SALEM, Ore. -- The Willamette University men's soccer team has put together three consecutive winnings seasons. The Bearcats will look to make it four years in a row when they start the 2015 season on Thursday, Sept. 3 by hosting University of La Verne at 7 p.m. (PDT) on Sparks Field.
The Bearcats finished the 2012 season with a 10-7-2 overall record and then went 10-6-3 in 2013. Willamette was 13-5-2 in 2014.
WU also has compiled three straight winning records in the Northwest Conference. After going 7-5-2 in 2012, the Bearcats ended the 2013 season at 6-5-3 in the NWC. Last year, the Bearcats achieved a 10-2-2 record in the NWC to take second place, just one point behind Whitworth University, which won the title.
The team's top scorer from a year ago, Yazan Hishmeh (F, Ventura, CA/Saint Bonaventure HS), returns for his senior season. In 2014, Hishmeh scored 13 goals to tie for first place in the NWC. He earned three assists and concluded the season with 29 total points. Seven of his goals were game-winners for the Bearcats.
Overall, Willamette has it's top five scorers back from last year's team. In addition to Hishmeh, other key returning offensive players include Jesse Thompson (Sr., F, Santa Ynez, CA/Santa Ynez HS), Alan Hernandez (So., F, Tigard, OR/Tigard HS), Tyler Yates (Sr., F, Kailua-Kona, HI/Kealakehe HS) and Julian Hanlon-Austin (Jr., F, Portland, OR/Grant HS)
Thompson ranked second on the team last season with six goals and 12 total points. Hernandez added five goals and one assist for 11 points. Yates led the Bearcats with five assists and also scored one goal. Hanlon-Austin recorded two goals and two assists.
The Bearcats put the ball into the net 40 times last season and WU players earned 26 assists. A total of 21 players recorded at least one goal or one assist during the year.
Goalkeeper Braydon Calder (Sr., GK, Philomath, OR/Philomath HS) returns in goal after leading a solid defensive effort last fall. Calder and the defense shut out eight opponents and limited seven other opponents to just one goal.
Calder registered a 0.94 goals against average on his way to earning First Team All-NWC and Third Team All-West Region honors. He provided the Bearcats with 70 saves.
Other returning First Team All-NWC selections from Willamette are Hishmeh and Hanlon-Austin. Head Coach Lloyd Fobi was named NWC Men's Soccer Coach of the Year.
Key midfielders returning for the Bearcats this fall are Sebastian Mortimer (Sr., D, Moscow, ID/Moscow HS), Noah Walin (Jr., M, Makawao, HI/Seabury Hall), Eric Spresser (Sr., M, Pleasant Hill, OR/Pleasant Hill HS) and Garrett Ross (Sr., F, Pacific Palisades, CA/Oakwood Secondary).
Mortimer played in all 19 games in 2014 with 18 starts. He achieved one goal, while playing mostly in the defensive midfield. Walin saw action in 17 games (11 starts) and contributed one goal and three assists.
Spresser played in 10 games with three starts despite missing part of the season due to injury. Ross competed in 14 games and made four starts. he finished the year with two goals and one assist. Mortimer and Spresser can also play on defense.
The Bearcats will open the season with seven consecutive home games. Willamette will complete the homestand with the first two NWC games of the year when they battle Whitworth on Sept. 19 and take on Whitman College on Sept. 20.
