. Levick ALMA MATER, YR University of Missouri, 1974 ATHLETIC DEPT. PHONE (314) TICKET OFFICE PHONE (314) HISTORY FIRST YR. OF SOCCER OVERALL ALL-TIME RECORD NO. YRS. IN NCAA TOURN./LAST /2003 LAST POST-SEASON OPPONENT..Memphis (2004 C-USA) RESULT L, 0-1 BILLIKEN MEDIA RELATIONS SPORTS INFORMATION DIR/Soccer SID...Doug McIlhagga SID OFFICE PHONE (314) mcilhad2@slu.edu SID FAX (314) HOME PHONE (636) ASSISTANT SID Diana Koval OFFICE PHONE (314) ASSISTANT SID Chuck Yahng OFFICE PHONE (314) MEDIA RELATIONS ASSOCIATE Chris O Connor OFFICE PHONE (314) PRESS BOX PHONE (314) /2873 PRESS BOX FAX (314) WEBSITE HEAD COACH Dan Donigan ALMA MATER/YR Connecticut/1993 RECORD AT SCHOOL (YRS) (4 yrs) CAREER RECORD (YRS) Same SOCCER OFFICE PHONE (314) BEST TIME/DAY TO REACH COACH Mornings ASST. COACH (ALMA MATER/YEAR) Mike Sorber Saint Louis/1994 ATHLETIC TRAINER/SOCCER Nikki Duncan TEAM INFORMATION OVERALL RECORD LAST YEAR Home Away Neutral CONFERENCE RECORD/FINISH (T-3rd C-USA) FINAL RANKING LAST YEAR (POLL) Unranked STARTERS RETURNING/LOST /3 LETTERWINNERS RETURNING/LOST /6 KEY RETURNEES: Name Yr Pos GP/GS PTS G John DiRaimondo JR MF 18/ Ryan Wileman SR MF 18/ Alex Matteson JR MF 18/ Danny Wynn SR MF 18/ Mo Benne JR B 12/9 0 0 Brandon Gasparovic SO B 18/ Pat Disbennett SO GK 8/ GAA KEY NEWCOMERS: Name Yr Pos Last School Dado Hamzgiic FR MF/F St. Louis Mehlville HS Chad Hagerty FR MF Louisville St. Xavier HS Eric Sweetin FR MF KC Rockhurst HS Kyle Patterson FR F Albion, England Calum Angus FR B Portsmouth, England Colin Rooney SO F/MF Massachusetts Zack Przybeck SO MF/B St. John s

3 2005 SAINT LOUIS BILLIKENS MEN S SOCCER ROSTER No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown (High School) 1 Pat Disbennett GK SO St. Louis, Mo. (Webster Groves) 3 Mo Benne B JR Ellisville, Mo. (Chaminade) 4 Andrew Moses MF SR St. Louis, Mo. (Chaminade) 5 Brian Grazier MF JR Edwardsville, Ill. (Edison Academic Ctr., Bradenton, Fla.) 6 Alex Matteson MF JR Chesterfield, Mo. (Chaminade) 7 Danny Wynn B/MF SR St. Louis, Mo. (Chaminade) 8 John DiRaimondo MF JR St. Louis, Mo. (Edison Academic Ctr., Bradenton, Fla.) 9 Zack Pryzbeck MF/B SO St. Louis, Mo. (Ladue) 10 Dado Hamzajic MF FR St. Louis, Mo. (Mehlville) 12 Colin Rooney F/MF SO Kirkwood, Mo. (DeSmet) 13 Andrew Reeder MF SO Burlington, N.J. (Pennington School) 14 Jason Vilmer B JR St. Louis, Mo. (St. Mary s) 15 Eddie Parker F JR St. Louis, Mo. (Lutheran South) 16 Patrick Garcia MF JR Dallas, Texas (Naaman Forest) 17 Adam Pepper MF/F SO Evansville, Ind. (Reitz Memorial) 18 Dan Guffey B JR St. Peters, Mo. (Howell North) 19 Casey Spiess MF/B JR Florissant, Mo. (DeSmet) 21 Brandon Gasparovic B SO St. Louis, Mo. (CBC) 22 Ryan Wileman MF SR Grand Prairie, Texas (Grand Prairie) 31 David Greathouse GK SO St. Louis, Mo. (Whitfield) Calum Angus B FR Portsmouth, England Larry Geraghty F FR Cranford, N.J. (St. Benedict s Prep) Chad Hagerty MF FR Louisville, Ky. (St. Xavier) Matt Mach F FR St. Louis, Mo. (MICDS) Kyle Patterson F/MF FR Albion, England Eric Sweetin MF FR Overland Park, Kan. (Rockhurst) Coach: Dan Donigan Asst. Coaches: Mike Sorber, Tim Kelly

4 BILLIKENS MAKE TRANSITION TO ATLANTIC 10 CONFERENCE TITLE CONTENDERS Saint Louis begins a new era as the Billikens enter their inaugural season in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Billikens bring their glorious tradition and record 10 NCAA national championships to the A-10, but yet are attempting to rebound from a disappointing 2004 campaign. The Billikens failed to make the NCAA Tournament last fall for only the fourth time in the 46-year history of the event and had their string of Conference USA championships snapped at seven. With C-USA behind him, Bills head coach Dan Donigan is convinced his club is prepared for the uncertainties