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Metro men bouncing back
Parsons eyes new recruits to help bolster Metro men down the stretch
By Eric Lansing
lansing@mscd.edu

Photo by Jenn LeBlanc/jkerriga@mscd.edu Metro junior Phillip Owen battles for possession of the ball during preseason practice at Auraria Field Tuesday, Aug. 15. Upperclassmen such as Owen hope to team up with new Division-I recruits to help Metro improve on their 12-7-2 overall 2005 record. Metro has been picked second in the RMAC preseason poll.

It’s no secret that the Metro women’s soccer team is a dominant force in NCAA Division-II sports. There is a secret, however, in the men’s team, who look like they have enough talent and depth to turn some heads as their season rolls around the corner.

Head coach Ken Parsons has improved a team that went 7-5 (12-7-2 overall) against the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and finished second to 2005 national champion Fort Lewis College. His team fell to the Colorado School of Mines in the first round of last year’s RMAC tournament.

Parsons says the lack of strong talent coming off the bench hurt the team as the season pressed on. The rigors of the season took its toll on the productive starters, and when injuries occurred, the backups were not effective enough. The Roadrunners ended with a four-game losing streak.

There will be no depth issues this season as Metro is stocked on talent. Twelve new freshmen recruits have come to offer their services as well as six Division-I transfers.

“We got a good group of new faces,” Parsons said, “Our success will be measured on how well we can define roles, how well players will accept their roles, and how well we shall come together as a team.”

With all the new faces trying to find their places, one player knows where he stands. Senior midfielder Antonio Porras has been putting up points for Metro at a record pace since his arrival to the Auraria Campus in 2003. An NSCAA/Adidas second team all-American and an NSCAA/Adidas first team all-Midwest Region selection, Porras is the school’s all-time leader in career points (99), assists (29), and only needs five goals to surpass former Metro soccer alumni Jared Zanon’s (1996-1999) career mark of 39.

“I really don’t care about individual records,” said Porras. “I care more about the team. We have the talent and our expectations are pretty high, but we need to take it game by game.”

Porras’ teammates recognize his talents as well.

“All the players respect him for all the accolades he has done,” Parsons said. “The fact that he holds just about every career Metro record is amazing.”

Including Porras, four of the Roadrunners’ five top scorers return from last season. Junior forward Shaun Elbaum led the team in goals (17) and game-winning goals with five. Junior midfielder Philip Owen returns to the team off a 14-assist season. Junior Mark Cromie is going back to his natural midfielder position after playing a majority of time on defense last year.

The only cog that could be missing from this soccer machine is the goalkeeping position. David McReavy started all 22 games for Metro, including the postseason, but was lost to graduation. That leaves junior Jordan Ivey, who played sparingly in four games for the Roadrunners along with two red-shirt freshmen, Ryan Vickery and Casey Garrity, who transferred from the University of California, Irvine and the University of Nevada Las Vegas, respectively.

“There are three good keepers and all are fighting for a place,” said Cromie. “We shall see who steps it up but they are looking good.”

Parsons said that Ivey has the advantage because he already understands the system and has played well. Parsons did indicate that the transfer goalkeepers are no slouches themselves, as they were recruited in Division I for a reason.

The unstoppable scorers, the talented freshmen and the experienced transfers, along with a successful coach, will bring something special to the soccer field this year. Parsons seems very optimistic about his players and the tools available to him. But it has to happen on the field.

The season begins on Aug. 25 when they host Midwestern State at Auraria Field.

“This is certainly the best roster this school has every put together,” Parsons said. “Even with the players before my time and if you look at previous teams, this is the best group of players we’ve ever put on the field. But it is still yet to be seen.”