Bethel College Men's Soccer

Season Wrap-Up

The 2009 season for the men’s soccer program started out in a unique fashion. They tied their first three games of the season, and it wasn’t till their seventh game that they got the result they were looking for, a 3-1 victory over York College. The season showed a lot of promise, but the team was full of youth. The coaching staff knew that bringing in 12 new players with only four returning starters from last year’s fifth place finish in the KCAC was going to be a big test. The Threshers often started five and sometimes six freshmen during the season as well as 2-3 junior college transfers.

“We knew it was going to be a bit rough in the beginning to find our team identity and acclimate so many new faces into the program,” said Coach Moore.” I think we made a lot of progress this year, but not as much as we had hoped for. We were often good enough to hold our own against the top teams in our conference but just not good enough to win games. Our lack of experience really showed at times this year.” The Threshers finished the season with a record of 3-10-4. There were a few times during the season when it looked like things were going to turn around and start going the Threshers’ way but then injuries claimed a few players at the end of the season.

With so many new faces and so much youth, the future looks bright for the 2010 Threshers’ soccer program. The team looks to return all but two seniors from this year’s team: Greg Shelly, a two year captain, and Aaron Hull, a team captain and KCAC Honorable Mention midfielder. Shelly earned NAIA Scholar All-American status for his efforts in the classroom for the second straight year. Returning next season will be the core of the team and the team’s KCAC Honorable Mention Keeper Marcus Maust. “We were very close to getting things going this season but the ball never seemed to bounce our way. I am excited for the off season where we can put in some hard work and put some polish on our game,” said Coach Moore