that are ahead. They didn t enjoy not making the NCAA Tournament last year and don t want it to happen again, Donigan said. Our spring season was a good, positive experience from the aspect of maturity. They understand the need to seriously train every day, show up for each game and play hard for 90 minutes. They now understand how quickly a game can slip away, because it happened a number of times last year. We don t know much about the A-10 teams, their styles of play, their players or their facilities. None of that really makes a difference. We just need to focus on ourselves. Senior midfielder Ryan Wileman, junior midfielder Alex Matteson and junior forward John DiRaimondo are the unquestioned leaders of the 2005 Billikens. The Bills top three returning scorers will carry the offensive load and look for assistance from an array of talented newcomers. Sophomore keeper Pat Disbennett, who proved to be more than capable last year when senior starter Martin Hutton was Robert R. Hermann Stadium injured, anchors a young, but experienced defense. We are not nearly as concern e d about our attack as we are about defending to the absolute best of our ability, Donigan said. We will place more emphasis on team defense, because if we stay organized and maintain our shape as a team, we will give ourselves an opportunity to stay in games regardless of our scoring opportunities. We still have the talent and ability to create opportunities. After that, it is a matter of who will answer the challenge to finish those chances. Adding new players like Dado Hamzagic and Kyle Patterson to our experienced people, we have enough overall weapons to score consistently. Overall, we should be better than last year s team at both ends of the field. Forwards For the second straight season, the Bills must replace their leading scorer as sopho m o re Will John (10G, 4A) went to Chicago in the MLS SuperDraft last January. Perhaps stepping into that role is DiRaimondo (4G, 3A), who is moving up top after two seasons at wide midfielder where he was a 2004 first-team All-Conference selection and NSCAA second-team All- Midwest Region choice. John can score goals, and he is a busy, active player who makes things happen, Donigan stated. He seems more comfortable up there where he doesn t have so many different things to worry about. As a forward, he is the first line of defense and, hopefully, the guy who finishes things off for us. He does a good job with both and seems to have found his niche. The Bills went to England to find some help in Kyle Patterson, who is a product of the We s t Bromwich Albion club. He is a powerful, strong frontrunner with great pace. He carries the reputation of a legitimate goal scorer, but will be faced with making the transition to Co-Captain Ryan Wileman the Billikens possession style. Junior Eddie Parker may be a surprise contributor. A late bloomer, the lanky speedster was coming on late in the 2004 season and was solid in the spring. Eddie is one of our fastest players and is a dangerous threat, Donigan said. He can get behind defenses and run on to balls to create chances. We are looking to spring him all the time with that tremendous gait. He is showing more soccer skills all the time flicking balls, doing different instinctive things that forwards do. Sophomore Adam Pepper was beginning to work his way into the rotation last year until being sidelined by an injury. While Pepper was out, Parker took advantage of the opening. Freshman Larry Geraghty is a product of one of the nation s top prep programs at St. Benedict s (Cranford, N.J.) Prep, where he was one of the team s leading scorers. At 6- foot-2, he brings size that the other forwards lack and has the tools to be a strong post-up, target-type player.

