Page 8 Fyve on $P° The Lion’s Eye October, 2 2006 Kickin’ Up the Year By HISHAM RAHMI Assistant soccer coach Special to the Lion's Eye Fall of 2006 has been the best start of a season for soc- cer at Penn State Delaware County in a long time. The ‘team 1s currently standing with a record of 5-0-1. The players of the team include: Kevin Cress, Dan Delviscio, Harry Chin, Corey Gabriella, Jim Bergen, Matthew Jones, Fadi Elamin, Tedros Asmelash, Victor Adu-Boahene, Del Hazeley, Alex Moore, Abdelaziz Elmadani, Abdulfatah Muktar, Mohamed Mahgoub, Dennis Nicholson, Ejaj Uddin, \, Fodny Sayen. 8 and Delco's first four-year Seniors EE ok ames KCVIN Reigner and Each player brings a special aspect to the team. Adu- brings he pressure to Kevin Cress, Abdelaziz Imadani and Matthew Jones balance the mid-field along with Jim Bergen, whose abil- ity to control the ball and create opportunities for team- mates has helped the team to come out on top. Foday Sayon's vision of the game has helped the team to make multiple offensive attacks. Ejaj Uddin is probably the most underestimated player on the team. He may be the smallest guy on the team, but his heart and desire to play the game is big- | ger than any I player on the || field. He con- tinues to frus- trate opponents by not giving themchances to develop any- | thing offensive- ly. Our back Critter, whose composure and leadership has eliminated scoring Oppor- tunities for the opponents. Dennis iNicholson brings speed, strength and aggressiveness to clear the ball on the wing. Del "lazeley brings experience to strengthen the back line. Goal Keeper, Kwesi Cato, continually improves his game in the net. His goal-keeping skills have helped the team to win tough games at home and on the road. The more games he plays, the more confident Kwesi is in goal. This year he is one of the best, if not the best, goal-keeper in the league. The team this year has a lot of skill, talent, speed, strength and experience. From the starters to the bench, there isn't a single weak link on the team. Coach Jim Gastner has done a phenomenal job of connecting all of Photo by _ Athletic Dept. [= Penn State Delco’s Soccer Captain, Christopher Wrigley the pieces together that his players bring to make one solid team. A percentage of the players on the team are fasting dur- ing this holy month of Ramadan in Islam. While most will see it as an obstacle for the team, the players do not show it and have learned to overcome that obstacle. Not being able to eat or drink during the day takes energy away, | from the players. But the game of soccer raises that energy and makes it difficult to point out which players on the field are fasting. Although throughout the day eating and drinking come to mind, after the referee blows the whis- tle, the only thing that matters is winning and playing a good game. This year's team is history in the making. Do not miss the opportunity to see a game this year. The team looks forward to winning its first championship in a long time. Since the team is currently in first place, Coach Gastner's plan is to "concentrate on each game one at a time." The team has become a "powerhouse" at Penn State Delaware County. - Athletic Conference (PSU - AC). By MATT SCHOENBERG Staff writer mfs5033@psu.edu One might wonder how this year's Penn State football team can live up to last year's team. Last season, the Nittany Lions finished 11-1, winning an exciting triple overtime thriller against Florida State in the Orange Bowl. The team was led by Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Michael Robinson. Michael Robinson is now gone after being drafted in the fourth round by the San Francisco 49ers. How do Penn State stu- dents feel about this sea- son? This question was answered when season tickets for this year were sold out in record time. It took only 13 days for all 21,000 tickets to sell. Hundreds of students complained about why there were not enough tickets. University Park Freshman, Matt Ng said, "I was mad because I wanted to go, but I can't because there were no more tickets. I couldn't believe they sold out so quickly." Despite the disappointment it created, the sell out “It took only 13 days for all 21,000 tickets to sell.” Penn State Football Frenzy showed that the students are l excited about the {@ ncw season. : Many won- dered if 79-year- old coach Joe Paterno would return for his | 41st season as Penn State's head coach. Ng said, "I think that he should come back because he has a lot of wis- dom. He's been around for a long time and he should decide when to call it quits." After coming off one of his best seasons, Paterno was named Associated Press Coach of the Year. After much consideration, Paterno decided to come back for another season as coach. There is a lot to be excited about this year including veteran stars Paul Posluszny, Tim Shaw, and Dan Connor. According to Sports Illustrated's College Football 2006 Preview, these players could form one of the greatest line backing units in Penn State history. fii | Sports Illustrated also stated that Junior Quarterback Anthony Morelli is the key player in order for Penn |} State to have a successful football season. If he can tun into the type of balanced, veteran player that Joe : Paterno hopes he can be, and can be a 65% passer, Perin State will turn out to be in the mix for a piece of the Big Ten title. Another exciting player to keep an eye on 1s Senior Tailback, Tony Hunt. He rushed for over 1,000 yards and can also catch passes in the | backfield. This new 2006 Penn State team appears to have a bright future. The Lions are hyped from last year and Paterno's program seems to be on pace for another Bowl Championship Series (BCS) run very soon. Alan Zemaitis shows the opposing team who’s the boss.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers