Above: Warriors senior Joey Stryker

Season Preview: 2005-2006 Warriors Soccer

After a third straight CCS appearance, the boys program graduated 8 seniors!  This off-season was a very busy one for the Valley Christian soccer program, and the 05-06 season is shaping up to be exciting as well.

Off-season

Several exciting things happened this off-season, here are the highlights:

• Valley Christian Schools struck a deal with the San Jose Earthquakes to host 5 reserve league games. These games brought several of Major League Soccer's best players up to the VC campus. The 'Quakes selected VC over many potential sites, and the games went flawlessly. A few of the games had crowds of over 400 people.  Brian Ching, Preki, and Eddie Johnson played on the same pitch the VC players do!

• Soccer camps!  Head Coach Aleks Vranicic held the Valley Christian Soccer camp in June. His camp was very successful. Asst. Coach, John Basanese (Along with several Earthquakes players) was an instructor at two Mulrooney Soccer Academy camps...both held up at Valley Christian. Close to 100 kids attended these camps.

• Soccer net!  An extremely tall net has been installed behind the far goal on the VC soccer field. This should prevent any ball from going into the neighbor's yard, saving us lots of balls and money!

Next Season

The team returns 12 players from last year's CCS team. Of the 12 remaining players, there will be 9 Seniors this year along with 3 Juniors. A strong JV team from last year will send up players to fill the rest of this years team.  Here are some brief previews for our returning players, in alphabetical order:

Jeffrey Coggan, MF #10: One of the top players in CCS returns for his senior season. After an off-season of top flight tournaments with his club team, Jeff will look to lead the team back to the playoffs and add to his 20 goals and 21 assists. Jeff was a First Team All WCAL, and Second Team All CCS player last season.

John Field, MF #8: John will enter his Junior year at VC.  A highly regarded left footed player, much will be expected of him this season.

Nathan Goldsmith, MF #9: Coming off a year-long knee injury last season, Nathan seems ready to make an impact in his Junior season. Good size and athleticism make him an interesting option at forward as well.

Ben Hansen, GK #22: Widely regarded as one of CCS's top goalies, Ben will look to finish off his VC career well. Already the owner of all significant VC goalkeeping records, Ben will look to add another successful season to his career that already boasts two All WCAL 2nd team selections.

Austin Keeling, MF #4: Coming off a strong Junior season, the coaching staff is looking for big things from Austin. Placed in a playmaker role with Coggan, Keeling will look to setup the forwards. His incredible field vision, and great touch will prove important in the season.

Ross Mark, MF #17: A year after his selection to the varsity side, Ross seems poised to have a strong year. The coaching staff will be looking for Ross to figure into the lineup either as a starter or coming off the bench.

Chris McElhatton, D #18: A year ago Chris had the luxury of being a relative unknown...After last year, having one of the more surprisingly strong years in recent history, the expectations are high. Chris is a natural leader who will use his top notch fitness, and improved ball skills to anchor the VC defense.

Brad McLaughlin, GK/D #16: Entering his senior year, Brad will hold down the starting GK spot for Hansen while he plays football. A proven versatile player and hard worker, Brad will likely figure into the VC plans at defense once Ben Hansen has returned.

David Nettemeyer, D #21: David is entering his senior year with high expectations. The 6'6" defender is vital to the VC defense. His ability to get his head on the ball keeps many dangerous crosses from ever reaching their destination. David started all year last season as a Junior, and will see more of the same this year.

Peter Osuna, M #13: Peter is one of the pivotal players for this season's team. A proven outside midfielder, his fitness and ball skill will help him excel this year. Osuna will remain in the starting role he filled last season with increased responsibility.

Joey Stryker, F #3: Perhaps one of VC's most underrated players (along with Keeling), Stryker will look to have a breakout season on the score sheet. The team will rely on Joey to get forward and score goals in an offense that lost two forwards. After being selected to last season's 2nd Team All WCAL, the expectations will be high.

David Zvolanek, M/F #20: David will be entering his third season with the VC varsity. A spot player in the past, the team will rely David's experience this season. The coaching staff is looking for him to play a lot, if not start on this year's team.

Incoming players: In addition to the players listed above, there are several players who played on the JV team last year who look ready to play on Varsity.  The team should be getting a large crop of strong sophomores.

Coach's comments:

VC Soccer coach Donny Fugate had this to say about the upcoming season. "We will have at least nine seniors this year. We are very light up top, but we can develop forwards. I like the core of our side, we should be the type of team that works for each other this year. More than in years past, we have some kids with great attitudes, and ultimately I think that will fuel our success.  I'm expecting another strong year this season."

General Notes:

• Thanks to a generous donation, the team will have new Adidas balls for next season.

• Several representatives from the San Jose Earthquakes will visit VC training sessions next season to answer questions and hang out with the team.

• New Sky Blue scrimmage vests have been donated to the team.

• The VC boys varsity team will play at least one game under the lights, and have some training sessions at night.

• Some games during our upcoming season will be recorded and broadcasted (radio) by Coach McElhatton's TV department.

• Video highlights/goals will be posted on the web for download.

Goodbye to Coach McElhatton:

The Valley Christian soccer program is saying 'goodbye' to Coach McElhatton who is unable to coach next season.

Varsity coach John Basanese had this to say: "Coach McElhatton has been of great value to this program.  We have seen great strides in our JV team and we will reap the benefits of his work as early as this coming season.  While we are sad to say goodbye to a great coach, we recognize that he has exciting opportunities as a teacher at the school. I think I speak for everyone involved in saying Thank you Coach Mac!"

The good news is that coach McElhatton will still be involved in the program.  He will record our games and help us realize our media goals within the program.

Stay tuned to the website for more updates as the season approaches! Also the website will continue to cover the progress of our Alumni playing in college!

www.vcsoccer.com