Here'a story on Adrian Ortiz & the Valpo men's soccer team:
www.nwitimes.com/sports/soccer/article_84c99669-c9ea-5aa6-a561-84a3464e5f4f.html Ortiz finds peace on the soccer field VALPARAISO | When Adrian Ortiz steps onto the soccer field, the Valparaiso senior feels a sense of calm that can only come when the stresses of life are put to rest.
The Berwyn native doesn't talk about his childhood much, only to say that growing up in Chicago wasn't the easiest thing in the world and to combat the struggles, he found soccer.
The sense of calm is perhaps what has driven Ortiz to become Valparaiso's Iron Man. The midfielder has never missed a match in his career and he was the only position player to play every minute of every match last season.
"Life has always revolved around soccer for me," Ortiz said. "Coming from the problems and the tough life I had, for those 90 minutes, I feel like my life is beautiful. Soccer was a way to get away from all the problems."
Ortiz came to Valparaiso in the fall of 2007 as a member of former coach Mis Mrak's final recruiting class. Mrak left Valparaiso before Ortiz enrolled and was replaced by Mike Avery.
"Mike came to me early and told me that he had heard good things about me," Ortiz said. "Mike brings something more to the table and he expects a lot from us, even from the guys who weren't recruited by him."
Ortiz made an immediate impact for the Crusaders during his freshman season when he assisted on the first goal of the year against North Carolina State. Ortiz finished the year with seven assists, which was good for the second most in school history. Ortiz added two more assists in his sophomore season and then scored his only two collegiate goals against Cleveland State last season, including the match-winner that clinched a home game in the Horizon League tournament.
"Adrian has really become just such a good player," Avery said. "He has a good handle on being a leader on the team. This is his year and I don't think he looks at it as pressure, but he thrives on it. If things go his way, he'll be playing professionally."
Ortiz is very mindful of what this season could mean to Valparaiso soccer. Having entered college as the Crusaders were making the transition to the Horizon League, Ortiz wants to leave as a member of the first team in school history to win a league title.
"My senior class, we've always had goals," Ortiz said. "We wanted to be a winning team and be recognized on campus. Now the goal comes of winning a conference title. Mike has done a good job of keeping our heads straight and leaving a legacy is what we want. Together, we feel like we're brothers and through Mike, we feel we can do this."
SCOUTING VALPARAISO MEN'S SOCCER
Who's Back -- The Crusaders return six of the seven players who scored multiple goals last season as well as two-time Horizon League Goalkeeper of the Year Ryan Schwarz. Senior Zack Stivers leads a potent offensive attack after scoring six goals last season while junior Brendan Roth added four tallies. Schwarz tied single-season program marks for wins (nine) and shutouts (six) last season and broke the mark for goals against average with 1.07.
Who's New -- Coach Mike Avery added eight freshmen this season, including Lake Central's Eppokrates Litos and Fabian Urquiza. In addition to the freshmen, Avery added three juniors, including Prairie State transfers Lior Avisror and Guy Shabtay. Chance Zanaty transferred in from Wallace State, the same junior college that produced Valparaiso seniors Roby Del Giudice and Conner Cappelletti.
Outlook -- Avery believes this is the best team he has had in his four years at Valparaiso. Now it's up to the Crusaders to match the positive expectations on the field. Standing in their way will be arguably the toughest mid-major conference in the country. Butler and Green Bay stand at the top of the Horizon League while UIC and Loyola should bounce back from disappointing seasons last year. Valparaiso is every bit in the mix for a conference title as the rest of the league and has the experienced talent to make it to the NCAA tournament. -- Paul Oren
Roster Stefan Antonijevic;MF;6-6;185;Sr./Jr.;Buffalo Grove
Lior Avisror;D;5-11;185;Jr.;Yehud, Israel
Charles Barden;MF;5-9;145;Fr.;Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Israel Bisoni;MF/F;5-9;175;5th/Sr.;Senador Amaral, Brazil
Kevin Brown;D;5-7;155;Jr.;Racine, Wis.
Jaymie Bullard;MF;5-11;170;So.;Naperville, Ill.
Ben Burnett;D;5-8;150;Fr.;South Bend,
Conner Cappelletti;D;6-0;170;Sr.;Kent, Wash.