5 Freshman Matt Mach was one of the St. Louis area s top scorers out of Mary Institute Country Day. He is an opportunistic scorer who has that knack for being in the right place at the right time. But Mach s lack of experience most likely will keep him in a reserve role. Midfielders Saint Louis has an abundance of veteran talent and a bevy of talented freshmen ready to fill all the available slots. Co-captains Wileman (8G, 3A) and Matteson (4G, 3A) are the stalwarts of this group. Little-used as a freshman, the fiercely competitive Wileman has matured into a first-team All-C-USA perf o rmer and arguably the Billikens best player. SLU s second-leading scorer (19 pts) in 2004, he posted career marks in all offensive categories and tied John for the team lead with four game winners. He sets the tone for the Bills both on and off the field Ryan is versatile, is a wonderful distributor of the ball, is pretty sound technically and is a good two-way player, Donigan said. He can play attacking or defensive roles in the midfield. He can even drop back and be our last defender. Matteson also posted a career-high 11 points last year and capped his sophomore season by being named to the C-USA All- Tournament Team. Alex will be a factor in our midfield somewhere, because of his ability to play 90 minutes and his versatility, Donigan noted. We can give Alex specific roles or responsibilities and not worry about it any more. He is such a good two-way player that he has to be on the field somewhere. The Billikens are unsure about the availability of reliable junior B r i a n Grazier, who has manned a defensive midfield spot for two seasons. Grazier suffered a broken and dislocated ankle in the off-season, and his rehabilitation has him on track to be available in the fall. His presence, leadership and skill as a connecting player would be missed. Another player recuperating from offseason surgery is versatile junior Casey Spiess (0G, 2A), who has played all over the field during his career for the Bills. When healthy, Spiess is expected to claim one of the wide midfield spots. Heralded recruit Dado Hamzagic, a two-time NSCAA All-Midwest Region selection, will be expected to fill an attacking midfield position and create goals as well as score them. A Bosnian refugee who starred at Mehlville High School in St. Louis, Hamzagic totaled 45 points (15G, 15A) during his senior year. He graduated early and spent the spring semester at SLU, which provided the experience of playing a spring season before beginning his first year of fall competition. Dado is extremely technical, is outstanding on the ball and has a great understanding of the game, Donigan said. Having that spring semester at this level allowed him to learn a tremendous amount in a short period of time. Talented freshmen Chad Hagerty and Eric Sweetin will have a chance to contribute. Hagerty totaled 44 points (16G, 12A) during his senior season at L o u i s v i l l e s St. Xavier High School where he earned first-team All-State honors and was an adidas Scholar All- America. The 5-foot-5 Sweetin piled up 41 points (13G, 15A) during his senior season at Kansas City Rockhurst High School and earned All-State, NSCAA All-Midwest Region, Western Missouri Player of the Year and first-team Kansas City All-Metro honors. He was a 2004 adidas/nscaa Youth All- American and shared the 2004 Missouri Offensive Player of the Year award with Hamzagic. Alex Matteson (above) tied John DiRaimondo as the Billikens third-leading scorer in Chad resembles Ryan Wileman as a heady, versatile, good two-way player, who is good on the ball and makes good decisions, Donigan said. Sweetin is a dynamic player with great instincts. His feistiness overcomes his lack of size. Both should factor into the midfield somewhere. Junior Patrick Garcia and senior Andrew Moses will also vie for playing time. An extremely quick performer with a strong shot, Garcia s experience in the central midfield and work ethic play in his favor. A skilled attacker as a wide midfielder, Moses always has provided positive energy whenever he s on the field. Sophomore Andrew Reeder made 12 appearances as a wide midfielder during his freshman campaign. His good pace and fitness level may also provide an opportunity as a forward. Two transfers return home after failing to see the type of playing time that they had hoped for at East Coast pro g r a m s. Midfielder/defender Zack Przybeck arrives from St. John s, while midfielder/forward Colin Rooney spent a season at Massachusetts. Both transferred into SLU at mid-year and made an impression during the spring season. John DiRaimondo moves to forward in 2005.

