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Show SPORTS B2 SEPTEMBER 2, 2013 Soccer club prepares for transition to Division I UVU sports Clubs are starting with a buzz By Tyson Peterson Reporter tyson peterson@uvu .ed u Showcasing athletic skills does not always have to be reserved only for the NCAA supported schools here at UVU. There are many sports clubs that run much like the sanctioned sports and give the opportunity for many students to display their abilities. Men's soccer is going to be one new sport that is NCAA sanctioned here at UVU, starting in 2014. However, the team will still participate this year and is looking for soccer lovers to participate. For all those interested in trying out, the club is holding training sessions on Sept. 3, 5, 10, 11 and 12 from 5:30-8:30p.m. at the McKay Education Eas t Their first game will be Sept. 14 at 10 a.m. against Weber State. In conjunction with the training sessions, head coach Greg Maas and assistant coach Matt Ellinger are sending recruits to the soccer club, which is making Nick Adams, the club's president, excited about the club's chances of a successful year. GOLF FROM 81 leader, he's the one that can get the guys pumped up and ready to go," Curran said. "A lot of the upperclassmen are leaders though. This will be my first year as head coach with more of a veteran team. These guys are leaders in different ways — on the golf course, in the classroom, verbally, and being there for the guys." Sophomore Corey Eccles returns after posting a 74.79 scoring average last year, the best average of any of the players on this year's team. "Corey isn't a real verbal leader, but a leader by example," Curran said. "He just goes out and plays good golf." Following Eccles on the list of returners from last year's squad in terms of scoring average are junior Michael Dart who finished with an average of 75.00 and Stratton Schulz at 75.04. The Wolverines "Because we are now an NCAA team, not all soccer athletes will get to play for our collegiate team," Maas continued. "So, we are sending a lot of names in front of Nick Adams, so that these students will have a way to be involved in soccer at UVU." Soccer is not the only club that gets buzz around the school. The Football Club is also starting up and there are more hopes of another successful season. The Football Club begins play on Sept.7 and games are Saturdays at Lakeridge Junior High School or Orem Elementary. For their first game, UVU will be taking on The Darkness at 1 PM at Orem Elementary. The team does have some returning players and are looking to make a splash in the Utah Tackle Football League. The Men's Volleyball Club will also be having a tournament Sept. 7 on the Intramural Grass fields. The Men's Lacrosse Club will be holding tryouts Sept. 4 from 6-9 p.m. on the McKay Education Grass fields, and for all Clubs, club rush will be Sept. 11-12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Courtyard. Club rush representatives from UVU Clubs will be out actively recruiting and informing students about what their club does. 66 We want our collegiate team and the soccer club to work together to create a win-win situation for soccer as a whole at UVU. GREG MAAS Head coach PP "We want our players to train with the club members this fall," explained Maas. "The biggest question is how to be compliant. We don't want to jeopardize any of our collegiate players by not following the rules. We want our collegiate team and the soccer club to work together to create a win-win situation for soccer as a whole at UVU." Sadly, not everyone can be on the team and with limited spots, only the best available will be able to wear the uniform. However, you do not need to wear the uniform to be involved in soccer. start the season in Victor, Idaho with the Battle in the Tetons on Sept. 2-3. "We've had success there," Curran said. "Two years ago we won the tournament and last year we finished third and actually should've been second if not for a score card violation. There are certain golf courses that just fit your team's eye and this is one of them." Familiarity with specific courses and various opponents the Wolverines are scheduled to face also gives this veteran squad an advantage. "We beat all of the current WAC members at some point in the season last year," Curran said. "We feel like we're going to have a good shot to go down and win [the conference championship] in order to move on to regionals as a team, which would be the first time." From Sept. 9-10 the Wolverines will be in Pullman, Wash. for the Itani Quality Homes Collegiate. