Aug. 30, 2001
CLEVELAND - Head Coach Pete Curtis had enough to worry about before he got the news that Cleveland State's best player -- Adam Campellone -- had just signed a contract to play professionally. The Vikings' only returning all-conference performer, Campellone is now playing in the German second division.
Despite Campellone's departure and the fact that leading scorer Atle Haaland signed a professional contract in Norway over the summer, Curtis is still optimistic about the upcoming season.
"With Atle, we knew soon after the season that he would not be with us, but the timing of Adam's decision was a major problem because we had no time to replace the huge void he left," explained Curtis.
"However, I believe that in their absence, we will be forced to become more of a team. We will have more people sharing the load and that will make us much more diverse." A trio of players will be battling for playing time at the front of Curtis' formation. Senior Marc Royer, junior Adam Musser and junior transfer Joachim Walker will all share the duties at striker.
"Marc and Adam bring experience in the system, while the addition of Joachim will give us a true striker," pointed out Curtis.
In the midfield, junior O.C. Haugen and sophomore Issam Zejly will look to fill the void in the center created by the early departures of Campellone and Haaland.
"O.C. and Izzy will have to take a much more active role for us this season," said Curtis. "Their partnership is critical to our offensive success."
Senior Misha Levkov and junior Matteo Zappa will see significant action on the wings, while junior John Schaller, sophomore Josh Lidala and freshman Cameron Husty will act as wing backs -- floating between midfield and defense.
Anchoring the back line will be sophomore Benny Eck, while the defense also gets a boost from the return of senior Cory Pryor, who missed all of 2000 with a broken leg. In addition to the trio of wing backs, junior Matt Milcetich and freshmen J.P. Burman and Junior Joseph will provide solid defensive depth.
"Benny was our defensive MVP last season and for good reason -- his speed, ability to read the game and attitude are all outstanding," noted Curtis. "In addition, Cory's return is a big plus because his size and speed were something we missed last season."
Like last season, the goalkeeping duties will be shared by senior James Kryger and junior Josip Novkovic. The duo split time last season and Curtis has no plans to change his mindset on the talented goalies.
"Similar to last year, the keeper that is in form will play. We are fortunate to have two capable goalkeepers who both bring different things to the table."
The Vikings will quickly learn just where they stand after opening with six consecutive contests on the road. Included in the stretch are matches against Michigan, Michigan State, Loyola Chicago and Notre Dame in a span of 12 days. The benefit of the way the schedule sets up though is the fact that nine of the Vikings' final 12 games will be played at Krenzler Field.
"The schedule doesn't worry me at all, it's just the way it worked out," said Curtis. "The six road games will give us time to fine-tune things so when we finally get back home our fans will see a much more cohesive unit.
Speaking of worries, Curtis isn't too concerned about having to replace Campellone and Haaland.
"I expect us a to have a much quicker, more physical and tactically diverse team than in previous years. We have the personnel that will be able take the game to teams this season -- we will be proactive this year instead of reactive."
