Season Preview: Hard work is the name of the game for the Sea Gulls in 2010

SALISBURY, Md. - The Salisbury University men's soccer team looks to build off a season in which the program went 15-3-2 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Sea Gulls are set to begin the season ranked No. 20 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) preseason poll.

The Sea Gulls' 2010 roster features 17 returning letter winners, 10 new players to the program and two student-athletes that sat out the '09 season.

SU 29th year head coach Gerry DiBartolo was able to get a preview of the improvement of his returning players as they traveled on a 10-day trip to Italy at the start of August. "Our level of play was very good in terms of how we handled the varying styles of play in Italy," said DiBartolo. "I thought through all of the matches we remained pretty even keeled and played very consistently through the four matches on our schedule."

Salisbury will look to make the program's fourth straight and 10th overall NCAA tournament appearance in 2010. The Sea Gulls also aim to contend for the program's eighth overall Capital Athletic Conference championship, which guarantees a place in the NCAA tournament.

Forwards
The Sea Gulls return two players up top that offer experience and leadership in Ben DeLisle and Mike Napolitano. DeLisle enters the season with 40 career points on 16 goals and eight assists. Napolitano battled back from an early-season injury in '09 and finished with three points in 13 games.

Some other players vying for time include junior Ian Wilson, sophomore Adrian Tombini and a sophomore transfer from Division I Adelphi University Phil Bucheimer. Another player to watch, that has been hindered by injuries in the preseason, is freshman Trevor Sharpe, who was coached by SU alum Dan Butler at Cherry Hill West High School.

At this point in the preseason, DiBartolo has liked what he has seen from the group. "Their work rate is just tremendous, I think we are going to score some goals just because we are going to just beat people to spots on the field."

Midfield
SU returns a strong core or returners and set of fresh faces to compete for time in the midfield. "A major strength of this program is that we have always had midfielders that can get up and down the field, defend and attack well," said DiBartolo. "That is going to have to be a strength of this team again this year."

One player slated to control the central midfield is sophomore midfielder Jimmy Mundy. Mundy played in 20 games in '09 with nine starts while registering five points. Junior Morgan Hunt and sophomores Pat Callahan and Jeremy Moyer are looking to compliment Mundy in the central midfield. Hunt appeared in 15 games in '09 while tallying eight points on three goals and two assists. Callahan was a key contributor late in the season as he played in 15 games with two goals while Moyer registered one point on one assist in 10 games.

On the outside wings, the Sea Gulls expect to use seniors Dave Corrigan and Charles Gray, plus freshman Jake Perry and junior transfer Stafford Chipungu. In '09, Corrigan played in 19 games with 13 starts while collecting seven points on three goals and one assist. Gray sat out last season for SU, but enters the season with 10 career points on four goals and two assists.

Defense
The strength of the 2010 edition of the Sea Gulls will be the backline as they return three starters in seniors Justin Lambert, Casey Rector and Joe Rubel. In '09, SU limited opposing offenses to just 0.60 goals against per game and will look to build off that performance entering the 2010 season.

"Those three know each other and complement one another very well," said DiBartolo. "I would tell you that the strength of the team is how well we defend and how consistent we are on defense."

The fourth spot is up for grabs, as SU needs to replace three-time All-CAC performer Justin McGrath. The group vying for that spot includes junior transfer Sean Coggins, sophomores Kyle Simmons and Nate Woods, plus two freshmen in Elliott Crompton and Adam Quigley.

Goalkeepers
One major question mark for the Sea Gulls entering the season is the battle going on between the four goalkeepers on the squad. Each goalkeeper has performed well in the preseason and no one has taken grasp of the starting spot.

The players up for the job include junior Brandon Mumby, sophomores Ross Evans and John Vnenchak plus freshman Michael Nerud. Mumby is a technically sound goalkeeper that played for the Sea Gulls for two seasons before sitting out the '09 season. Evans returns for his sophomore season and has improved in many facets of the game including cutting down angles against on-rushing attackers. Vnenchak enters his second year with the program and provides a strong presence in the air. Nerud, a transfer from Division I Loyola (Md.) University, offers a 6-foot-5 frame that allows him a great reach in the net.

Schedule
The Sea Gulls' 2010 schedule again features one of the most competitive schedules in all of Division III. The schedule consists of four teams ranked in the preseason NSCAA Top 25, five teams that made the '09 NCAA tournament and a number of traditional soccer powers.

"We try to make our non-conference schedule as strong as we possibly can without traveling all over the country to do so," said DiBartolo. 

That non-conference schedule features No. 5 Christopher Newport University, No. 10 Johns Hopkins University and No. 24 Lynchburg College. The schedule also features matches against traditional powers Elizabethtown College, N.C. Wesleyan and '09 NCAA tournament team Catholic University of America.

To contend for the CAC championship, the Sea Gulls will square off with a number of improved teams. "Top to bottom, I think the conference is going to be a lot better this year than it was last year in terms of quality of opponents and competitiveness of the game," said DiBartolo.