Aug. 22, 2006
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One year after being eliminated from the Patriot League Tournament on the final day of the regular season, the Navy men's soccer team heads into 2006 with high hopes.
With an experienced group of returning letterwinners and a solid recruting class, Navy may finally have all the tools in place to reach the league tournament for the first time since 2001.
The Mids are coming off an 8-6-2 record and a tie for fifth in Patriot League play with a 3-3-1 record, Navy's highest finish in the league since the 2001 season. Navy's turnaround was remarkable in that league coaches and sports information directors picked Navy a near-unanimous eighth place in the preseason league poll.
However, Head Coach Rich Miranda's squad proved the pundits wrong, defeating league champion American on Sept. 28, and hanging around until the final day of the regular season for one of four berths in the league's postseason tournament.
With 14 letterwinners and nine starters returning, coupled with an outstanding recruiting class, Miranda has the Mids thinking, not only Patriot League Tournament, but Patriot League title.
In a year of heightened expectations, Navy looks to rely on a senior class that was front and center in last year's turnaround. Led by senior captain Tom Shelly, Navy will return 12 of its 16 players that scored points last year, including second-team All-Patriot League selection Addy Strasdas.
"The seniors have done a remarkable job in the off-season getting this team ready to play," said Miranda. "They have been around for four years now and their experience and leadership will determine our success this year."
Several freshmen figure to contend for starting spots, led by Andrew Garcia and Chris Schneider. Both came from the powerhouse Dallas Solar Soccer Club, a team that was ranked in the top five nationally.
"We have a very strong senior class right now and the freshman class needs to be strong to keep the improvement heading in the right direction. I have been here 17 years now, and this is one of the best classes that we have had since I have been here," said Miranda. "A lot of the players come from a great pedigree. It will be hard for them to transplant some upperclassmen, but they have the talent to do so."
The highly-touted freshmen class will help an outstanding Navy offense that led the Patriot League in goals scored last year. In 2005, Navy scored 27 goals, a 15-goal increase from 2004, and the second-highest increase in school history.
The defense also should be a strength for Miranda. Junior goalkeeper Thomas Jenkins stepped into a starting role eight games into the year and gained valuable experience as the backstop of a strong Navy defense. The Mids allowed just five teams to score two or more goals in a game, and just one tallied three or more goals.
"We feel the strengths of this year's team are our depth and experience. We have had a lot of players play a lot of minutes over the last three years. They know the system," said Miranda. "We opened things up last year offensively, and were solid defensively. We hope we can continue to improve offensively and continue to have a steady defense. Obviously, if we can do both, we will be successful."
FORWARDS:
Navy lost two of its top four scorers off its front-line unit from a year ago, but this year's group should be just as strong as last year's forwards.
Highlighting the group will be senior McKenzie Plank, who is poised for a big year as the unquestioned leader of the forward unit. Plank had a fantastic spring, leading all players with five goals.
Plank will be aided by fellow classmate Carter Stapleton and juniors Doug DeVuono and Travis King. Stapleton was the team's third-leading scorer a year ago with nine points (3 g, 3 a) and is Navy's current career leader with 16 points. King has had a knack for scoring big goals, tallying three goals on just six shots in his first two years. Lastly, DeVuono played on the club team a year ago, but when the program was dropped, DeVouno joined the varsity and impressed coaches with his work ethic in the spring.
Freshmen Andrew Garcia will provide the Mids needed depth at forward, after starring on the nationally-ranked Dallas Solar Soccer Club.
MIDFIELDERS:
The midfield group, paced by senior All-Patriot League candidate Addy Strasdas, will again provide Miranda with offensive firepower in 2006.
Strasdas was a 2005 second-team selection after ranking second on the team with 10 points, including a three-point effort in the season finale against Bucknell a year ago.
Other key returnees include senior Brad Feige (1 g, 1 a) and juniors Anthony Parker (3 g, 6 p), Eric Gorden (2 g, 6 p) and Justin Waskey (1 g, 3 p).
Between the five returnees listed above, the group has played in 150 games and scored 38 points.
"There is a lot of experience in the unit and finding the right combinations will be interesting in the fall," said Miranda. "We are missing a defensive midfielder to complement Addy (Strasdas), but offensively, this will be a very good unit."
