Men's Soccer: 2016 Season Preview

WEST CHESTER, Pa. - West Chester University's men's soccer is optimistic heading into its 2016 campaign with a talented group returning, while also adding several new faces to the squad. Head coach Michael Benn returns to the helm in his fourth season for the Golden Rams and is eager to bounce back after a down year a season ago. "We were very young last year," Benn said. "A lot of younger guys got experience, including this year's junior class. I am hoping that experience they gained will help them take a big step forward."

FORWARDS A key veteran returning for West Chester is senior forward Miguel Ross (Pottstown, Pa./Pottstown), who led the Golden Rams with nine goals and a team-leading 20 points a season ago. The leading scorer for the Golden Rams received first-team All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference honors for his efforts last fall. Ross brings a dynamic skill-set to the table, offensively, for the Golden Rams due to his tremendous speed and athleticism and ability to get behind defenses. "He's certainly a marked man by our opponents," Benn stated. "Ross is our leading scorer. He helps stretch the opponent out quite a bit, which opens up space for the rest of us to have more time on the ball to be able to play moving forward." Complimenting Ross on attack is going to be a combination of players, who will allow West Chester to be balanced on the offensive side of the ball. Junior captain Brett Glasco (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) is a player to watch after two solid years of play. Benn is hoping that Glasco continues to step-up his game heading into his junior season. Junior forwards' Max Adarkwah (Accra, Ghana /Phelps School [Pa.]) and Giovanni Mowrey (Bethlehem, Pa./Notre Dame Green Pond) are expected to provide veteran leadership and help the Golden Rams find the back of the net this season as well. Adarkwah and Mowrey are athletic left-side players, who were tied for third on the team in total points with seven each last season. Benn would like to see more consistency out of the duo though, considering that they are now upperclassmen on the squad. He hopes to see both players take a step forward this season. "Both have played a lot of soccer," Benn added. "Both had key moments as underclassmen, either a big assist or big goal for us. Now we just need it more consistently."

MIDFIELD West Chester brings back a strong midfield group, who will help control the pace of the game. Senior captain Brian Schaefer (Dresher, Pa./Upper Dublin) returns, after tallying six points in 14 games in 2015. "He's the kind of the guy who makes us go on both sides of the ball," Benn lauded. "Defensively, he is a hard-nosed player who works very hard and breaks up the other team's attacks. But also has the ability to score. He led us in scoring in the spring season. He will be very important to how our season turns out." A junior who received a vast amount of playing time last season and is ready for more responsibility is Tim French (Bensalem, Pa./Holy Ghost Prep). Ready to help out the squad as well in his senior campaign is Brett Beaumont (Bensalem, Pa./Archbishop Ryan). Sophomores strengthening the depth on the roster include: Kyle Hoops (Phoenixville, Pa./Great Valley), Jason Pixley (Philadelphia, Pa./Central) and Andrew Slater (Hanover, Pa./South West).

DEFENSE Defensively, Benn emphasized the importance of giving up fewer goals and how preseason will be extremely important for playing time this year. The Golden Rams will look to lower their 1.47 goals allowed per game from last season. On the back line, the Golden Rams return most of their defenders from a season ago. Taking charge are senior captain Wyatt Dungan (Ephrata, Pa./Cocalico) and Connor Greiss (Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley). Sami Phelps (Princeton, N.J./Westtown School) returns for his sophomore campaign after leading the squad in minutes as a freshman last year. "We expect (Phelps) will play a big role on the backline, or even potentially in the center of midfield," Benn mentioned. Assisting the defensive unit as well will be Patrick Raykovitz (Langhorne, Pa./Neshaminy), Nicholas Meola (Avondale, Pa./Kennett), and Tyler Rapposelli (Reading, Pa./Fleetwood). Each player provides another asset that Coach Benn has on the backline as well. Competition will be intense for these positions, especially with the amount of depth and talent on the roster.

GOALKEEPING Heading into the preseason, the Golden Rams have three talented goalies, who are all competing for the starting job in net. The starter for the past two seasons was Matt Palmer (Bangor, Pa./Bangor), who posted a .750 save percentage in 13 games a year ago. The goalkeeper registered 62 saves in addition to four shutouts for West Chester. However, James Wood (West Chester, Pa./Henderson) also saw action as a freshman in-between the pipes and finished the season as the starter. Wood started the final pair of games and played in the final four, recording 25 saves for an .833 save percentage. According to Benn, Wood has a slight lead heading into the preseason due to his performance last season. The third goalkeeper looking to contribute and earn that starter role is sophomore, Evan Bleiler (Orefield, Pa./Parkland). "It's certainly going to be an open competition," Benn stated. "I like our depth and quality at the position. We need someone with a presence back there, who can make sure we stay organized and lower that goals against average."

NEWCOMERS The Golden Rams will add eight new faces to the squad this year, including six freshmen and a pair of transfers from Division I institutions. For the freshmen, the most important aspect will be adjusting to the speed of the game. Benn likes the incoming freshman class, "There is some balance there positionally." West Chester added three new freshman defenders to the roster. The first being Giles Beven (Kensington, Md./Walter Johnson), who helped propelled his high school to a 14-3 record and nine shutouts. Two others being considered for the backline are Mark Palage (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./William Tennent) and Connor Weiss (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent). A pair of talented midfielders in this recruiting class includes Matthew Canis (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) and Brett Miller (Washington Crossing, Pa./Council Rock North). Canis tallied 17 goals and six assists in his high school senior campaign while Miller was named offensive player of the year for Council Rock North. Miller's scoring ability will certainly help create goals for the Golden Rams this season. The lone forward out of the class is Connor Gwin (Kingsville, Md./Perry Hall), who is a tall target, standing a 6 feet, 6 inches. Gwin will look to bring his championship mentality to West Chester, after leading his high school squad to a Maryland state championship his senior season. The pair of Division I transfers in the class are midfielder Colin Hester (Camp Hill, Pa./Camp Hill) and defender Nicholas Jachwak (Souderton, Pa./Souderton). Hester is coming from West Virginia University, where he will bring his dynamic attacking style to the Golden Rams. During his time at West Virginia, Hester played in 10 games and chipped in with two assists. In addition to his production on the field, Hester will be called upon for his leadership being a junior on the squad. Jachwak on the other hand comes from Temple University and offers his versatility to the squad by being able to play outside back or holding midfielder. Due to his experience, expect Jachwak to compete for a job immediately.

OVERVIEW In terms of the Golden Rams' schedule, they will face rival Philadelphia University to open up the season. Afterward, there is no ease into the season with three consecutive PSAC matchups with Pitt-Johnstown, Mercyhurst, and Gannon University. Benn added. "Like every year, the PSAC will go down to the wire. There's not an easy game in the conference." The Golden Rams kickoff their 2016 campaign by hosting Philadelphia University on Thursday, Sept. 1 at 4 p.m. at Rockwell Field.