New coach reloads team with several top recruits

For the first time in school history, IU soccer's recruiting class was headed by someone other than Jerry Yeagley.\nIn his first year taking over for former coach Yeagley, Mike Freitag inherited the reigning national champions and completed his first ever recruiting class, which garnered the No. 14 ranking in the nation, according to College Soccer News.\nThe list includes: Ian Clair (Telford, Pa.), Erek Kozlowski (Westerville, Ohio), John Mellencamp (West Chester, Ohio), Kevin Noschang (Cincinnati, Ohio), Doug Reisinger (Lewis Center, Ohio), Kiki Wallace (Bloomington), Billy Weaver (Lake Orion, Mich.) and Brad Yuska (Corte Madera, Calif.).\n"I think our class is a very good one. One that will contribute to IU soccer," Freitag said. "It's a tough task for (the recruits) trying to do it with a veteran squad, but they will be up to fight for playing time. We have a very strong squad from top to bottom, and hopefully we'll meet our challenges and get right back on track."\nNine starters return from the 2003 National Championship team, which welcomes back forward Mike Ambersley, who sat out all of last season for disciplinary reasons. \nWith an established core intact, playing time will be at a premium for the recruits, but having extreme depth at numerous positions is a situation Freitag said he welcomes with open arms. \n"With any kid, I am hoping he can contribute right away. That will be determined when they get here," he said. "Hopefully our older players in the program will be better than our freshmen. It should be difficult for freshmen to play at a top program. At the same time, I know the men we have coming in are very talented and have the potential to play right away."\nThis season, the Hoosiers face six of the nation's top 20 recruiting classes, while UCLA, who IU defeated in last year's quarterfinals, earned College Soccer News No.1 recruiting class. \nLast year's championship certainly helps the recruiting process, but Freitag said last year's run can also sway certain potential recruits to play elsewhere.\n"A lot of it depends on the confidence of the player you are talking to," Freitag said. "We've had some players we have gone after that aren't sure if they can play here with so many good players. With that said, I'd prefer it to be this way then it being the other way." \nIU was the lone Big Ten squad in the top 15 recruiting classes while the Atlantic Coast Conference saw six of its teams fill the top 15.\n"It's (rankings) all in the eyes of the beholder," Freitag said. "I don't know who says what class is better than another, but it's just that person's opinion. There are kids on the national teams I would not recruit, and players on other teams that I would. It's not bad stuff, it's just someone's opinion."\nAs the recruiting class comes in, the Hoosiers will lose Drew Shinabarger, Vjay Dias and Ned Grabavoy from last year's championship team. \nHowever, Grabavoy said he feels confident in the Hoosiers continuing on last year's success.\n"Even though the team lost myself, Vijay and Shiny (Shinabarger), they always seem to find guys that will run up and down the field," Grabavoy said. "They get Ambersely back and a more mature (Jacob) Peterson. This is the kind of year they will be ranked really high going in and will have to prove themselves when everyone is gunning for them."\nBut with an established core of solid players, former IU stars such as New England Revolution forward Pat Noonan said he sees a bright future under the new coach.\n"I'm sure Freitag will continue the success," he said. "Everyone has no doubt he will succeed in taking over the program. It's pride, really."\n-- Contact staff writer Daniel Cohen at djcohen@indiana.edu.