WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- With its top five scorers returning from a year ago, the Whitman College men's soccer team hits the road this Saturday, Sept. 3, to open its season against Northwest University in Kirkland, Wash.
Whitman slipped past Northwest 1-0 in last fall's season-opening weekend. Saturday's rematch is set for 7:30 p.m. at Kirkland's Lake Washington High School.
Look for sophomore Andy Huntington and juniors Kirk Thorson and Egan Brinkman to spark the Whitman offense this season. Huntington, a forward, led the Missionaries in scoring with nine points (three goals, three assists) last fall, while Brinkman, also a forward, booted four goals good for eight points. Thorson, a midfielder and team captain, chipped in six points (four assists, one goal) in an injury-shortened season. Two seasons ago as a freshman, Thorson had nine points on three goals and three assists.
Peter Randall, one of only two seniors on the roster, gives Whitman another experienced scoring option. Randall, who slides between midfielder and forward, missed time to injury last season after contributing five points two years ago. Junior forward Chris Dorough also hopes to return to the form he showed in the 2003 fall campaign, when he scored four goals as a freshman.
Returning starters on defense are senior Ryan Porter, junior Cole Sherman and sophomore Craig Yuen. Porter, a senior captain, chipped in with two goals and one assist last fall. Yuen also charged from the back to score a pair of goals last season in his freshman season.
Other returning players this fall are juniors Daniel Beekman (midfielder), Brett Rawson (midfielder-forward), Samuel Morris-Rosenfeld (defender) and Michael Brown (midfielder), and sophomore Abe Smith-Groening (sophomore).
James Millikan, a sophomore who missed his freshman season due to injury, takes over the goal-keeping chores this fall. His older brother, Daniel, played for Whitman in the late 1990s, serving as a senior team captain in 1999.
Mike Washington, now in his eighth season as Whitman's coach, welcomes a total of 11 freshmen and one transfer to his latest roster. Washington expects immediate contributions from junior transfer Jon Rue, a midfielder who played last season at Walla Walla College, and freshmen midfielder-forwards Stephen Phillips (Sandy, Utah) and Simon Quay (Seattle, Wash.).
Whitman starts its season with four non-conference games, including home games on Thursday, Sept. 8, against Corban College, and Wednesday, Sept. 14, against California State, East Bay.
The Missionaries open Northwest Conference play with a pair of road games Sept. 17-18. Whitman's first NWC home games are Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 24-25, against Linfield and Pacific.
Whitman struggled through a long season last fall, finishing with a 4-13-1 record overall. The Missionaries lost four games by a single goal and four others by a two-goal margin.