SELINSGROVE, Pa. - After losing six of seven matches at midseason last year, including three by shutout, the Susquehanna University men's soccer team could have thrown in the towel on the 1999 season.
However, a strong finish that included victories in five of the last six matches, including four straight Commonwealth Conference triumphs, propelled the Crusaders to their first winning record since 1993 and a third-place finish in the always-challenging Commonwealth Conference, behind only conference and national powerhouses Elizabethtown and Messiah.
With 12 letterwinners returning from last season, third-year head coach Jim Findlay believes that his Crusader squad could be ready to provide a more serious threat to some of the region’s traditional soccer powers. Last year, the Crusaders were outscored 21-1 in losses to Gettysburg, Elizabethtown, Messiah, Wilkes and Scranton.
“We are looking toward building on last year’s strong finish,” said Findlay. “The team has a good work ethic and a good positive attitude.”
This year’s slate features the season-opening Ursinus Invitational on September 2-3, followed by a grueling stretch that sees the Crusaders face Gettysburg, Elizabethtown and Messiah over a span of 15 days for the second year in a row.
While Findlay’s team will graduate a pair of first-team conference All-Stars in forward Chris Yearicks (a three-time selection) and midfielder/back Josh Steffen, the team has some talent ready to step in and take a leadership role.
The Crusaders will look toward their senior co-captains — forward Sal Saladino (Hughesville, Pa./Hughesville H.S.) and defender Jamie Kahler (Newport, R.I./Rogers H.S.) to lead them in the Commonwealth Conference. Saladino started 13 games last season and netted three goals with one assist for seven points, while Kahler appeared in 13 matches with three starts from his defensive position.
Susquehanna also returns its leading scorer from last year in junior forward Aaron Littzi (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Valley West H.S.), who led the team with eight goals and four assists for 20 points. Littzi has 18 goals and ten assists for a total of 46 points in his Crusader career, and has been named a conference second-team All-Star pick twice in his career. He finished third in the Commonwealth in scoring last season and fourth in goals per game with 0.57.
“Aaron has been slowed a little bit by a slight shoulder injury that he suffered in camp,” noted Findlay. “However, I fully expect him to be ready for the start of the season.”
In the midfield, the Crusaders are led by a pair of two-year letterwinners in juniors Luis Salgado (Neptune, N.J./Neptune H.S.) and Beau Heeps (Allentown, Pa./Parkland H.S.), both of whom are expected to help lead the offensive attack for the Crusaders. Heeps finished last season with four goals and four assists for 12 points to rank second on the squad, while Salgado chipped in with a pair of goals while appearing in all 17 games.
Senior Nick Hoffman (Boiling Springs, Pa./Boiling Springs H.S.) earns the nod at left midfield after notching a goal in 17 matches last year. He will play opposite senior Bill Cleary (Chester Springs, Pa./Bishop Shanahan), who made three starts and picked up one assist last fall.
On the defensive side, junior sweeper Brad Levine (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah H.S) and junior defender Mark Wells (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland H.S.) will help win balls and shore up the defensive line for the Crusaders. Last year, Susquehanna allowed 2.22 goals per game, but those numbers were skewed slightly by a pair of 6-0 losses to Gettysburg and Messiah. Excluding those matches, the Crusaders put together a solid 1.72 goals against average as a team last season.
Findlay has high hopes for freshman defender Dennis Hogan (Lake Elmo, Minn/Stillwater Area H.S.), whom he feels can step in and contribute from the start of the season. He will be partner with Kahler as marking backs.
Susquehanna lost the skills of senior John Steigerwald between the pipes to graduation. Junior goalkeeper Patrick Quillian (Oklahoma City, Okla/Casady H.S.), who saw action in five games last year, will start the season in goal. Quillian had a 80.7 save percentage last season as he stopped 46 of 57 shots on goal. His season highlight was earning the victory in the Crusaders’ 2-1 overtime win at Lycoming on September 11.
The battle for the spot behind Quillian is between junior Pat Lyons (Trumansburg, N.Y./Charles O. Dickerson H.S.) and 6-4 frosh Ryan Murray (New Hope, Pa./Pennington School).
One factor that may give the Crusaders’ postseason hopes a boost is the fact that due to the reorganization of the Middle Atlantic Conference due to NCAA Division III automatic qualifier requirements, the Commonwealth Conference will conduct a four-team tournament to determine its NCAA qualifier.
In previous years, only the top two finishers in the conference earned a berth in the MAC tournament. Now, with four teams advancing to postseason play in 2000, a duplication of last year’s third-place finish would place the Crusaders in the postseason for the first time in program history.
But, playoffs or not, Findlay expects this team to finish this season possibly either tying or breaking the school record for wins, helping them get the program’s first ever playoff berth. The program has been in existence since 1959, and is looking forward to getting their second century off to a good start.
