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KU the team to beat in the SOC MT file photo South Medford's Pat Lower, left, is a three-year letterwinner and a returning first-team all-conference performer for the defending SOC champs. Nine returning starters bolster the Pelicans, but South not far behind By TIM PYLE To find championship-level football in Klamath Falls, don't look to the gridiron. Rather, attention must be shifted to the "pitch," where European-style footballers hone their skills. First-year Klamath Union boys soccer coach Marty Ledgerwood inherited from former coach Gerrit DeGroot a Pelicans squad that is primed to make a run at the school's first Southern Oregon Conference boys soccer crown since 1992. League play begins Tuesday. SOC coaches have tabbed KU the team to beat in the 2001 preseason poll, granting the Pelicans five first-place votes to South Medford's three. Coming off a surprising postseason sprint to the Class 4A state semifinals - the best showing in school history - KU returns nine starters and 12 lettermen from a team that finished 5-2 in 2000 SOC play, good for second behind undefeated South Medford. At the head of Ledgerwood's experienced crew is senior forward Luis Garcia, a first-team all-state and all-league selection last year. Five other returning Pelicans also received all-league recognition, although one, junior midfielder Travis Baker, is sidelined by a knee injury. Senior midfielders Krister Balme and Adam Wendt, senior goalkeeper Phil Van Buren and Baker were all second-team selections, while senior fullback Nick Caleb received honorable mention. "No. 1 is they went to the state semifinals last year, and they have a large number of their key players back, particularly their key defenders and their primary scorers," says South Medford coach Dave Potter, whose team dropped a 1-0 non-conference match to KU last Tuesday, thanks to junior forward Ricardo Gurrero's rebound goal off a Garcia shot in the final minute. "(Garcia) is a very strong, effective soccer player, and he is surrounded by a lot of experienced, good soccer players. ... I think they've got to be the odds-on favorite." Grants Pass coach Scott Gottula agrees. "This group that Klamath has, they've been brought up ever since they were fifth- or sixth-graders to believe that this was their year to win the state championship," Gottula says. "Klamath should get through (the SOC)." Ledgerwood, who graduated from KU in 1993 and assisted DeGroot for three years before taking over, says the Pelicans' concentration level is the only thing holding them back from a season to remember. "We need to control our highs and lows and keep our lows from hurting us," he says. "We're trying to pan out our mental mistakes." Should that happen, "this is probably one of the best teams KU's ever had," Ledgerwood acknowledges. Trying to keep the Pelicans' title hopes on ice are the Panthers, the SOC's dominant program in recent history. Since 1990, South Medford has won seven outright league crowns and shared another. That leaves just three seasons in which the Panthers finished anything other than first, and they have six perfect SOC campaigns in that stretch, including a 7-0 mark in 2000. Some in the SOC still believe South is the team to beat. "Given their track record, I have to favor them over KU," North Medford coach Rich Garcia says. Despite losing conference player-of-the-year Craig Tomlins and two other first-team all-SOC performers, South has impressed in non-league action. A tie with Mountain View of Bend and victories in Eugene over South Eugene and Sheldon - all ranked opponents - show that the Panthers are, again, a force. "We're jelling faster this year than we have in previous years," says Potter, in his fourth season with the boys after seven years directing the South girls. "Coming out of the blocks in previous years, we struggled." A group of eight returning starters is led by the four team captains, seniors Pat Lower, Cody George, Adam Walport and Jon McCollum. Lower is a four-year letterman and returning first-team all-conference forward. He is joined up front by senior Justin Baldoni. In the midfield, McCollum teams with juniors Daniel Hathaway, Ryan Wallenberg, Daniel Potter and Kelly King. Walport, an honorable mention all-SOC pick last year, and George man the marking fullback positions and are dangerous attackers out of the back. "They're key in just about everything we do," says Potter, who is using the combination of sophomore