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Young 'Hawks Aim To Fly High in 2009
Last season's Red Hawk men's soccer team had no shortage of senior leadership, as five starters were lost to graduation. This year will be a much different story. The team does not have a single senior on the roster and because of that, they will rely heavily on the sophomore and junior classes, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.
"Our youth is a positive, as a lot of sophomores and juniors have already seen significant playing time in the past year or two. They'll just have to gel with the incoming players so that the team will function right away," head coach Lance Gordon said.
Gordon, who is in his first season as the head coach of the men's soccer program, appears excited about the potential and opportunity to improve on last season's season record of 3-14-1.
"I am stoked about becoming the head coach of the Red Hawks. Ripon has always been a school with a proud tradition both academically and athletically," said Gordon. "I'm proud to be associated with Ripon College and the men's soccer program and hopefully I can instill the same great feelings in the players."
Gordon hopes his coaching style will also rub off on his players, who should be prepared for some stiff competition for playing time throughout the season.
"I'm looking for intensity. If there's a ball in the air, there better be one of our players higher, faster and quicker to it than the other guy, otherwise, you can't win in this sport. In order to do that, we have to be more intense in practice," said Gordon. "I expect our practices to be like games and our games to be like showcases. If we play like we want it the most, then we're going to start to see some success."
One noticeable difference in this year's team, aside from a new head coach, will be a new formation that Coach Gordon hopes will allow the team to become more successful.
"The formations will change from last year to something the players will be a little more comfortable with. They'll know what they have to do and where they're supposed to go and everyone will be more comfortable with what they're doing and what their role is," said Gordon. "I'm going to set some specific spots for the guys to play and try to build from that."
Gordon's coaching style tends to promote offensive play, which should help Ripon's top returning goal scorer, Marco Rhein (Omro, Wis./Berlin), become even more successful. The sophomore found the net five times a year ago, which tied him for the team lead, while starting 15 games and appearing in all 18.
"Since there are no seniors on the team, we are expecting some leadership to come from Rhein, as well as Bob Bradbury," Gordon said.
Bradbury (Oregon, Wis./Oregon) is the leading candidate to start at goalkeeper after missing all of last season due to injury. As a freshman in 2007, Bradbury saved 82 shots, while starting 11 games.
Also battling for playing time between the pipes will be sophomore Ryan Crane (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) and junior Joe Bushman (Sturgeon Bay, Wis./Sturgeon Bay). Crane recorded 60 saves last season, filling in for the injured Bradbury.
"Crane gained a lot of experience as a freshman and Bushman gives us some added depth because he can also play in the field," Gordon said.
Helping the goalkeepers on the defensive side of the field will be sophomores Addison Ransom (Fond du Lac, Wis./Fond du Lac) and Jayson Krause (Spring Grove, Ill./Richmond-Burton) and junior Zach Hershoff (New Berlin, Wis./Eisenhower). Krause played in every game last season, while Ransom and Hershoff missed just one apiece, combining for two goals and one assist.
"Ransom is a shutdown player, while Hershoff is also a solid defensive presence," said Gordon. "Krause will likely see a lot of time again this year."
On the offensive side of the ball, juniors Kevin Cedarholm (New Berlin, Wis./Eisenhower) and Avery Johnson (Minneapolis, Minn.) will combine with sophomore Kyle Wolff (Cheyenne, Wyo./Cheyenne Central) to give the team a spark. Cedarholm has tallied four goals and two assists in his two years with the team.
"Cedarholm will return at the forward position, with Johnson seeing a lot more playing time at the outside midfield spot with Wolff getting some opportunities to succeed as well," Gordon said.
Also seeing an increase in playing time will be defender Jim Kulas (West Allis, Wis./Pius XI), forward Justin Gawlik (Waterford, Wis./Waterford) and midfielder Jordan Resop (Berlin, Wis./Berlin). Fellow sophomores Derek Puckett (Appleton, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) and Alex Tande (Waunakee, Wis./Waunakee) will also push for some playing time after each sat out last season with an injury.
Joining the returning players will be a slew of freshmen and transfers, all of which could make an impact on the success of the team in one way or another. In all, there will be nine new faces on the Red Hawks this season.
"The incoming freshmen and transfer players are all very talented and have all received and experienced many awards and accomplishments at the high school level. Hopefully, that will transition nicely into the college game," Gordon said.
Gordon hopes to instill new life and energy into a program that hasn't won a Midwest Conference title since 2000, which was the last of four consecutive conference championships for the Red Hawks. Starting with this season, Gordon has a vision to recapture that glory of the late 90's
"We're definitely looking to improve on last season and the talent level to win right away is here. Being so young, the experience we get this year will definitely help us this season and in the years to come," said Gordon. "We're set up to have a long winning tradition in the future and return the Ripon men's soccer program to prominence."
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