By Adam Fabrizi
BEREA, OHIO – The Baldwin-Wallace College men’s soccer team received an extra boost this past off-season when North Ridgeville resident and current Yellow Jacket senior Geoff Andrews informed Head Coach Reid Ayers that he would be returning to the team. Andrews is back on the playing field this fall after taking a year off in 2004.
“I decided not to play last year because I had other commitments I wanted to attend to and decided to work rather than play on the men’s soccer team,” said Andrews. “I was still playing in a couple of leagues, but I just didn’t have the time that is required to play on the team.”
Andrews came to B-W following a stellar career at North Ridgeville High School where he earned four varsity letters in soccer, two in basketball and one letter in track. In soccer, he was named as the Division III Lorain County Player of the Year as a junior and again as a senior. Andrews received first-team All-Greater Cleveland, All-Lorain County, and All-Pioneer Conference honors in 2000 and 2001, along with third-team All-Ohio accolades. He was also selected as the “Most Valuable Player” both years.
Andrews was one of the premier offensive threats for the Yellow Jackets in 2002 as a freshman. He led the team with five goals scored and was tied for the team-lead with four assists for a team-high 14 total points on the season. Not bad statistics for a first year at the collegiate level, but the team finished with a 5-12-2 overall record and was under the guidance of a coach in his first season at the College.
The next season saw much improvement from the young team as they finished with a 12-7 overall record. Andrews was a force on the field again as he tallied five goals, which was tied for second-most on the team, and two assists. He was also second on the team to former fellow Ranger teammate Dave Mustar with 44 shots taken. Mustar had 45 total shots.
After missing the entire 2004 season in which Ayers and the Yellow Jackets experienced a record-breaking year with 14 wins, Andrews decided to get back on the field and around the game he has played for so many years. One member of the Yellow Jackets who knows Andrews the best is senior All-Great Lakes Region goalkeeper Nate Christian, also a 2002 graduate of North Ridgeville H.S.
“Geoff and I have been playing soccer together for about 12 years now,” said Christian, who is currently in his third season as the starter in goal at B-W. “We were teammates on the North Ridgeville Rockets, an amateur team, for four years. We played four more years together at North Ridgeville, and now at Baldwin-Wallace.”
Christian has been a major part of the Yellow Jackets’ success, recording a 0.95 goals-allowed-average a year ago. He has also recorded back-to-back eight shutout seasons en route to a school-record 18 career shutouts, including two already this year.
“I was very pleased when I heard that Geoff had made the decision to return and play his last year at B-W,” continued Christian. “I know that he had a very busy year with school and work last year, which unfortunately led him to sit out the season. Geoff is the type of person that you want as a teammate and will be a huge part of our team’s success this season.”
Andrews and Christian will be relied upon heavily to provide veteran leadership, as they are two of four seniors on the team, including one senior who is playing his first season of soccer. With such a young team, Ayers knows that both of these players will need to have solid seasons if the team is to reach their full potential.
“Geoff is a more mature player and has a better understanding of the game. He has accepted his role on the team and should be a key contributor for us,” said Ayers, who is in his fourth season at the College.
“He is a very skillful player who can break down defenses on the dribble and with his passing ability,” continued Ayers, who has a 34-25-1 record at B-W following a 2-1 win at Lake Erie College on Sept. 7. “He leads by example and has brought a renewed passion for the game that is carrying over to current team members and especially the freshmen. Geoff’s enthusiasm has been another breath of fresh air for our program.”
Since taking over the program prior to the 2002 season, Ayers, a native of Bay Village, has steadily built the Yellow Jackets into one of the best in the Ohio Athletic Conference and the Great Lakes Region of Division III. The team has been ranked regionally the past two years, including as high as second a year ago. B-W also was ranked 16th nationally in Division III in 2004.
The 2005 edition of the team is loaded with talent and potential. This factored into Andrews’ decision to return to the field.
“I really missed the competition and the feeling of being out there with a bunch of guys all striving toward the same goals,” said Andrews, who was named as the B-W Offensive Player of the Year as a freshman. “I worked hard this summer because I know that this is possibly my last chance to play at such a high level.”
After taking the year off, Andrews has picked up right where he left off. He scored his first goal of the season in a 3-0 win against Juniata (Pa.) College at the Penn State-Behrend Tournament on Sept. 4. The goal came off an assist from teammate and Elyria resident James Igneczi (Midview). He also recorded his first assist of the season in the win at Lake Erie.
“The team looks really good. The competition level is very high as we have two or three very talented players at every position,” said Andrews. “Because we are so strong and deep at every position, we have high expectations for the season.
“Everyone on the team has set the goal of becoming NCAA Division III National Champions,” said Andrews. Some might say the goal is too high, even though our team is as good as it is. However, I believe it is very possible since we all know what we want and know how hard we have to work to reach our goal.”
Andrews has also noticed a number of differences in just a few short weeks this season when compared to his first two years.
“The coaches have been very responsive to my return,” said Andrews. “I was expecting a lot more jokes and a hard time from the guys for not playing last year. I think they understood why I didn’t play. If I could have played last year, I would have.
“My freshman year was kind of interesting,” said Andrews. “There were a lot of good kids and players, but it was a mixture of kids from a past system and coach combined with a new coach and system. My sophomore year was better, as we won 12 games and were a lot more competitive. But overall, we were still a young and inexperienced team.
“Now, this team is led by several upperclassmen who have played a lot of minutes in a lot of important games. We now have the experience against tough opponents, including those in the OAC. A number of guys have played in Coach Ayers system for a couple of years now and things are really starting to come together. I am excited to be back and be a part of this team and program.”
Ayers and the rest of the Yellow Jacket coaching staff have large expectations for Andrews this season and look for him to play a significant role on the men’s soccer team.
“I am expecting him to score important goals for us, as he has shown an ability to make plays at critical times,” said Ayers. “I also look for Heoff to be an important team leader and steadying influence on our younger players. So far, he has shown the ability to make a difference.”
With hard work and dedication, Andrews knows that the sky is the limit for this year’s squad. If the team is able to reach its ultimate goals, chances are good that Andrews will have played a significant role in the success.
“I don’t really have any individual goals and I have never been a player to set them,” stated Andrews. “I believe that no single player is better than his or her team. I came into the year with the goal of winning the OAC Championship as well as the NCAA Division III Championship. I will do whatever it takes to help this team win, whether it is on the field trying to score goals or on the practice field trying to make other players better.
Andrews and the Yellow Jackets are back in action on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 10-11 when they travel to Louisville, Kentucky to participate at the Transylvania University Tournament. B-W plays the host school on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and then plays Hanover College of Indiana on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. in the round robin tourney format. Next weekend, Sept. 16-17, B-W travels to Ada, Ohio and Ohio Northern University to play at the OAC-MIAA (Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association) Challenge Tournament. On Friday (Sept. 16), B-W plays Kalamazoo (Mich.) College at 3:00 p.m. and on Saturday (Sept. 17) it plays Albion (Mich.) College at 12:30 p.m.
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