Aug. 12, 2008
Lobos Enter Training Camp Ranked No. 19 in the Nation
Olympic Sports Pass Season Ticket Information
American Cancer Society and Lobo Soccer to Team Up for Notre Dame Exhibition
Familiar territory…that is exactly where the University of New Mexico men’s soccer team finds itself going into the 2008 season. For the third year in a row, the Lobos are tabbed as one of the top teams in college soccer, owning the highest winning percentage in the nation since the start of the 2004 campaign. New Mexico has won almost 80% of its games with a 61-12-10 mark over the last four years. The Lobos are again the coaches’ pick to win their fifth straight Mountain Pacific Sports Federation title. However, UNM has not made it past the second round of the NCAA Tournament in either of the previous two seasons. The difference in 2008 is that the Lobos will field their deepest and most experienced squad since their 2005 College Cup finalist team.
“Each of the last two years we have begun the season with high expectations, but with a group of young players on the field,” stated head coach Jeremy Fishbein. “This year there are no excuses. It is not about youth anymore. We have a very talented group of players who have been in big games and know what it takes to win at the highest level. It is a cohesive unit with great leadership and I expect us to be one of the top teams in college soccer this year.”
New Mexico returns eight starters and five of its top six scorers. The Lobo roster also boasts nine upperclassmen who will be counted on for production in the upcoming season. Leading the returners is 2007 MPSF Player of the Year Chris Wright. Wright, a 6-5 senior, has led the team in scoring each of the last two seasons. He was the league leader in points last year with 12 goals and four assists. The senior class also consists of two-year starters Jack Smithson (2G, 4A) and Mike Porter (1G, 1A). Smithson is two-time all-conference performer in the midfield, while Porter was a second-team All-MPSF honoree in 2006.
Senior Chris Wright, the 2007 MPSF Player of the Year, led the team in scoring with 12 goals and 4 assists last season. |
Also returning are All-Far West Region defenders Simon Ejdemyr (4G) and Zach Tierney (1A) and the team’s second leading scorer Justin Davis (5G, 3A). Ejdemyr, a 6-5 defensive stopper, has twice been named to the All-MPSF first team, while Tierney was on the All-MPSF first team last season. Those three, along with P.J. Wilson (5G), Stephen Brown (1G, 3A) and transfer Euan Holden make a strong junior class.
Six sophomores saw action in 2007, including keeper Eric Staver, defenders Ryan Farquharson (1G, 1A) and Andrew Parsons and midfielders Michael Reed (2A), Dominique Romero (1A) and James Urbany (1G). Keeper Justin Fite, who is in his third season with the program, and David Murphy, who transferred to UNM, round out the Lobos’ sophomore class.
“Up the middle we are pretty solid with our returning players,” added Fishbein. “Tierney and Ejdemyr make up one of the best central defensive tandems in the nation. The midfield is very talented and I think our attacking players are as good as any in the country.”
The Lobo freshmen make up the 22nd-ranked recruiting class according to CollegeSoccerNews.com. Topping the list of newcomers are midfielder Michael Green and goalkeeper Victor Rodriguez. Both players earned NSCAA High School All-American honors last season. Green was recently named to the U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team for the 2008 Milk Cup in Northern Ireland. Lance Rozeboom began his collegiate career in January after graduating early from Xavier High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Five other high school players will join the Lobo program in the fall, including Travis Campbell, Justin Holmes, Seth Neben, Masashi Shibuya and Gary Weisbaum. Campbell is a 5-9 defender from Phoenix, Ariz. Holmes is the 2007 Northern Indiana Soccer Player of the Year from Elkhart Central High School in Elkhart, Ind. Neben is a 2008 Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year performer from Lincoln, Neb. Shibuya is a two-time adidas ESP participant. Weisbaum is a two-time all-state player from Pikesville High School in Pikesville, Md.