Freshman Chris Schneider could also push for a starting spot after earning a pair of Class 5-A (Texas) All-State selections. He was a teammate of Garcia's on the Dallas Solar Soccer Club.
DEFENSEMEN:
The Mids will also be strong on the defensive end as a core unit that allowed just 18 goals last season returns.
Spearheading the charge will be senior captain defenseman Tom Shelly. Shelly has played in 46 games in three years, starting the last 41 outings. He tallied his first career assist last year against Army and was a big reason the Navy defense was one of the best in the league.
Shelly will be joined by a veteran unit that has played in a combined 163 games and 122 starts between four of them.
Seniors Kris Huff and Zach Pleis and junior Will Riordon will flank Shelly, giving Miranda much-needed experience. Huff has started all 49 games in his Navy career, while Pleis and Riordon have started 41 and 22 games, respectively.
"It is such a pleasure as a coach to have experience in the defensive end," said Miranda. "They have been around a long time, starting a lot of games. It is a very competitive, deep group and should be one of the strengths of this team. They know what is expected of them and they go about their job seriously."
GOALKEEPERS:
The last line of defense has historically been a strong point for the Mids, and this year will be no exception.
Junior Thomas Jenkins is the incumbant, returning a year after posting a 1.22 GAA and a .727 save percentage. He recorded two shutouts, including one in his first career start, a 2-0 triumph over league champion American. Throw out a subpar performance against Lafayette (4 GA), his GAA was 0.78 with a save percentage of .800.
"Jenkins has had a good off-season and he is a very hard worker and really wants to improve," said Miranda. "He will get better as he gets more experience. He is a vocal leader that can organize the defense very well."
Jenkins' chief competition will come from junior Evan Barnes. Barnes is a walk-on that excelled in the spring when given the chance. Despite seeing no game action, Barnes figures to push Jenkins for the starting spot.
"Barnes had a fantastic spring, and really showed that he can push for playing time," said Miranda.
"It's the first time in a long time that we feel that we have two very capable goalkeepers."
2006 NAVY MEN'S SOCCER PRESEASON NOTEBOOK:
Miranda Enjoys First-Year Success
Navy head coach Rich Miranda was named the 2005 Patriot League Men's Soccer Coach of the Year after guiding the Mids to a fifth-place finish and an 8-6-2 overall record. It marked the first time in the 15-year Patriot League history that a Navy coach earned the distinction.
Miranda's eight wins were also the most for a men's soccer coach in his first year and the team's 27 goals were the second most for a first-year coach.
Two is the Magic Number
Navy has had quite a bit of success when scoring at least two goals in a game. In 2005, the Mids went 8-0-1 when scoring at least two goals in a game. Since the start of the 1999 season, Navy is 35-0-6 when reaching two goals. Its last loss came in a 6-2 setback to Florida International on Nov. 14, 1998.
The Mids tallied four goals in three different games for the first time since 1995.
Navy reached two goals nine times in 2005. Before last year, it had reached two goals in a game 10 times combined during the last three seasons (four in 2004, once in 2003, five times in 2002).
However, when allowing two goals in a game, Navy is just 6-28-5 since the start of the 1999 season.
Navy Men's Soccer History
Navy is one of the most successful teams in NCAA history, being just one of 11 teams nationally to win 580 games, ranking 10th with 590. Navy is one of 10 teams to have played 1,000 games in its program's history, placing eighth with 1,028. Navy's all-time record stands at 590-321-117.
Navy is also just one of four schools nationally to have three coaches with at least 100 wins at the school. Akron, Penn State and California are the other three.
Offensive Explosion
Navy had an offensive resurgence it hasn't seen in quite some time in 2005. The Mids' 27 goals were the most since the 2000 team scored 29 goals en route to a 9-6-1 record. The team scored just 12 goals in 2004, making the 15-goal jump the largest goal differential in two seasons since the 1993 and 1994 teams scored 19 and 35 goals, respectively, and the fourth largest ever.
Home Sweet Home
Most of Navy's success came at the friendly confines of Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. Navy posted a 5-1-1 overall mark at home, including a 3-0-1 record in league play. The five home wins were the most since 2000 (6) and the .786 winning percentage equals the best mark since 1997.
