Trinity Men's Soccer Records Best Season of The New Millennium
Hartford, Conn., June 19, 2009 - The Trinity College men's soccer team, coached by Michael Pilger, finished the 2008 season with its best record since 1999 at 11-5 (2nd most wins in program history) and its best-ever conference mark at 5-4. The Bantams came in third place in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) for its best-ever conference finish, earned both its second consecutive NESCAC Championship Tournament appearance and its first-ever league tournament home game, and downed Tufts, 2-0, for its first-ever NESCAC Tournament triumph and its first post-season victory in nine years. Trinity lost, 1-0, in the NESCAC semifinals to Amherst.
Senior goalkeeper Zac Trudeau (Norwell, Mass.) started every game and finished with 97 saves (2nd in NESCAC) for an .874 save percentage (1st in NESCAC, 10th in nation), 14 goals allowed for a 0.87 GAA (4th in NESCAC) with six shutouts in 1455 minutes. He was named as the NESCAC Player of the Week once this season. In his fine career, Trudeau totaled 227 saves and 50 goals allowed in 47 games and 3,390 minutes for an .819 save percentage and a 1.33 GAA with a 16-19 record and eight shutouts.
Trinity finished second NESCAC in scoring this fall with 2.19 goals per game (35). Junior forward Sam Wisner (Wayland, Mass.) starting every game in his first year as a Bantam, after transferring to Trinity from Hobart, and led the Bantams in scoring with eight goals (tied for team lead, 5th in NESCAC) and a team-high eight assists (1st in NESCAC) for 24 points (2nd in NESCAC) in 15 games (15 starts). Wisner was named as the NESCAC Player of the Week once this season. Senior forward Nick Cantone (New York, N.Y.) tied Wisner for most goals on the squad with eight (7th in NESCAC in goals per game, two gamewinners) to go with seven assists (T2nd on team, T4th in NESCAC) for 23 points (2nd on team, 3rd in NESCAC), while freshman forward Dan Mayernick (Gladwyne, Pa.) had seven goals (3rd on team, 10th in NESCAC) and two assist for 16 points (3rd on team), and sophomore midfielder Peter Marlette (Buffalo, N.Y.) notched three goals (two gamewinners) and seven assists (T2nd on team, T4th in NESCAC) for 13 points. All three played in every game, while Cantone started all 16 contests, Mayernick started 11 games, and Marlette started 10 games. Cantone finishes his fine career with 12 goals and 11 assists for 35 points in 51 games.
Senior tri-captain midfielder Michael Van Beuren (Spring City, Pa.) totaled a goal and six assists (6th in NESCAC) in 15 games (15 starts), while senior tri-captain midfielder Dan Kupper (Wethersfield, Conn.) started every game and tallied a goal and two assists, and junior midfielder Chris Doran (Wayland, Mass.) registered a goal and an assist in 15 games (10 starts). Van Beuren closes his fine career at Trinity with five goals (four gamewinners) and 11 assists in 55 games, while Kupper completes his collegiate career with three goals (two gamewinners) and four assists in 54 games.
On defense, senior tri-captain Phil Yeager (Hinsdale, Ill.) started all 16 games, while junior Jason Kulik (Norwell, Mass.) played in every game with 15 starts, and junior John Graves (Cincinnati, Ohio) and sophomore Doug Stupay (McLean, Va.) each played in 15 games (15 starts). Graves, who often shifted to midfield, contributed a pair of goals on the offensive end, while Kulik recorded a pair of assists. Freshmen Michael Galluzzo (Meriden, Conn.) and Connor Reilly (Trumbull, Conn.) each made an immediate impact as rookie backs, appearing in all 16 games and 14 games, respectively, with two starts apiece. Trinity men's soccer's representative on the NESCAC All-Sportsmanship Team, Yeager played in 49 games in four years.
Coach Pilger took advantage of his depth by using 17 different field players in nine games or more. Senior back Nick Allen (Seattle, Wash.) and senior forward Brice Vallieres (Utica, N.Y.) each played in nine games, while junior forward Adam Lanza (Glen Cove, N.Y.) had a goal and an assist in 16 games (one start), and sophomore forward Jamie Paterson (Alpine, N.J.) scored twice in 10 games (one start). Allen played 38 games with one assist and Vallieres played in 33 games with four goals and one assist in their respective careers. Senior midfielder Nick Clement (Granby, Conn.), who played in six games this fall, completes his collegiate career with one goal in 22 games, and senior back Roland Grant (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) made eight appearances during his injury-plagued career as a Bantam.
Trinity players collected numerous post-season awards in 2008, as Wisner was named to the 2008 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Division III All-New England First Team and the All-NESCAC First Team, while Cantone was selected to the NSCAA Division III All-New England Second Team and the All-NESCAC Second Team, and Trudeau graced the 2008 All-NESCAC Second Team. In the classroom, Trudeau was selected to the NSCAA/Adidas College Scholar All-East Third Team and joined Allen and Vallieres on the NESCAC All-Academic Team.
