HAWKS MEN’S SOCCER THRILLED TO HIT THE FIELD TOGETHER ONCE AGAIN

NORFOLK, Neb.  – The Northeast Community College men's soccer team experienced a historic season in 2022 and they are ready to make more noise with a new season nearing. The Hawks debuted No. 7 in the NJCAA DII Men's Soccer Preseason Rankings and will hit the pitch for the first time at 12 p.m. Thursday in a battle with No. 17 Schoolcraft College.

Head Men's Soccer Coach Adam Potter earned the title of ICCAC Coach of the Year and was honored by the United Soccer Coaches as the Plains Region Staff of the Year after his first season in charge of the Hawks and is looking to achieve even higher highs in Year Two. After a scrimmage against NCAA DI Missouri State University and a few weeks of practice Potter likes what he has seen from his squad early on.

"My first initial thought is that the quality is there," Potter said. "One big thing that we talked about before we played Missouri State is an acronym W.I.N. That stood for what's important now. We have to focus on what's happening now and what we need to do to find success. When those things happen, a lot of good things will come to this group. There are a lot of positive things coming out of our scrimmage. Overall, my impression of this team is that I'm very happy and the talent is there. It's the nature of us wanting it and us wanting to conquer each day at a time."

The men's soccer program reached new highs never before seen as they were consistently ranked, won both their region and district championships and appeared at the national tournament. Last year is last year and this season Northeast knows they won't be able to sneak up on anyone.

"This year we are going to need a totally different mentality and we are going to have to bring our best every single day," Potter said. "Everyone is going to throw their best punch. You have to be able to work every single time you lace up your shoes. You have to be ready to go and to put in the work. We are going to have to be ready to go to war. Everyone is going to want to knock us off."

Jeevan Purewal (Wolverhampton, England) won nearly everything there is to win during his freshman campaign as he was awarded with First Team All-Region honors, appeared on the Region 11 All-Tournament Team and was named First Team All-American. Potter is thrilled to have a player of his caliber back for another season.

"Jeevan came in day one last year and acted like he owned the place," Potter said. "He has done a fantastic job. This season he has commanded the room and has corralled the guys. He has done a fantastic job on and off the field in everything that he does. It's not just his talent on the field but it is his ability to help this group grow. He pushes and encourages this team to achieve greatness. He wants to win in everything. He is a guy that programs want to have to take those next steps to chase greatness. It is really important that we have a guy like that back in here to set the tone."

Luca Baltzer (Oberstenfeld, Germany) is back with the Hawks after being named First Team All-Region and Second Team All-American in 2022, Teun van der Donk (Rotterdam, Netherlands) returns after a First Team All-Region and Second Team All-American campaign last season and Tom Hennah (Little Sandhurst, England) is back for his second season at Northeast after being awarded Second Team All-Region.

"Tom and Teun are both back off the back line," Potter said. "Luca is our engine in the middle. He is very vocal and is our glue piece in the central midfield. He holds us all together while commanding traffic."

Potter has one memento from last year's success hanging above his office desk in the form of a canvas picture of Sergio Aspas (Valencia, Spain) celebrating a goal. Not just any goal, however, as Aspas was celebrating the first goal in the history of the men's soccer program at the national tournament against Massasoit Community College last November. The Spainard's two goals on the big stage was enough to be named to the 2022 NJCAA DII Men's Soccer National Tournament All-Tournament Team.

"Sergio was a guy that came on strong late in the year up top," Potter said. "He has just really blossomed from the end of last year. He put in a lot of work over the spring and over the summer. We are really excited to see Sergio take another step and another leap in his career this upcoming fall."

Finding replacements for a team that accomplished so much is never easy, but Potter knew there was one area in particular where his group could have some improvement.

"One big piece for us this offseason as we looked at our recruiting class was we felt like we struggled in the central midfield and we only had a handful of goals and assists combined out of that position," Potter said. "That was a big struggle for us to generate opportunities out of there. We feel like we have a couple of guys in there now that can cause damage and create havoc. Luca Rosen (London, England) is a guy that can come in and cement himself and do great things for us. Edouard Nys (Dottignies, Belgium) has been coming on strong in training camp and has been really doing well. He can play anywhere up top or in the central midfield."

There have been a few additions defensively as well that will look to contribute on day one.

"We have a center back out of Davis and Elkins College named Sergio Aznar (Zaragoza, Spain). He has come from a top five NCAA Division II program and knows what a winning culture is. He knows what it takes to find success. Bringing that into our program has been really good. Pedro Santos (Sete Lagoas, Brazil) came to us in January from Brazil and really understands what we are looking for and what we are trying to do. From the moment he came to us he has wanted to dominate every training session, every drill and every activity. He has been named our team captain for the year and we are really excited about what he can bring to the table and what he can bring to the group to take those next steps."

When Potter heads to Norfolk Veterans Memorial Field for practice there is one thing that truly has him excited.

"I love seeing the potential that this group has," Potter said. "When we walk out to training we get to work with a group of guys with a ton of talent. We are really excited to see what this group can do. The thing that excites me the most is seeing what's next. How much growth can happen? That's the magic of a junior college. You get to mesh 15-18 new guys every single year. You get to see these guys grow as one. It's our job as coaches to learn what makes every group tick. It's so exciting when you are out there with the guys."

Potter will be joined by Northeast alumnus Felipe Santos and Briar Cliff University former player Jesus Sanchez on the bench this year and has already noticed the impact that his staff has brought to the squad.

"These guys have great experience from both the four-year level and Northeast," Potter said. "It's been really great to throw ideas off of them. It helps us all grow as one. I really enjoy having these guys part of this family because they want to make it happen. They want to help push this team to the next level. You can see how much they care about these guys."

There are a few things that Potter has on his mind as far as how he will evaluate this team at the end of the year.

"We don't quit," Potter said. "No matter the game. No matter the day. No matter the time. No matter what adversity is going on throughout the season. I want to be able to walk off the field at the end of the year and say that this team laid it on the line. They poured it out for the person next to them. They gave it everything they had every single time. They walked into every session and every game leaving every ounce of blood, sweat and tears out on the field."

Hawks fans will have the chance to see the 2023 team live for the first time at home at 2 p.m. Wednesday, August 23 at Norfolk Veterans Memorial Field in Norfolk when they take on Southeast Community College.

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