Jarom Jordan
jarom.jordan@byu.edu

Full Game Notes – PDF

PROVO, Utah (May 23, 2011) — In the first of four meetings this season including two this week, BYU (5-2-1 overall, 0-2-1 PDL) will play in-state rival Ogden (0-2-1) on Tuesday, May 24 at 8 p.m. MT in Provo. The game will be broadcast live on BYUtv and www.byutv.org/live.

UP NEXT
The Cougars will play at Ogden this Saturday at 6 p.m. MT.

COUGAR QUICK HITS
-BYU welcomes back 10 returned missionaries from two year LDS missions across the globe for the 2011 season who were on the team prior to their missions in 2008. Those include Colby Bauer (Oregon), Will Burton (Mexico), Easton Folster (Argentina), Scott Heaton (Japan), Jonathan Junca (Chile), Garrett Losee (Puerto Rico), Mike Moreno (San Diego), Derek Taylor (New Jersey), McKay Corbett (Canada), and Jace Green.

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Jarom Jordan

PDF Game Notes

PROVO, Utah (May 17, 2011) — The first home game of the Premier Development League season for the BYU Cougars (5-1-1) is this Friday, May 20 at 8 p.m. MT at the Stadium at South Field versus the Fresno Fuego (2-0-2). The game will be televised live on BYUtv and online at www.byutv.org/live.

“It’s going to be fun to play in front of a home crowd,” said assistant coach, Chad Sackett. “The opportunity to play Fresno again is big time. They have a great organization. They possess the ball well. They’ve got some guys up top who can hold the ball pretty well. We need to use our width to our advantage because of our wide field.”

It is the second time BYU will play Fresno in nine days as the Cougars opened the PDL season at Fresno on Thursday, May 12, losing 2-0. The Fuego have won three in a row against BYU and own the series history (6-3) dating back to 2003. The Fuego are led by Milton Blanco and Andrew Campbell who lead the team with two goals each.

“This week we’re looking to continue what we did last time,” said BYU senior goalkeeper, Cory Cosgrave. “We started knocking the ball around pretty well. We gave up the two goals when we hit a wall in the 70th minute. We want to con- tinue to improve at the end of the match again.”

UP NEXT
BYU will play its only midweek game of the season against the Ogden Outlaws on Tuesday, May 24 at 8 p.m. MT. The game will be live on BYUtv and online at www.byutv.org/live with Robbie Bullough doing play-by-play and former Cougar, Hugh Van Wagenen doing color commentary.

COUGAR QUICK HITS
-BYU welcomes back 10 returned missionaries from two year LDS missions across the globe for the 2011 season who were on the team prior to their missions in 2008. Those include Colby Bauer (Oregon), Will Burton (Mexico), Easton Folster (Argentina), Scott Heaton (Japan), Jonathan Junca (Chile), Garrett Losee (Puerto Rico), Mike Moreno (San Diego), Derek Taylor (New Jersey), McKay Corbett (Canada), and Jace Green.
-Five starters return to the team including BJ Pugmire, Tyler Christiansen, Toni Niccoli, Doug Clark, and James Bindrup.
-Seven of BYU’s eight home games will be televised live nationally on BYUtv and online at www.byutv.org/live
-The Cougars went 3-0 in the fall season with victories against Utah State, Weber State, and Utah Valley. In the spring non-conference season the Cougars beat UNLV on the road, Utah Valley at home, and defeated three Puerto Rico professional clubs (Mayaguez, Fenix, and Bayamon) to go 5-0.
-BYU competes in the top U23 semi-professional soccer league in the nation (Premier Development League). BYU players are not paid and do not have scholarships.

GAME #8 FAST FACTS
Fresno Fuego (2-0-2) vs. BYU Cougars (5-1-1)
Friday, May 20, 2011 at 8 p.m. MT
Stadium at South Field in Provo, UT

Coaches
Fresno-Scott Alcorn (34-20-14, 5th Season)
BYU-Chris Watkins (236-70-20, 17th Season)

TV
BYUtv (Jarom Jordan, play-by-play; Hugh Van Wagenen, color commentator; Lakia Holmes, sideline)

FRESNO FUEGO PROFILE
Record: 2-0-2, 8 points (2nd in PDL Southwest)
2010 Record: 8-4-4, 28 points (4th in PDL Southwest)
Highlights:
-Defeated BYU 2-0 on Thursday, May 12 in Chukchansi Park in Fresno, CA
-Led by Milton Blanco and Andrew Campbell who have two goals each
-Pitched three straight shutouts to start the season before giving up two goals to Ogden in a 4-2 win last Saturday
-Fresno has won three in a row against BYU and leads the series 6-3 with a +9 (20-11) goal differential.