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE GLOBE Parker Brown, Cole Moreley and the UVU soccer club battle for the ball against SLCC. PHOTO COURTESY OF SHANE TRUSKOLASID Preston Richards and the Wolverines hope to make history by qualifying for regionals this season. UVU alumni days FAMILY FUN FAIR SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 28 FROM 8 AM - 1 PM UVU CAMPUS LOTS L9, L10, 950 WEST 800 SOUTH, OREM E AD MIS MISSION N (WEST OF THE MCKAY EDUCATION BUILDING) PHOTO COURTESY OF LA GENERACION DE MALAGA Ryan Toolson was signed the day after his team's season ended by Unicaja Malaga. STARDOM FROM 81 university and we are a four-year school and we're not a junior college anymore like before when we could've transferred after a year or two to another school. That's just what he said, that he wanted me to stay and he was going to make that happen. Though Toolson wasn't thrilled with the decision to deny his request, he focused on what he could control. He began to dedicate as much of his time as he possibly could to his craft, and as a result his confidence grew. "Going into my junior year I never thought that a professional basketball career was in the cards," said Toolson. "I think I finished the season averaging 22 or 23 points a game and agents started getting a hold of coach Hunsaker and asking about me so coach kind of put that in my mind and it continued over my senior year." Once the realization settled in that he had an opportunity to play at the highest level, Toolson began to talk to his uncle, who happens to be the current President of Basketball Operations for the Boston Celtics, Danny Ainge, about playing professionally and selecting an agent after his senior year. "We kind of narrowed it down, me and him, then I chose the agent that I still have now and he just said okay I'm going to go to work," said Toolson. "I went and worked out with the Lakers, the Sacramento Kings, the Phoenix Suns and the Utah Jazz. It was a fun experience. I did really well with the Sacramento Kings and with the Jazz and so they said they'd be interested in me possibly doing another workout with them." Though the additional workouts never came to fruition and Toolson watched as the draft came and passed without his name being called, he wowed Sacramento enough to receive an invite to play on their summer league team. "I kind of had the bad luck of having them drafting Tyreke Evans," said Toolson. "They originally wanted to put [Evans] at point guard and then they wanted to see how he would do at shooting guard, so he kind of took all of the shooting guards' minutes. I was kind of left at the end of the bench and as soon as that happened my agent just started looking overseas and the best offer was in Turkey. That was my first year — I went to Turkey." Toolson was happy to land on a team that allowed him much of the same offensive freedom he enjoyed while at UVU, but financially it was not the best offer on the table. Yet Toolson once again impressed and continued his climb up the European ranks after being signed to play in Italy. Gran Canaria of the Spanish League came calling next, where Toolson experienced his latest success. Playing alongside former Utah State star Spencer Nelson, Toolson led the team in scoring at 14.3 points per game and propelled his team all the way to the Spanish League semifinals, a first in the club's history. "The day after our last game in the semifinals a team from Spain made an offer and it was a great offer. It was from a Euro League team, which is the top league in all of Europe — the best league in the world that isn't the NBA." Toolson signed with Unicaja Malaga of Spain and will compete in the same group as reigning Euro League champion Olympiacos during the upcoming season. He received a one-year contract this summer with the option for a second year. Arriving at Europe' top league and creating a prosperous financial situation for his family were among his hopes when he began playing overseas. Now he hopes to remain at Europe's top level and compete for a championship. He's already proved his doubters wrong but that doesn't mean he's content with his current legacy. "Off the top of my head my goals would just be to stick in the Euro League," said Toolson. "It's very hard. You have to be a great player. Not only great, but consistently great. You can't have a lot of ups and downs. I think my goal is to go all the way. I want to make it to the finals and maybe even win it." ilLei] IN :II L'4 11 :7±1UP uvualumni.org/colormerad Proceeds support student scholarships Register at Use promo code "UVU" for a discount on 5k registration FREE PANCAKE BREAKFAST WITH UVID CARD CULINARY ARTS EXHIBMON • GREEN MAN GROUP • BOUNCE HOUSES UVU PERFORMING GROUPS • ALUMNI REUNIONS CHILDREN BICYCLE RODEO AND SAFETY CLINIC uvualumni.org/alumnidays uvu ALUMNI |