WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- The men's soccer team at Whitman College struggled through a frustrating season last fall, losing six Northwest Conference games by a single goal en route to a 2-14 record against league foes.
Second-year coach Mike Washington is determined to transform those narrow losses into more victories this fall, despite the loss of several starters to graduation.
"It's start-over-at-the-beginning time," Washington says. "Part of what we need to do this fall is eliminate mental mistakes and learn to think of ourselves as a better team. When you lose as many games as we did last year, that becomes your expectation. We need to take each game as it comes."
While his squad will be much younger this season, it also will be much deeper, thanks to a large group of talented incoming freshmen.
"As we start building a contender with a young team, the more experienced players need to step up and carry much of the load," Washington says. "But the freshmen and everyone else are on notice that all spots are up for grabs. We want to start building a team that can contend for years to come."
The Missionaries return most of their experience in the midfield and at the goalkeeper's spot.
Seniors Rob Tonnsen and Dan Millikan are returning starters as midfielders. "Rob is a very solid player, both technically and tactically," Washington said. "He works hard on the field and makes others match his effort. Dan gives us size and defensive presence in the air."
Sophomore midfielders Scott Burns and Nathan Hoffman also return after seeing significant playing time last year as freshmen. "Scott is Mr. Consistent, very solid," Washington says. "His fitness level is very high, and he man-marked several of the conference's top players for us last season. Nathan has great technical speed and all the tools he needs to be our playmaker. All he needs is more consistency."
Senior Garth Giles and junior Joe Capp are back in goal this fall and will start the season sharing playing time, as they did for much of last season. Two freshmen, Travis Ekstrom (Redmond WA) and Nathan Davis (Higganum CT) also have the talent to push for playing time.
Four sophomores who "waited patiently behind strong seniors last year" are ready to form a new defensive nucleus this fall, Washington says. They are Dan Gestaut (Bothell WA), Eli Quisenberry (Juneau AK), Josh Weissman (Redmond WA) and Josh Niederman (Palo Alto CA).
"Eli looks like one of the players who could really step up this year," Washington says. "He has good size and he plays very strong; he's someone who could be a definite presence for us on the field.
"As an outside defender, Dan Gestaut is very strong on tackle plays, and he has the speed to match his strength. Josh Niederman, also an outside defender, is very tenacious. That gets him in trouble at times, but he gives you all that he has and more.
"Josh Weissman is more of a central defender," Washington adds. "He needs work on tactical decisions, but he also has the potential to step up and be a factor."
Whitman's heavy graduation losses, a total of 12 players in all, left some gaping holes at the forward spot. The only returning players with experience from a year ago are sophomores Loren Anderson (Tacoma WA) and Tyson Ayers (Bothell WA).
"Loren is strong and has great pace in the open field," Washington says. "He played more at the end of last season, and he could be one of our real surprises this year. Tyson is smaller and lacks a physical presence, but he has great speed. He needs to work on his open field play, and we need to get him involved in more one-on-one situations."
Others competing for time at forward include Ross Good (Mukilteo WA), Calder Hughes (Portland OR), James Brown (Ketchum ID) and Billy Pryme-Fuld (Anchorage AK), four of several skilled freshmen on the roster. "All four have good speed and a good work ethic," Washington says. "They will give us the depth we did not have last year, and a strong work ethic is something we expect from everyone who expects to play."
Four more freshmen -- Bryan Hamilton (Idaho Falls ID), Charlie Schneider (Davis CA), Matt Butts (Yakima WA) and Colin Prince (Seattle WA) -- will give "good support to our returning group at midfield," Washington says.
The freshman who have made good impressions as defenders in early workouts include David Andresen (Kent WA), Scott Kilpatrick (Stevenson WA), and Michael Yu (Denver CO). Two more freshmen, Ian McCullough (Canby OR) and Spruce Schoenemann (Dorset VT), may see time on defenders or in the midfield.
"Our recruiting class this year is very, very strong, even stronger than I realized," Washington says. "But it's wait-and-see time for the freshmen. We obviously haven't had any games yet, so they still need to prove themselves."
On the plus side for Whitman this fall is a higher level of physical conditioning. Don Blair, a Seattle-area fitness consultant, designed the conditioning program the Missionaries have been following since last spring.
Washington also is focusing on more team training this fall, a change from the emphasis last year on individual and small group work. "We want everyone to have a better understanding of the team tactics they need to win games and to protect leads once we have them," he says.
Counting three scrimmages against the Gonzaga University junior varsity and a pair of two-year schools, Whitman will play eight of its first ten games at home. The Missionaries open the season at home on Wednesday, Sept. 1, against Columbia Basin Community College. Three more home dates are slated for Labor Day Weekend, Sept. 4-6.
Whitman also is home later in September for its first three Northwest Conference games. One of those early NWC games is against Pacific University, which finished a close second in the conference standings last year and stands as one of the teams to beat this fall.
Dave Holden, Whitman Sports Information, (509) 527-5902
Email: holden@whitman.edu