Follow the Cougars on byusoccer.com and twitter.com/byusoccer.Tweet

Here’s three videos from Tuesday morning’s practice with assistant coach, Chad Sackett; senior goalkeeper, Cory Cosgrave; and junior midfielder, James Bindrup.

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Junior midfielder, Connor Bassett gives his weekly thoughts about the team in “On the Pitch”.

I won’t spent too much time on the games.  I won’t make excuses, either.  By now, you probably already know the results: 2-0 at Fresno and 1-1 at Orange County.  I will say, however, that our team is excited and optimistic for the future.  The results from the past weekend don’t necessarily say it, but this is a good team.  If you’re still a skeptic then come and watch this Friday night when we take on the Fresno Fuego again at South Field.

Also, the comeback equalizer at Orange County was hard-fought.  We learned a lot about ourselves and our ability to fight back. I’ll venture to say that our strong desire to keep a never-say-never attitude will prove advantageous in the future.

Results aside, the weekend was a good experience for the team.  BJ Pugmire’s family was very generous.  We spent some time in their home playing pool, watching movies, joking around and having fun.  I should note here that BJ’s dad proved that he is true a master of the grill — the Pugmire’s dinner was undoubtedly the best we’ve had together all season long.

We also found out some other interesting, off-the-field things about each other.  For example, Coach Watkins is easily scared and is totally incapable of watching even semi scary movies.  Toni Nicoli is probably the worst pool player on the team, consequently he relays on technicalities to win games.  Easton Folster and myself proved to me the most surprising pool-playing-duo.  With Easton’s clutch play and my careful particularity, we were able to upset Coach Clay Christensen and Doug Clark (which was possibly one of the biggest upsets in team history).  Also, Junior Lartey is a true fisherman and, had he been given more time, I have no doubt that he could have fed the whole team with fish from the mall’s pond.

Most importantly, we learned that our teammates have the will to comeback from unfortunate results.  Coach Watkins probably said it best following the loss at Fresno: “BYU never quits.”Tweet

FRESNO, California (May 12, 2011) – The BYU men’s soccer team dropped its season opener on the road at Chukchansi Park Thursday night against the Fresno Fuego, 2-0.  It is the first season opening loss for the Cougars since 2004 and just the second season opening loss ever.

“I thought we played very well for the majority of the game,” said BYU head coach, Chris Watkins. “We had some great chances. Fresno is a great team. We really looked sharp. For much of the game we felt like we had the advantage. Once they scored that first goal we lost the momentum. We gave up the ball right in front of our own goal. It took out our heart. “

BYU (0-1-0) created several quality scoring opportunities but were shutout. Junior midfielder Doug Clark had a shot from distance in the first half that was saved by the finger tips of Fuego goalkeeper, Gilbert Vega. BYU also missed a chance after a great buildup from a Cory Cosgrave goal kick resulting in sophomore forward, Garrett Losee beating the keeper on a header but a defender cleared the ball on the endline.

After a scoreless shutout at halftime, Fresno (1-2-0) got on the board in the 65th minute when Jose Cuevas (1) scored the first goal in three games for Fresno. In the 80th minute the Fuego put the game away with a strike from Andrew Campbell (1).

“I thought we played pretty well for about 60 minutes,” said senior midfielder, BJ Pugmire. “In the first half it was a very even game. We possessed it well. In the second half we played balls a little longer, looking for a goal and weren’t patient in the buildup. We’ve found some places to improve where we can excel.”

The Cougars completed 168 passes on the night and BJ Pugmire, Garrett Losee, and Ethan Meyer received yellow cards. Fresno now leads the series history, 6-3 with a nine goal differential. They’ve won the last four meetings dating back to 2007.

BYU will travel south to Irvine, California to play the Orange County Blue Star on Saturday at 5 p.m. at Concordia University. The Blue Star lead the PDL with nine goals in two games, both wins to lead the Southwest Division with six points. The Cougars look to beat the Blue Star for the first time in program history (0-8-3 all-time).