6 Defender Brandon Gasparovic was selected to the 2004 C-USA All-Freshman Team. Backs The Billikens defense is a focal point for the 2005 season according to Donigan. As a team, we need to concentrate on our defensive organization and our maturity as defenders, he said. Saint Louis must replace a second-team All-Conference caliber defender in Brett Branan and off e n s i v e - minded right back Tim Ward, who went to the MetroStars in last January s MLS SuperDraft. Saint Louis possesses capable, talented players who only need to blend together as an effective unit. Sophomore B r a n d o n Gasparovic, who earned a spot on the 2004 C-USA All-Freshman team, is the Bills sweeper and last line of defense. We are counting on him to keep us organized and keep our shape defensively, Donigan stated. He reads the game extremely well, is good on the ball, goes in hard on tackles and is a good ball winner. Reliability is his calling card. Strong, powerful junior Mo Benne is the starter at left back. Benne s speed and toughness are assets. Mo will bang around with people, Donigan noted. He can be intimidating with a physical approach that we d like to see on a more consistent basis. Quick, skilled Danny Wynn has spent most of his career as a wide midfielder, but seemed to have found a home as a wide back in the spring. His pace, ability to beat opponents one-on-one and feel for when to run at people are suited to the position switch. Donigan again looked to England for defensive help. Freshman Calum Angus a rrives from Portsmouth FC, another Premier League club. Donigan favorably compares Angus to former Billiken All- America Kevin Kalish. Although Kalish was a central defender, Angus is ticketed to play wide. Calum is vocal, a great communicator and is good at keeping the defense organized, Donigan explained. He should provide great leadership, discipline and passion. Six-foot-2 junior Dan Guffey certainly will be in the mix. An ankle injury in 2004 limited his effectiveness and drained his confidence. One of the best Billikens in the air, Guffey is routinely utilized on offensive corners as well as playing in the middle on defensive corners. A big, strong player with a great attitude and work ethic, junior Jason Vilmer is recovering from shoulder surgery. Vilmer has been steadily progressing throughout his career, but has been slowed by injuries that have kept him off the field. He can capably step in if the need arises. Goalkeepers The Billikens netminding chores are safely in the hands of sophomore Pat Disbennett and junior David Greathouse. When veteran Martin Hutton was unable to begin the 2004 season after summer abdominal surgery, Disbennett performed admirably and also played well later in the year when Hutton was unable to recapture his All-Conference form. Disbennett posted a record with a 0.85 goals against average and two shutouts. Pat is the type of goalkeeper who can make that game-saving play, Donigan said. The team and the coaching staff have absolute confidence in his ability. He has the complete package. From the standpoint of mental preparation, Pat will be much better prepared this year. Greathouse has yet to log a minute of playing time beyond exhibitions and spring matches, but continues to impress the coaching staff with his development. Summary Saint Louis is determined to prove that its record last fall was an aberration and that the Billikens will once again make their nearly annual appearance in the NCAA Tournament. It was hit or miss last year offensively for Saint Louis. The Billikens were shut out in seven of their eight losses, but were in games in which they scored. Donigan believes moving DiRaimondo to forw a rd combined with a veteran midfield and talented newcomers will make for a more consistent attack. With a non-conference schedule that will challenge Saint Louis in September, the Billikens had best heed Donigan s call to focus on defense. With a young keeper behind a group of defenders that has not played together as a unit, SLU s defense could be suspect but expects to answer the challenge with a team defensive orientation and cohesion among the backs. Saint Louis needs to survive the first three weeks against highly ranked opponents and then gear up for a late season run that features five straight conference road games to close the regular season. SLU has the luxury of hosting the A-10 postsesaon tournament. Pride, determination and hunger are all intangibles that line up in the Billikens plus column this year. Combine that with one of the Billikens deepest rosters in years, and Donigan most likely has the formula for another trip to the postseason. Sophomore keeper Pat Disbennett takes over in goal.