Michael Chwistek;D;6-0;175;Fr.;Streamwood, Ill.
Elliott Coelho;MF;6-0;160;Jr.;San Antonio, Texas
Roby Del Giudice;MF;5-11;150;Sr.;Toronto, Ont.
Matt Duffy;5-11;180;So.;Hollis, N.H.
Tyler Eliasen;GK;5-10;160;So.;Chicago
Jake Freisinger;MF;5-9;170;Sr.;Saint John
Pat Gorny;MF;5-8;150;So.;Schererville
Sam Haines;F;6-0;185;So.;McKinney, Texas
Eppokrates Litos;F;5-7;170;Fr.;Saint John
Andy Lynn;MF;5-7;140;Jr.;Overland Park, Kan.
Clayton Lyons;MF;6-2;185;Sr./Jr.;Louisville, Ky.
J.P. Lytle;D;5-9;175;Sr./Jr.;Wooster, Ohio
Eric May;D;6-2;145;So.;Norwalk, Iowa
Kevin Miller;MF;5-11;145;So.;Jefferson City, Mo.
Adrian Navar;D/MF;5-9;150;Sr./Jr.;Berwyn, Ill.
Adrian Ortiz;MF;5-10;160;Sr.;Berwyn, Ill.
Ken Perkins;D;5-10;165;Sr.;Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Blake Reedy;GK;5-11;175;So.;Shelby Township, Mich.
Michael Rodriguez;5-8;150;Fr.
Brendan Roth;MF/F;6-0;185;Sr./Jr.;Elkhart
Zachary Schut;D/MF;5-11;165;So.;Lansing, Ill.
Ryan Schwarz;GK;6-2;175;5th/Sr.;Rockford, Ill.
Tom Serratore;GK;5-9;170;Fr.;Tinley Park, Ill.
Guy Shabtay;F;5-10;160;Jr.;Ramat-Gan, Israel
Jonathon Smith;D;5-11;155;So.;McKinney, Texas
Zack Stivers;F;6-0;165;Sr.;Brownsburg
Chadd Sult;D;6-1;160;Jr.;South Bend
Fabian Urquiza;F;6-2;200;Fr.;Dyer
Todd Vervynckt;F;5-10;140;Fr.;Plymouth
Wei Ming Wong;MF;5-8;150;Sr./Jr.;Hong Kong
Chace Zanaty;D;5-10;200;Jr.
Stipo Zeba;F;5-11;180;So.;Brookfield, Ill.
Kelvin Zelee;F;5-9;170;Sr./Jr.;South Bend
Kyle Zobeck;GK;6-1;175;Jr./So.;Coralville, Iowa
Schedule Sept. 4 at UNLV, 3 p.m.
Sept. 6 vs. UC Riverside (Las Vegas), 12:30 p.m.
Sept. 10 vs. Santa Clara (Milwaukee), 5 p.m.
Sept. 12 vs. Florida Gulf Coast (Milwaukee), Noon
Sept. 17 at IUPUI, 4 p.m.
Sept. 19 vs. Bowling Green, 7 p.m.
Sept. 24 vs. Milwaukee, 7 p.m.
Sept. 26 vs. Wright State, 6 p.m.
Oct. 1 at Butler, 3 p.m.
Oct. 3 at Loyola, 6 p.m.
Oct. 6 vs. Western Illinois, 7 p.m.
Oct. 9 at Cleveland State, 6 p.m.
Oct. 13 at Michigan, 6 p.m.
Oct. 17 at Ohio State, 1:30 p.m.
Oct. 20 vs. Western Michigan, 7 p.m.
Oct. 23 at Green Bay, 7 p.m.
Oct. 31 vs. UIC, 6 p.m.
Nov. 3 vs. Eastern Illinois, 7 p.m.
Nov. 6 vs. Detroit, 7 p.m.
Nov. 9-14 at Horizon League Championship, TBA
Horizon League Preseason Poll First-place votes in parenthesis
1. Butler 61 (5)
2. Green Bay 60 (4)
3. Valparaiso 44
3. UIC 44
5. Loyola 33
6. Cleveland State 32
7. Milwaukee 22
8. Wright State 19
9. Detroit 9
