The Saint Louis University men’s soccer team ended its 2003
season with a 4-2 loss to the University of Maryland Terrapins on
Dec. 7 at Ludwig Field in College Park, Md., in the NCAA Tournament
quarterfinals.
This marked the second consecutive season in which the Billikens
saw their season end against the Terrapins at Ludwig Field.
The Billikens finished the season with a record of 15-4-3. They
tied for the Conference USA regular season championship with the
University of Cincinnati and came away victorious at the C-USA
postseason tournament in Memphis.
Against the Terrapins, SLU jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first
half after freshman midfielder Alex Matteson scored in the seventh
minute and senior defender Kevin Wickart added to the lead in the
33rd minute.
Maryland answered with two goals off corner kicks before the
halftime whistle to tie the score at 2-2. Clarence Goodson and Abe
Thompson tallied the goals for the Terps.
Maryland controlled play for most of the half, out-shooting the
Billikens 16-4. Fouls also went in the Terrapins’ favor as SLU was
called for 11 fouls to only one for the Terps.
Maryland continued their scoring run in the early going of the
second half. Kenney Bertz scored off another corner kick in the
46th minute, and in the 48th minute Jason Garey ended the scoring
by putting the Terrapins up 4-2.
“Getting back to the Elite Eight was exciting, especially with
such a young team” coach Dan Donigan said. “We had a lot of guys
really step up and play really well and come into their own late in
the season.”
With the win, the Terrapins advanced to the NCAA College Cup in
Columbus, Ohio, where they joined St. John’s University, Indiana
University and Santa Clara University. In semifinal action, St.
John’s defeated Maryland and Indiana prevailed over Santa Clara.
Indiana, who defeated the Billikens earlier in the season in
Bloomington, Ind., won their sixth national championship by
defeating St. John’s 2-1 in the finals.
Jerry Yeagley, the Hoosiers’ legendary coach who has won more
games than any other men’s college soccer coach, had announced
during the season that he would retire at season’s end, so the
legend was able to go out on top.
The 2003 edition of the Billikens was a very young outfit; all
but four players were either freshmen or sophomores.
Several Billikens were honored for their successes, both on and
off the pitch. Freshman forward Vedad Ibisevic was named as a first
team All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association of
America. He was the only freshman or sophomore to receive the
honor. In the process, he broke Brian McBride’s freshman scoring
record and led a fast-paced Billikens offense throughout their
spectacular season.
Freshman midfielders John DiRaimondo and Will John were named on
the second team All-Midwest Region, while junior goalkeeper Martin
Hutton was on the third team All-Midwest Region.
Three Billikens were recognized nationally and regionally for
their academic success. Gannon was named to the third team Scholar
All-America by the NSCAA. Pusateri was named to the Scholar
All-Region first team and Hutton was named to the Scholar
All-Region second team.
Looking forward to the 2004 season, the Billikens return eight
of eleven starters from this past season’s team.
The well publicized freshman class scored 36 of the Billikens’
42 goals. With a trip to the Elite Eight this season, the Billikens
hope to improve upon that and advance the College Cup in 2004.
“We have a bright future with these guys,” Donigan said. “It’s
very difficult to win a championship. We just have to keep working
at it.”
