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Andy Stewart will be a key to the Tigers' success in
2003 as one the team's top midfielders.
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The Wittenberg men's soccer program has been competitive
with the best teams in NCAA Division III for a long time, but it
has been seven years since the Tigers have advanced to the NCAA
Division III Tournament, thanks in part to the tremendous strength
of the North Coast Athletic Conference and its bevy of national
powers. Veteran Head Coach Steve Dawson has high hopes that the
2003 edition of Tiger men's soccer will be able to get back over
that hump by not only competing well with the best in the nation,
but winning those tight games that in recent years have often gone
the wrong way.
Minus six starters from the 2002 team that finished 7-10-1,
Dawson will look to a trio of seniors to lead the charge this
year. Steve
Doring, Tim
Fogler and Greg
Zeller have all earned three letters and have
been starters in the defensive backfield the majority of the last
three years, with Doring being the most accomplished with two
All-NCAC selections to his credit. They will start in front of
either senior goalkeeper Matt
Sharp, the 2002 starter, or freshman
netminder Adam
Horrocks.
In the midfield, the Tigers figure to be young but talented.
Several sophomores saw extensive game action a year ago, and with a
year of experience they figure to be ready to make even more
significant contributions in 2003. Matt
Berry has three goals in 16 games, including
eight starts. Andy
Stewart played in all 18 games and, along with
Doring, is the team's top returning scorer with seven total
points.Jesse King scored two
goals in 13 games in 2002. Among the top newcomers in both the
midfield and defense are sophomore Levi Van
Reeth, who was on the team but didn't letter in
2002, and freshman David
Caputo.
The forwards will all be new players in 2002, including
sophomore Isaac
Boye-Arthur and a host of freshmen,
including Ian
Acker, Sebastian
Missura, Eduardo
Missura and Jason
Sucher.