Follow the Cougars on www.byusoccer.com and Twitter.Tweet

Junior midfielder, Connor Bassett gives his weekly thoughts about the team in “On the Pitch”.

We’ve been waiting for this week since August.  After nearly nine months of preparation, this team is ready to reclaim its spot among the PDL’s best.  The memories of last season’s disappointments are forgotten, and the opportunity to claim six points this weekend is the thought on all our minds.

If this isn’t the most talented BYU in recent years, then certainly it’s the most unified.  Since February, Coach Watkins has encouraged “team unity” while placing a particular emphasize on positive feedback, personal accountability, and accepting responsibility for our teammates.  Furthermore, cultivating a kind of brotherly bond has helped our team to succeed in achieving our preferred style of play—keeping possession of the ball.

For the past several weeks, Coach Watkins has a new phrase on his lips: “Create a rhythm!” In fact, almost every other sentence he says, I think, is, “create a rhythm.”  This has become a kind of buzz-phrase in our recent training sessions (Toni Niccoli seems to like it as much as Coach!). What Coach means, of course, is that he wants us to move the ball quickly from player to player, creating a long series of completed passes.  Doing this requires a great deal of off-the-ball movement and precisely timed runs (both of which have also been frequent topics of our practices so far this year).  This style of play not only creates goal-scoring opportunities, but is also enjoyable to watch—and we like pleasing our fans!

Today our practice was focused on scoring goals (which hasn’t been much of a problem for this team so far).  We spend a lot of time playing small-sided games and taking shot and after shot.  BJ Pugmire might have been the leading scorer for the day, but yours truly scored the day’s final three goals which allowed the Green Team to finish as champions!  Sorry, BJ.  Also, today we were joined by former BYU wide receiver Todd Watkins.  And in case you were wondering, Todd, who had two goals of his own, is a much better wide-receiver-turned-soccer-player than Chad Ochocinco.

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BYU Assistant Coach, Clay Christenson gives his thoughts about the team “From the Box”.

It’s been a great preseason. Not only have the players worked extremely hard, but they’ve had good match results. Of course not much of that matters when they hit the field Thursday night against the Fresno Fuego, but everyone is excited to prove themselves this year in the Premier Development League. The team has been working on fitness and training since January, so the season is definitely a nice welcome for the guys.

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Provo, Utah (Feb. 26, 2011) — After a three day trial with 107 participants, Chris Watkins and the BYU coaching staff have a roster of 22 players for the upcoming summer Premier Development League season.

“It was a really good group, really deep,” said BYU head coach, Chris Watkins.  “We settled on 22 we are very happy with.  I’m excited to get to work with them.”

The roster includes nine returners from last year’s PDL roster, eight returned missionaries, two freshman who joined the team in the fall and three players who made the fall team and made Saturday’s final cut.

BYU’s five incoming freshman who are currently in high school will join the 22 when they graduate in June.  Two more returned missionaries, Jace Green and Mckay Corbett, will also join the team in April and May.

“It’s a very good class (of returned missionaries),” said Watkins.  “It’s a good group coming back.”

BYU’s spring exhibition schedule features a trip to UNLV at the end of March and a week in Puerto Rico in April.

“We’re young, there’s no doubt about that,” added Watkins.  “I’m excited.  We had a good fall with the core of this group who did a really good job of playing quickly, smart, and as a team.”

2011 PDL Roster
Connor Bassett
Colby Bauer
James Bindrup
Will Burton
Tyler Christiansen
Doug Clark
Cory Cosgrave
Easton Folster
Garrett Gee
Sterling Hancock
Scott Heaton
Jonathan Junca
Matt Kimball
Junior Lartey
Garrett Losee
Ethan Meyer
Mike Moreno
Toni Niccoli
BJ Pugmire
Jantzen Romney
Lance Smith
Derek Taylor

Incoming Freshman
Dallin Cutler
Josh Hunter
Trevor Lesueur
Jerry Dearden
Winstron Sorthaitz

Watch an interview with Chris Watkins and two videos from the photo shoot, Saturday night in the Indoor Practice Facility on campus.