Senior Jack Smithson is a two-time All-MPSF player and a two-year starter for the Lobos. |
The college soccer world is taking notice of the Lobos’ 2008 squad. Along with their top-25 recruiting class ranking, The Lobos were ranked 19th in the CollegeSoccerNews.com preseason top-30. It is the fifth year in a row the Lobos have been tabbed as a top-25 team. UNM has been ranked in the top-30 each week since the start of the 2004 season, a streak of 52 consecutive weeks.
New Mexico will be able to test the preseason prognosticators with another challenging schedule. The Lobos will play a 19-game slate, plus a preseason exhibition match against perennial top-10 power Notre Dame. New Mexico has 10 games in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation and nine non-conference opponents on its plate. The Lobos will host 10 matches at the UNM Soccer Complex this fall, with all five of their non-conference home opponents coming off winning seasons in 2007. New Mexico’s schedule also includes five matches against teams that went to the NCAA Tournament last season.
“We are very excited about our schedule again this season,” stated Fishbein. “We have some very talented teams coming to Albuquerque and some challenging road matches that will help our RPI. I also expect our league to be as good as it has been since I have been here, so we have some tough competition ahead of us.”
UNM opens the season on August 20 with a home exhibition match against No. 3 Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish went 14-5-5 in 2007 and advanced to the NCAA Final Eight. Notre Dame lost at eventual champion Wake Forest in overtime in the quarterfinals last season. The Irish and Lobos also met in an exhibition match last year in Fort Wayne, Ind. The regular season begins on the road for the Lobos at the Loyola Marymount Tournament with matches against San Diego and LMU. The home opener is set for September 5 against Michigan State in the TLC Plumbing & Utility Invitational. The Spartans were 11-6-4 last season, including an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. UNM will also face No. 21 Louisville in the opening home weekend. The Lobos take on the Cardinals, ranked No. 25 in last year’s final Soccer Times poll, on Sept. 7. Louisville is coming off an 11-7-4 campaign and a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
New Mexico continues home action the following weekend, welcoming No. 12 Akron to the NIKE Invitational on Sept. 12. The Zips posted a 15-3-2 mark last season, including a 3-1 win over New Mexico in the Westfield Cup in Akron, Ohio. Akron also advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2007. UNM next faces Cal Poly on Sept. 14. The Mustangs went 11-4-4 last season, finishing third in the Big West at 6-2-4.
The Lobos head to the Husky Invitational on Sept. 19-21 to face Portland and Washington. UNM begins MPSF action on October 3 at Denver. The Lobos needed a 0-0 draw on the final game of the season at Denver to clinch the MPSF title last year. After a 10-4-4 mark last year, the Pioneers will be the toughest competition UNM will face while trying to win their fifth straight league title. The Lobos visit Air Force, host San Jose State and Sacramento State and travel to UNLV in the first half of league play.
Senior Mike Porter is a two-year starter and a 2006 2nd Team All-MPSF selection. |
New Mexico welcomes PAC-10 foe Stanford on Oct. 24, splitting the two halves of their MPSF season. The Cardinal posted a 7-6-5 mark last season, and is expected to be one of the top teams in the West Region in 2007. The Lobos will host UNLV, Air Force and Denver and travel to Sacramento State and San Jose State in the second half of league play. The home finale is set for November 16 against the Pioneers.
Fishbein and his staff have retooled and reloaded the 2008 New Mexico men’s soccer squad and the talent is there for another strong season. New Mexico will be looking for its fifth consecutive MPSF title, but will have a tough road ahead. Despite dominating the MPSF over the last four years, UNM has needed a win or tie in the final game in each of the last three seasons to clinch the league crown.
“We certainly moved forward last season, winning our fourth MPSF title in a row and the sixth in the last seven years,” stated Fishbein. “However, we need to continue to make strides in the NCAA Tournament. We have only dropped a first round game once in six trips, but we need to make a deep run on a consistent basis to be among the nation’s elite. I think this team has the experience and the talent needed to answer that challenge.”
Be sure to check back to GoLobos.com on Wednesday, Aug. 13 for a look at the Lobos’ goalkeeper position.