Defiance College 2020-21 men's soccer season preview

DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Defiance College men's soccer team, who was picked sixth in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference preseason poll, will host Bluffton on Tuesday, March 2 at 3:30 pm to open the 2020-21 season. The team, led by second-year head coach Cory Bucur, went 9-9-2 last season and 4-4-1 in HCAC play.

"After having a successful fall of 2019 in terms of building off of years prior and creating an environment where everyone is working hard while still enjoying their soccer we know we have to score more goals in conference play to accomplish the goals we set for ourselves as a program," said Bucur. "Our current team goals are conference driven and we are still fortunate to compete against the teams in the great conference that we have. We have a group of 11 seniors who have put so much of their time and effort into the program that we are hoping to send them off the right way."

Key returners for the Yellow Jackets include seniors Bennett Pack and Christian Rennie and sophomores Orry Killam and Noah Svanberg. All four were named HCAC Players to Watch for the upcoming season.

Rennie led the Yellow Jackets with 15 points (six goals and three assists) last season. The forward will look to continue to be an offensive factor for the Yellow Jackets. Defiance also has the rest of their top four scorers from last season back. Svanberg finished last season tied for the second-most points on the team with senior Jarren Casto. Both players recorded 14 points from five goals and four assists. Armando Campos-Ortiz was the fourth-leading scoring for the Jackets last year netting five goals, three of them game-winners.

"It was exciting that three of our top four goal scorers were new to the program in 2019 and they now have had a year's worth of practice and experience to figure out how to build off of last season," said Bucur. "Jarren is a player who knows how to get the ball in the back of the net no matter the drill we are running or the surface we are playing on. He makes our other scorers try to raise their game to top his. Christian and Armando have that flair factor to their game that can defy opposing teams' defensive plans when they can do something unexpected and Noah is a guy that will always make the right play at the right time and get himself in positions to be successful."

Pack, a defender, earned an All-HCAC Honorable Mention nod after starting all 20 games and anchoring a defense that totaled five shutouts. He also logged an assist. Other key defensive returnees include Darrien Brooks and Carson Macklin, who each started 14 games.

"Bennett is our ultimate lead by example student-athlete. He has been a captain since his sophomore year and has put in the appropriate preparation to have his senior year be his best one. He is truly an extension of the coaching staff on the field in the way he can organize and understand what we want to do on the field and the way opponents will try and play against us." said Bucur.

Killam is the top returning goalkeeper for Defiance. The sophomore made six appearances and five starts last season, recording a 1-2-1 record with 35 saves. Killam recorded two of Defiance's five shutouts last season.

"Orry is a player who should impress a lot of different people this season. He came in as a freshman and earned a lot of key starts in highly competitive games and has only improved from what he was able to do in the fall," Bucer said of the young goalkeeper. "He simply finds a way for his team to win in every drill we do and continues to get better because Austin Boles has just about matched every big save he makes in training. Our goalkeeping room has been a great place for development even before I got to Defiance and I am glad the tradition is continuing strong."

Bucur also praised the work effort and leadership of Nick Stifel, Alex Moore, and Anthony Kostecki, saying "Nick, Alex, and Anthony have gone above and beyond what I've asked from them and impressed both the coaching staff and their teammates since we've started practice way back in the fall."

"Nick has achieved the most growth from one year to the next than anyone I have gotten to coach before and has earned every opportunity that has come his way. He has always been a vocal leader whether on the field or on the bench but he has elevated his game to such a level that it's almost impossible to take him off the field because of what he brings to the team." Stifel appeared in 13 games last season.

Moore has started 17 games in his career, logging a goal and a pair of assists. "Alex is a player who started the first couple of games last season but some injuries hindered his impact throughout the year. He is another guy that always makes the right play and the right time and physically is at a place where he can compete with anyone we go against," said Bucur.

Kostecki appeared in five games last season and recorded an assist and four shots. "Anthony is an example of what buying in and putting in the work can do for a player. He wasn't on the travel roster for some away games last season and took the offseason to focus on what I asked of him and has completely changed his situation. He brings that similar flair of Christian and Armando and now has added in the goal-scoring ability to create big moments for us in-game," said Bucur.

"As a program overall, the guys have done an excellent job of understanding my expectations of them and implementing what we needed to improve on from last season to get to where we want to be," Bucur added. "There are plenty of guys who have stepped up as well and the buy-in we have as a program is what allows me to come into work with a smile on my face and enjoy every interaction I get to have with each member of our program."

This season will look very different than one's past but Bucur and his squad are up for the challenge. "The season may be different in the time of year we play and structure but we are treating it like nothing is different. There is plenty of history to be made here for the Defiance College Men's Soccer program and we promise we will do our best this season to start accomplishing some of those things." Bucur remarked.