Follow the Cougars on:
Official Website-www.byusoccer.com
Twitter-www.twitter.com/byusoccer
YouTube-www.youtube.com/byumensoccerTweet

Here’s a sidenote story about former Cougar, Steve Magleby who recently had sports hernia surgery.  His path to a successful surgery sent him through Andy Reid, head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.  Check this out…

Steve wrote an email to BYU athletic trainer, Deniece Oates asking her opinion of the symptoms he had and what a doctor in Denmark (where Steve is playing professionally) had told him.  Deniece told him she thought it sounded like a sports hernia and sent him a link to some info about it.  She got some info for him about a doctor in Germany who specializes in sports hernias, and has developed a surgery for it.

She also told him about the few specialists there are in the US, including one in Philadelphia that also does the surgery. The one in Philadelphia is the one BYU sends its football players to.  She told him it was important to go to a specialist for the sports hernia surgery, as few are experienced at it, and BYU has had problems with someone close by who has not been doing the surgery BYU thought he was doing. She also told him the problems BYU has found with trying to avoid surgery.  Players have always come back to needing the surgery.

As Steve was going to Maryland for Christmas, he got an MRI through his father-in-law.  His Dad called BYU athletic director, Tom Holmoe about the Philadelphia surgeon.  Tom Holmoe called Eagles head coach, Andy Reid in Philadelphia, and Reid called the surgeon and Steve had surgery a few days later.Tweet

BJ Pugmire and the Cougars went undefeated during the fall season. (BYU Photo)

Jarom Jordan
jarom.jordan@byu.edu

PROVO, Utah (Nov. 29, 2010) — After a summer season in the Premier Development League with tough competition and 4-10-2 record, BYU ripped through its fall exhibition season, going undefeated and netting multiple goals in every game to take a step forward in preparation for next year.

“I’m very happy with this team,” said Watkins. “As we thought, it’s not the most talented team but they really work together for each other. They are fun to be around. I’m excited to see where we can go.”

The Cougars schedule featured three in-state teams, all home games and a contest against the BYU alumni and a scrimmage against BYU-Idaho.

September 24 BYU opened its three-week slate with a matchup against the Utah State Aggies.  BYU outshot USU 21-3, possessing the ball nearly the entire game.  The Cougars got goals from Tyler Christiansen (3′), Jantzen Romney (42′), and Kip Critchlow (67′) for a 3-1 win.

Two weeks later on October 8 the Cougars had a cat fight with the Weber State Wildcats.  The game got messy with eight yellow cards and three reds against WSU while BYU also earned a yellow and red.  The Cougars won 2-0 with both goals coming from senior forward, BJ Pugmire.

“We’ve got passion,” said Pugmire. “The guys really want to win. We’ve got desire. We’ve got the players and talent. It’s fun. There’s still a lot of work to do but it’s better. It’s so fun to play with these guys.”

Later that evening the BYU Alumni played the Utah Valley University Alumni to a 3-0 win with a hat trick coming from BYU head coach, Chris Watkins.

The next day BYU played the BYU Alumni, whomping the old-timer’s, 9-0.  The Alumni also scrimmaged each other resulting in an 8-7 win for the, yep you guess it, Cougars.

The final game of the fall was October 15 when BYU played Utah Valley in the “University Parkway Collision”.  The Cougars amazingly didn’t allow a shot while putting in five on the Wolverines for a shutout victory.

The next afternoon the BYU reserves defeated sister-school, BYU-Idaho 2-1.

BYU finished the fall undefeated at 3-0 (beating Utah State, Weber State, Utah Valley), outscoring its opponents 10-1.  Tyler Christiansen, Jantzen Romney, BJ Pugmire, and Blake Tillotson scored two goals each while Kip Critchlow and Doug Clark had a goal a piece.

Clark, Toni Niccoli, and Romney all added two assists and Pugmire and Ethan Meyer had one assist each.

Romney finished first in points with six, trailed by Pugmire with five, and Clark, Tillotson, and Christiansen with four.

“From our first fall game to the last fall game, seeing that progression is what we want,” said assistant coach, Chad Sackett.  “All in all, pretty good.”

“I feel like we have a style,” said senior defender, Tyler Christiansen. “I credit that a lot to our center midfielders who are very confident receiving the ball and moving forward with it. That was something I feel really good about.”

The Cougars now take a break until the first week in January when the team will begin to train for tryouts in February and the PDL season next May.

Listen to an audio interview with head coach, Chris Watkins about the fall season.

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