7 2004 FINAL STATISTICS OVERALL: HOME: AWAY: NEUTRAL: OVERTIME: CONFERENCE USA: (T-3rd) Player G/GS Shots G A Pts GWG John, Will 18/ Wileman, Ryan 18/ DiRaimondo, John 18/ Matteson, Alex 18/ Wynn, Danny 18/ Ward, Tim 18/ Gasparovic, Brandon 18/ Cicciarelli, Nick 14/ Parker, Eddie 7/ Vitale, Vince 2/ Spiess, Casey 18/ Branan, Brett 17/ Reeder, Andrew 12/ Grazier, Brian 17/ Moses, Andrew 2/ Pepper, Adam 5/ Garcia, Patrick 8/ Benne, Mo 12/ Guffey, Dan 5/ Vilmer, Jason 4/ Saint Louis Opponents Goalkeeper G/GS MIN GA GAA SHO SAV W-L-T Hutton, Martin 9/9 831: Disbennett, Pat 8/7 634: Sackman, Jeff 3/2 180: Saint Louis : Opponents : Miscellaneous Corners Fouls Cards PK/Att Score-by-Period Saint Louis Y, 0-R 0/ Opponents Y, 1-R 0/ Final Conference USA Soccer Standings Team Overall Conf. G GAA Memphis@ UAB USF SAINT LOUIS Cincinnati Charlotte Louisville Marquette East Carolina DePaul Regular-season champion + Tournament champion 2004 Final Atlantic 10 Soccer Standings Team Overall Conf. G GAA Duquesne@ Dayton Temple George Washington Rhode Island La Salle Massachusetts St. Bonaventure Xavier Richmond Saint Joseph s Fordham Regular-season champion + Tournament champion

8 2004 SCHEDULE AND RESULTS DATE OPPONENT (ATT) RESULT SLU GOALS (GW in Bold) 9/1 vs. Missouri-St. Louis (1,445) W 8-0 Wileman, John (3), Matteson, DiRaimondo, Parker, Vitale 9/4 at Marquette* (906) W 3-0 John, DiRaimondo (2) 9/10 vs. No. 24 SMU (1,993) L 0-1 OT 9/12 vs. No. 11 Virginia (1,306) W 2-1 John (2) St. John s Nike Classic (Queens, NY) 9/17 vs. George Mason (1,070) L 0-3 9/18 vs. No. 7 St. John s (873) L 0-1 9/25 at No. 16 USF* (821) T 2-2 OT Matteson, Cicciarelli 9/29 vs. DePaul* (1,304) W 4-0 Wileman (2), Wynn, John 10/2 vs. Charlotte* (2,453) L /6 vs. Southwest Missouri State (1,236) W 3-2 Wileman, John (2) 10/9 vs. No. 24 UAB*(4,593) W 2-1 Wileman (2) 10/16 at. Louisville* (1,524) W 3-0 Wileman (2), DiRaimondo 10/20 vs. Cincinnatti* (764) L /23 at No. 22 Memphis (327) L /29 vs. East Carolina* (1,128) W 1-0 John 10/31 vs. No. 8 Indiana (3,317) L 1-2 OT Gasparovic 11/12 vs. USF+ (233) W 2-0 Matteson (2) 11/13 vs. Memphis+ (356) L 0-1 Home Games in Bold *Conference USA Games + C-USA Tournament at Louisville Total Home Attendance: 19,539 Avg. Attendance: 1, S O C C E R S TA T S G A M E - B Y - G A M E SLU - Opp SLU - Opp SLU - Opp SLU - Opp Opponent W-L-T Shots Corners Saves Fouls vs. Missouri-St. Louis W at Marquette* W vs. No. 24 SMU L 0-1 OT vs. No. 11 Virginia W vs. George Mason L vs. No. 7 St. John s L at No. 16 USF* T 2-2 OT vs. DePaul* W vs. Charlotte* L vs. SMS W vs. No. 24 UAB* W at. Louisville* W vs. Cincinnati* L at No. 22 Memphis L vs. East Carolina* W vs. No. 8 Indiana L 1-2 OT vs. USF+ W vs. Memphis+ L