2009 Season Preview: Garnet Men Look To Defend Title
It was a magical run for the Swarthmore men’s soccer team in 2008. In the program’s best season in 25 years, the Garnet captured the program’s first Centennial Conference Championship, advanced to the third round of the NCAA Championship after making the program’s first appearance in the tournament since 1991, and set program records for Conference victories (8) and longest unbeaten streak (13). The team also spent nearly the entire season in the national rankings.
But that was last season. This is a new season – and despite being tabbed as the preseason favorite by the Centennial Conference coaches - nothing will come easy for the Garnet in their quest to defend the Conference championship. Success will once again need to be earned by hard work and determination on the pitch.
The Garnet face several challenges in 2009. The first will be figuring out how to replace eight letterwinners from the 2008 squad, including All-American defender Jeff Kushner and first-team All-Conference performer Evan Nesterak. The team will also need to navigate one of the most difficult schedules in all of Division III men’s soccer, highlighted by home games against national power Stevens Tech (September 13) and conference rivals Johns Hopkins (September 19) and Gettysburg (October 3).
Dylan Langley was an All-Centennial selection in 2008.
On the offensive end, senior midfielder Dylan Langley (Honolulu, Hawaii / Iolani School) is expected to lead the charge. Last season, the second-team All-Conference midfielder helped fuel the Conference’s best offense with seven goals and five assists while finishing third in the Centennial in points (nineteen). But with the departure of seniors Nesterak and Ladulé Lako Lo Sarah – two of the team’s top scorers with a combined 13 goals – even more will be expected from Langley in 2009. Help could come in the form of his brother – Morgan Langley. The younger Langley (Honolulu, Hawaii / Iolani School) is a junior forward and the other half of the Conference’s first pair of male siblings to make the All-Centennial team at the same time. Last season, he played a significant part of the Swarthmore attack, leading the Conference in assists and already ranking 8th all-time in career assists (10) at the College.
Traditionally one of stingiest defenses in all of Division III men’s soccer – allowing just 10 goals and posting nine shutouts in 2008 – the 2009 Garnet defense will look to junior Gage Newman (Cambridge, Mass./Buckingham Browne & Nicholas) and sophomore Pierre Dyer (Bethesda, Md./French International School) to anchor the backline. The duo combined for 29 starts in 2008 and both were integral parts of the squad’s record-setting season.
Between the pipes, junior Zach Weimar (Rutledge, Penn. – Friends Central) and sophomore David D’Annunzio (Piedmont, Calif. – Piedmont) will look to build off their outstanding performances in 2009. Before a broken wrist ended his season, Weimar was ranked fourth in the nation in goals against average (0.20). Last season, D’Annunzio posted nine shutouts in 16 starts while posting a 0.55 goals against average.
The Garnet open the season on Wednesday, September 2, when they travel to Penn State-Abington. The Garnet then open at home with the 12th Annual Garnet Alumni Classic, when they face Wesley College on Saturday, September 5 (7:00 p.m.) and Catholic University on Sunday, September 6 (5:00 p.m.).