Spencer Hunter and junior Jason Matthews to replace Tomlins. "I think (Walport and George) are two excellent defenders." Senior goalkeeper Blake St. Onge is a first-year starter, but his early-season performance has been the Panthers' most pleasant surprise. Conference coaches placed Ashland third. The Grizzlies return 13 lettermen from last season's fourth-place SOC squad, led by senior forward Scott Beaver, a returning first-team all-conference pick, and junior midfielder Matt Sharp, a second-team standout. Under fourth-year coach Eisa Tiaa Tou Tou, Ashland is seeking a fourth straight trip to the state playoffs. "We have a very good attack with speed and ball control," says Tiaa Tou Tou, who teams senior Jesse Hodges, an honorable mention all-SOC player last year, and junior Fletcher Beaudoin with Beaver up front. "We just need to make sure it's there every day." Joining Sharp, an Olympic Development Program stalwart, in the midfield are returning lettermen Gabe Mason and Trevor Peterson. The Grizzlies defense is anchored by senior fullback Joel Steinfeld and a trio of juniors (Jacob VanAusdall, Alex Christlieb and Brook Golling), who Tiaa Tou Tou says have years of experience playing together. Senior Josh Dunn is the starting goalkeeper for the first time. Another traditional conference power, North Medford, is predicted to finish fourth. The Black Tornado has only six players back from last season's third-place squad. But 10th-year coach Garcia has missed the postseason - for which the top four SOC teams qualify - just once in his North tenure, and he doesn't expect that to change this season. "I feel that every year we go in, we should make the playoffs," says Garcia, who pinpoints a stretch of games against KU, Roseburg, Ashland and South to end the regular season as key to his squad's hopes. "We're a good team, but we're not one of those upper-echelons that can just show up and win. "We have to work hard for everything we get." The Tornado lost a combined five first- and second-team performers from last season. However, senior co-captains Dan Torrey, a midfielder, and Ben Clark, a fullback, are back and joined by senior fullbacks Justin Bilodeau and Sam Jackson and senior midfielders Kedric Charlton and Zach Taylor. "Scoring goals is gonna be tough," says Garcia, whose team has forged a 2-1-1 non-conference record. "But I think once we get going, get our defense set and get the defense to help set up the offense, we'll be in good shape." Roseburg features six returning starters and nine lettermen. Senior Josh Carlson, a second-team fullback last season, is moving to the central midfield for second-year coach Steve Kaser. Stewart Wetmore, another senior midfielder, serves as co-captain along with Carlson. "We don't have a star," says Kaser, who guided the Indians to a 3-4, fifth-place showing last season. "This group, they're close-knit. ... I think our strength is we play as a team." With a roster that includes a combined seven freshmen and sophomores, Grants Pass is the SOC's puppy. Senior goalkeeper Matt Lamont was first-team all-conference in 2000, second-team as a sophomore and first-team as a freshman. For the Cavemen to wiggle into the playoffs, Lamont will need his best season yet. "This year, what people will see is that he's starting to fill out and starting to mature," says Gottula, whose two other returning starters are senior forwards Brant Minor and Paul Allen. Sixth-year Crater coach Larry Holm is retiring at the end of the season, and his eight returning starters hope to send him out in style. Junior midfielder Scott Malone (second team), senior midfielder Leo Espinosa (honorable mention) and senior goalkeeper Paco Kurzyniec (honorable mention) are the Comets' all-league talents. "They're committed to give it a heckuva try to get to state," Holm says of his experienced squad. "We could be really tough, or we could be middle or lower of the pack. It'll be interesting." Eagle Point isn't projected by SOC coaches to improve much on last season's 0-7 league mark, but coach Coco Ortiz believes his Eagles may surprise. "The seniors know this is their last chance, and it's something they will remember for the rest of their lives," says Ortiz, who has second-team senior forward Drew Curriston and honorable mention senior fullback Casey Murdock to lead the way. "I tell them there is a mountain we must climb, and they are working hard to do it." Reach reporter Tim Pyle at 776-4483 or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.