Falcons Open Doug Hill Era This Weekend in Annapolis
8/28/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Aug. 28, 2007
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Game #1
Air Force Falcons vs. MD-Baltimore County Retrievers
Friday, August 31, 2007
4 p.m. at Annapolis, MD
Game #2
Air Force Falcons vs. Navy Midshipmen
Sunday, Sept. 2, 2007
3 p.m. at Annapolis, MD (CSTV)
Records
Air Force -- 0-0
UMBC -- 0-0
Navy -- 0-0
Coaches
Air Force -- Doug Hill (First Season at AFA, First Season Overall)
UMBC -- Pete Carigni (17th Season at UMBC, 27th Season Overall)
Navy -- Rich Miranda (Third Season at Navy, Third Season Overall)
Top Player
Air Force -- Sophomore F Josh Rhynard (Led team with 11 points in 2006)
UMBC -- Junior F Kevin Gnatiko (Third on team with 11 points in 2006)
Navy -- Senior MF Travis King (Second on team with six points in 2006)
Falcons Open 2007 Season at Navy
The Air Force Falcons open thier 2007 season on Friday, August 31 against the UMBC Retrievers in Annapolis, Md. The game will be the first for Doug Hill as head coach of the Falcons. Hill replaced Lou Sagastume, who retired after 28 seasons at AFA.
On Sunday, Sept. 2, the Falcons will face the Navy Midshipmen for the first time since 1993. The game will be televised nationally by CSTV and shown on a tape-delayed basis.
Head Coach Doug Hill
Doug Hill enters his first season as head coach at Air Force after spending 13 seasons as an assistant, including last season as associate head coach.
Hill, who holds a United States Soccer Federation "A" license, graduated from the Academy in 1983 and was a four-year varsity letterman playing for Sagastume. He was chosen as team captain both his junior and senior seasons. In all four years, Hill helped the Falcons win the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Soccer League title. After graduation, he remained at AFA as the assistant soccer coach and a physical education instructor for one year.
Hill left the Academy in 1984 for Dyess AFB, Texas, where he was an instructor navigator in the C-130 aircraft. In addition, he assisted and filled in as the interim head soccer coach for the men's and women's soccer teams at Hardin Simmons University (Texas) from 1986-1988. In 1988, he led the women's team to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) championship game and finished second in the nation. He also played on the all-Air Force soccer team in 1985 and 1987 and coached the 1986 team.
After eight years away from the Academy, Hill returned as an assistant coach in 1992 and helped guide the Falcons to consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament in '92 and '93. In 1993, the Falcons advanced to the Final Eight. The 1996 team advanced to the WAC championships after going 14-3-3 during the regular season, while the 1997 squad earned a trip to the NCAA Tourney.
2007 Season Outlook
Doug Hill takes over as head coach after Lou Sagastume, one of only 25 coaches in Division I history with 300 victories, retired following the 2006 season. Hill has some big shoes to fill, but is excited about the opportunity to lead the Falcons to their full potential in 2007.
Full potential for the 2007 Falcons would consist of a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation title and their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1997. Experience is on their side as seven starters return, including team captains Brian Guyette (goalie) and Andy Nigro (midfielder). Other returning seniors include '06 team MVP Ian Hauck (midfielder/forward), Chris Mathews (midfielder), Jason Belvill (defender) and Steven Locker (midfielder).
Guyette, a two-year captain, earned second-team all-MPSF honors last season after finishing fifth in the league with a 1.88 goals-against average and second with 4.71 saves per game. He posted two shutouts during the season and a season-high nine saves against Missouri State and Sacramento State. Guyette, who has started 14 games in each of the last two seasons, was also a member of the MPSF all-academic team.
Challenging Guyette in the nets this season will be sophomore Jim Gullo, who did not see any action with the varsity in 2006. However, Gullo gained some valuable experience during the spring season.
Belvill and junior Jason Dall top the list of returning backliners. Belvill was a stellar defenseman last season. He appeared in all 18 games in '06. Dall, meanwhile, returns to his center-back position in 2007. He notched the first goal of his career last season against Evansville and saw action in 17 of AFA's 18 games.
Sophomore Kevin Rosser is back after playing in 15 games and starting seven last season as a freshman and will battle fellow sophomore Aaron Eshkenazi for playing time.
Nigro, Mathews and Locker return to the midfield in `07. Nigro was an all-MPSF first-team pick last season after finishing second on the team with seven points on two goals and three assists. He was one of only three Falcons to start all 18 games last year and notched both goals, including the game-winner, in a 2-1 victory over Sacramento State at Cadet Soccer Stadium.
Mathews and Locker will try to replace the physical presence lost by all-MPSF second-team midfielder Brendan Greenaway, who graduated in 2007. Mathews tied for third on the team with five points last season and notched the overtime game-winner on the road against Creighton. Locker appeared in just three games as a junior in a backup role, but should get the nod as the starting center-mid.
Sophomores Jared Gomez, Luke Steadman, Kelly Snyder and Kirk Bingaman will fight for playing time in the midfield. Leading the newcomers are Charles Prichard and Michael Pyles. Prichard is the all-time assist leader at Eaglecrest High School in Aurora, Colo., while Pyles comes to the Academy after attending high school in Cameroon.
Hauck moves up to midfield/forward position this season after earning a first-team selection on the all-MPSF team in '06. He scored a goal and added two assists while playing solid defense all season. Juniors Reid Gaiser and Aphichart Gingsumrong are back at the forward spot after playing in 16 and 15 games, respectively, last season.
Sophomore Josh Rhynard is back after leading the team in scoring with 11 points and a team-high five goals and one assist. He came out of the gates on fire as a freshman, scoring a goal in each of Air Force's first three games. He also scored the team's final goal of the campaign, an overtime game-winner to defeat UNLV, 2-1. Rhynard was an all-MPSF third-team selection last season.
Freshmen Kyle Schafer and Kyle Moses join the team this season. Schafer, a local product from Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, led the Lancers to the Class 4A state championship as a junior and a runner-up finish as a senior. He was an honorable mention all-state pick his senior season. Moses, meanwhile, was a third-team all-state pick at Servite High School in Huntington, Calif.
