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Show Men's soccer tackles Div. II competition Durick eyes playoffs, stresses academics Jessica Smith Staff Writer The Westminster mens soccer team is working their way toward a national championship, one favored opponent at a time. In order to accomplish the goal the team faces Div. II competition this season, which will make it harder said Head Coach Chris Dorich. Westminster competes in the NAIA as an independent school, and must play a mix of Div. II and III schools. The Griffins recently defeated Div. II Metro State, a team ranked No. 7 nationally. The win is significant in many ways. Playing Div. II schools who have scholarships makes it hard to compete, said Dorich. D-- 2 schools just go after students that can play and dont care about academics. A lack of scholarships at Westminster makes for a different sort of team, said Dorich. Were an academic team, said Dorich. Westminster has many honors students who are not only athletically skilled but also academically. This means that Westminster was able to achieve the status of an soccer team. This status comes from a combination of all the students academic profiles. We did it with 50 players on the team, which made it harder, said Dorich. His love for academics has also helped 43 of his students to achieve the status on their own. The Griffins mens soccer team is one of the largest teams in the Utah, with over 50 students. This would allow the team to fill five separate soccer teams with the maximum of eleven players on the field. Dorich said the large team is due in part because of a desire to maintain solid depth. Its hard because of the LDS students who leave, said Dorich. Like many other college teams within the state, Westminster has to accommodate the two year LDS mission of many players. This means there is a constant fluctuation of players coming on and off the team. Despite this obstacle, Dorich has still been able to create a solid base of players. Westminster has five new freshmen who add to the depth as well. Dorichs main goal for the team this year is for them All-Ameri- can All-Ameri- to make the national playoffs. The format has been changed this year. Playoffs include a 31 team national championship, and there are a few different ways to receive a berth. There are 25 automatic berths for conferences, independents and unaffiliated groups. This would require Westminster to win their region to receive this automatic berth. They could also qualify for one of the five to eight possible berths that remain open for teams who do not win their region but still possess the caliber necessary to participate in nationals. There are 217 schools participating for these 30-3- 5 spots at the national championship. at-lar- ge Dorich has a long history at Westminster. He has been coaching at the school since 1984 and boasts over 200 wins and 14 winning seasons. Last years team had one of the best seasons in college history with a 14-5- -0 record. Between 1990 and 1995 Dorich led the team to six straight ten-plwinning seasons. Assistant coaches Josh Maxfield and Ryan Walcott are now starting their second year coaching at Westminster. They both played for Dorich during their time as students. For a full mens soccer schedule, visit All home games are Dumke Field. played at us f Women's soccer team faces challenge, charges ahead Young team, coaching staff enjoying success Westminsters womens soccer faced adversity, early this season, and the young team responded mightily. Losing starting goalie Kelsey Allen to a knee infilled the position jury, freshman Dayna Winter-Nolt- e and the group has charged ahead to 4-- 3 mark halfway through the 2008 schedule. Head Coach Tony LeBlanc, is in his second year coaching at the college, has worked hard to mold the current team together. LeBlanc, a Westminster alumnus, played for the mens soccer team for four years. Current team member, Senior Katie Conner, has been coached by LeBlanc for the length of the program and said LeBlanc has brought new ideas to womens soccer. Also in her second year, Assistant Coach Taryn Nicolaides has contributed to the team with her impressive history with the sport. Nicolaides played for NCAA Div. I Air Force (2004-200and has a coachand ing personal training background. This season also brought a new addition to the coaching staff in Goalie Coach James Taylor, who focuses on instruction. Winter-Nolt- e is a product of Taylors fundamental training. The dynamics of hav-6) one-on-o- ne Photo courtesy of Westminster College VOLULME XUi: ISSUE 3 6 Continued on Page 7 |