USD Men's Soccer 2009

TOREROS FIRED UP FOR 2009 CAMPAIGN

attacking player with great skill who also played for the Nomads Academy, and Conor McFad– den brings add itional options in t he defense and midfield having ach ieved CIF All-League Divi– si on I awards fo r West View High School. James Cohn, a tough tackling midfield player, comes from the strong Sereno Club that won the Arizona State Cup. Finally, Chris– t ian Duke is a left side player from Ka nsas who is the son of Chris Duke who played at USO in the late eighties. The team has once again in– creased thei r strength of sched– ule. The Toreros will face a strong preseason schedule followed by an intense double round-robin sched ule. "Last year we played seven teams that were consistently in the top-10 over the past few years;' said McFadden. "There was no break in the schedule before con– ference. We wanted the schedule– to be chall eng ing again this sea– son but with an opportunity to be ready fo r conference:' Fou r of the seven preseason opponents made an appearance in t he NCAA post season (Penn– sylvania 1st round, Dartmouth 3rd round, Michigan State 1st round, UCLA 1st round). Three teams were ranked in the NSCAA t op-25 poll (Pennsylvania 20th, UCLA 13th, Michigan State 9th) while two teams were ranked in the NSCAA post-season poll (Dartmouth 20th, Michigan State 17th). "The good th ing for us is that we won't be traveling for the first mont h, except to San Diego State;' said McFadden. "We're definitely much better t hat we were last year;' said Mc– Fadden . "We struggled to score goals so we brought guys into t he midfield that can control the ball better. We are looking to be more cohesive and to put passes together and keep possession longer in order to be more dan– gerous on the counter-attack:'

while Drew Delis will compete for a midfield position. The sophomores on the squad are defenders David Armstrong and Sean O'Connor, forward Stephen Posa, and midfielders Charles Blase and Jorge Reza. Reza and Posa w il l both be strong ly considered for starting positions this sea– son after a strong year last sea– son. David Armstrong opted to red-shirt his freshman year and will be competing for playing time along with Blase and O'Connor. The Toreros have a number of newcomers who will help them in their endeavors to make an NCAA Tournament appearance. USO has man– aged to recruit a Brazi lian, a Swede, two Mexican players and an Irishman to the team as well as a number of local play– ers, West Regional players and a son of an alumni standout that Coach McFadden had on the team 20 plus years ago. Marcelo Carminatti is a Bra– zilian forward who is a j unior transfer from Barton Commu– nity College where he achieved All-American status. Sergio Carranza is a forward from Tijuana, Mexico and played for the Surf Soccer Academy. Pablo Inda from Chihuahua, Mexico is another great add i– tion who will challenge for a defensive position. Ryan Coul– ter, a goalkeeper from County Wicklow, Ireland, has great potential. He graduated from Colaiste Ide College Prep pro– gram. Patrick Wallen is a pow– erful Swedish forward who is a prolific scorer in his native country. USO also has an exciting group of local talent to chal– lenge for positions. Drew Delis is a junior transfer UC Santa Cruz who brings good defen– sive experience to the mid– field . Nolan Chand ler is an– other junior transfer from the University of Louisville who is versatile and has great pace. Dan Delgado is a left footed

With a strong core of returners combined with a mix of local and international talent, Head Coach Seamus McFadden and his staff are looking forward to another out– standing season that will hurl them into the post season. In addition to the return of last years coach– ing staff, Eddie Ahman will join as a Student Assistant Coach. After a second place tie with Gonzaga in the 2008 wee final standings, the Toreros look to ad– vance to post season play in 2009. USO returns nearly all of its start– ers, including First Team AII-WCC defender Ryan Peterman and First Team AII-WCC goalkeeper Kelin Bri– ones. The team also looks forward to senior Sam Reeder in the back– field after missing the 2008 season due to injury. "Obviously the key will be to in– tegrate the new players with the guys we have returning;' explained Coach McFadden. "The level of competition for the returners will be the highest they've seen in their years here at USO. Everyone will be hard-pushed for playing time and that's the way we want it:' The senior class consists of de– fenders Ryan Peterman, Tim Grey, and Sam Reeder, forwards J.T. How– Ian, Kyle Ochoa, and Andrew Feld, goalkeeper Kelin Briones and mid– fielder Trevor May. Peterman and Grey were the heart of the defense last season . Reeder was missed with a season-ending injury but will compete for a spot back on the starting roster this season. Ochoa and Feld will compete again for a starting position as front men for the Toreros at forward. Kelin Brio– nes will lead the last line of defense with Adam Campbell and newcom– er Ryan Coulter backing him up. The juniors returning to the team are defender Cory Norris, midfield– er Kegan Johnson, and goa lkeeper Adam Campbell. Joining the junior class will be forwards Marcelo Car– minatti and Nolan Chander and midfielder Drew Delis. Norris and Johnson will both compete for playing time along with the three transfers who are looking for time on the field . Carminatti and Chan– dler are looking for a slot at forward

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USO NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCES - 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1995, 1994, 1993, 1992, 1990