Also of note, Navy's unbeaten home record in the Patriot League was the program's second all-time. The 1991 team posted a 5-0-0 home mark in the league, Navy's first year in the Patriot League. Last year's three league wins at home is only the third time in school history that Navy has won three league games at home.
Coming Out In Force
Navy not only had success on the field, but also at the ticket gate. The Mids recorded the top average attendance in all home games among Patriot League schools, averaging 646 fans in seven home games. Lehigh was second, averaging 485 fans. The average was also good for the 43rd-best average in the country last year. Of teams that didn't appear in the 2005 NCAA Tournament, Navy was 15th.
Navy also produced two of the top three single-game (all games) attendance figures, drawing 1,319 fans to Glenn Warner Soccer Facility against Army, and 972 fans against Niagara. Only Lafayette's 1,356 fans to see the Leopards play Lehigh drew a larger crowd
The 1,319 fans against Army was the fourth-largest crowd since attendance records started being kept in 1995, the 972 fans against Niagara were the eighth most and the 645 fans against Bucknell was the 10th most.
In Navy's four home Patriot League games, the Mids drew an average of 678 fans, producing two of the top six Patriot League single-game attendance marks.
2005 PATRIOT LEAGUE SINGLE-GAME ATTENDANCE LEADERS
1. Lafayette at Lehigh 1,356
2. Army at Navy 1,319
3. Navy at Lehigh 715
4. Army at Lehigh 691
5. Bucknell at Army 650
6. Bucknell at Navy 645
Shelly to Serve as Team Captain
Senior Tom Shelly will serve as the team's captain in 2006, after recording outstanding seasons in his first three years at Navy.
Shelly helped steer a Navy defense that gave up just 18 goals in 2005, the third fewest in the league. Shelly started all 16 games and has started in 41 of his 46 contests at Navy, including all 33 the past two years. He tallied his first career point, an assist, in the win over Army and had five shots on the season.
More importantly, he served as the back line of a defense that allowed just five teams to score at least two goals in a game and a defense that gave up just 78 shots on goal.
Two NCAA Tournament Teams Appear on Schedule
Navy's 2006 schedule will be a significant upgrade from the one in 2005.
The Mids will play two teams that appeared in the 2005 NCAA Tournament, Lafayette and Virginia Tech. The Hokies were given one of 16 first-round byes and earned the nation's No. 12 seed in the 48-team event last fall.
Also appearing on Navy's schedule is Saint Louis, a team that lost in a shootout of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament title game and is one of the nation's most successful teams ever. Gonzaga also dons the Navy schedule, one year after defeating national powers Santa Clara and Kentucky.
Meanwhile, two teams find themselves in the preseason national top 30 compiled by CollegeSoccerNews.com(.) Virginia Tech and Saint Louis are ranked 25th and 27th, respectively.
In all, Navy's 16 foes combined for a 110-131-39 (.462 winning percentage) record in 2005. Seven of the 16 finished at least .500 and eight won at least eight games last year.
Schneider Named to Freshman 100
Freshman Chris Schneider found himself on a pretty elite list on CollegeSoccerNews.com(.) The freshman was named one of "100 Freshmen to Keep an Eye On in 2006." He is just one of three Patriot League players on the list.
The website had this to say about the 5-9, 155-pound midfielder / defenseman: "Two-time Class 5-A All-State selection (Texas). Played club soccer for the Dallas Solar Soccer Club. Well rounded with great work ethic."
The Broken Road
Even with some road success in 2005, Navy still has a streak to snap.
Navy went 3-5-1 in games away from Glenn Warner Soccer Facility in 2005. In 2004, Navy was 1-8-1 in neutral site and road games.
Following its 4-0 loss at Lafayette to close out the road portion of its Patriot League schedule, Navy enters the year winless in its last 16 games against Patriot League opponents on the road, dating back to a 3-1 victory at Colgate on Oct. 13, 2001. During that span, Navy is 0-14-2.
Navy has also scored just one goal in its last 16 road league games, being shut out 15 times, including seven times in a row. Navy hasn't scored a league road goal since Nov. 8, 2003, a span of 1,021 days (as of the season opener on Aug. 25), and is enduring a shutout streak of 738:29.
# GO NAVY #
