2009 Men's Soccer Outlook

A new field, new players and a new attitude give Guilford College men’s soccer coach Jeff Bateson cause for optimism as he starts his fourth season on the Quakers’ sidelines. The Crimson and Gray has five starters among 14 letter winners returning from the 2008 club that went 4-12-1, 3-6-1 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Guilford will miss three all-conference selections from last year’s side, but welcomes back a solid nucleus of students who have bought into Bateson’s team-oriented coaching style.

With the summer installation of a Field Turf artificial surface on the Armfield Athletic Center, the Quakers will move their home matches from the natural grass Haworth Field on the outskirts of campus into the lighted Armfield Center. Armfield is more centrally located and allows for evening contests and practices. The excitement created by these changes adds energy to the Quakers’ tight-knit group. Bateson believes the team’s chemistry will play a significant role in its success this season.

“The strength of the team right now is that it understands team chemistry is a huge part of what we want to do,” Bateson said. “They had very good spring practices, especially in regards to team chemistry. The guys really enjoy playing and practicing together.”

Team chemistry is only one of the potential strengths entering this season. Bateson also sees his young roster, which boasts only four juniors and four seniors, as a positive for the 2009 campaign. While the veterans offer some college playing experience and insight into necessary improvements, the younger players possess an unbridled desire to go out and play hard. The newcomers’ ability to approach every game with a winner’s mentality could be just what the Quakers need to restore the program.

However, the young roster could serve as a double-edged sword. While Guilford’s inexperience could foster a winning attitude, Bateson also sees it as his team’s greatest challenge.

“Our main weakness is we’re going to be young and new,” Bateson said. “We’re going to have upwards of two-thirds of our roster as first or second-year players. We have a few transfers coming in, but two of those transfers haven’t played college soccer before. We’re going to have to re-learn all of the defending parts, which I wanted to do anyway because we’ve given up way too many goals the last three years.”

This season, Guilford will look to sophomore Jordan Alexander for offensive leadership. The starting midfielder led the Quakers in 2008 with eight goals and one assist for 17 points. Another important piece of the Guilford puzzle is sophomore goalkeeper Peter Truitt. Truitt compiled a 2.71 goals against average and a .700 saves percentage a year ago. He also finished the 2008 campaign ranked second in saves per game (5.6) in the ODAC with 84 saves in 15 games.

The veterans and newcomers will make the transition from grass to artificial turf in 2009. During the summer, a new Field Turf field was installed in Armfield Athletic Center, which will be shared by the Quakers’ football, soccer and lacrosse teams. Bateson is excited about the transition.

“I think it’s a great move,” Bateson said. “The players are excited about it. Not just to be on turf field, but to play in Armfield playing in a better atmosphere and getting a chance to play a lot of night games. Training is going to be better because the turf has no bumps or holes, or long grass or short grass. So the training should pick up quite a bit.”

Despite winning only nine games over the past two seasons, Bateson is optimistic about the 2009 campaign. While there are few established standouts, the team is more concerned with working together and winning, rather than who gets the credit. Senior captains Henry Cordeal, Jeff Floyd and Sam Huff will provide vital leadership by example and encouraging team play.

This season’s schedule is the fullest in Bateson’s career with the Quakers, featuring three preseason scrimmages, a 20-game regular-season slate and possible postseason play. In addition to a consistently strong league slate, Guilford hosts the Guilford College Soccer Classic Sept. 4-5 featuring the talents of Methodist University, Milligan College and Gallaudet University. The Quakers will also participate in Hampden-Sydney College’s Tiger Invitational against Marymount University and Wesley College.