Cougar Invitational '99
The Mount Vernon Nazarene College men's soccer team will host the 1999 Pizza Hut Cougar Invitational on Friday and Saturday at Cougar Field on the MVNC campus.
The first match on Friday will feature Bryan (TN) College versus Trinity Christian (IL) College at 2:00 p.m. MVNC will then face Huntington (IN) College in the second match at 4:00 p.m.
The Lions of Bryan are coming off a 13-6-2 season in which they won the Tennessee-Virginia Athletic Conference title. Bryan was ranked #32 in the NAIA preseason poll, and the Lions are off to a 1-1 start in 1999 with the one loss coming in overtime.
The Trinity Christian Trolls are off to a 2-1 start in 1999 with a match against the University of St. Francis (IL) scheduled for Wednesday night. Junior forward Wally Ottenhoff leads the team with three goals, while four other players have scored one goal apiece.
The Foresters of Huntington will come into the tournament with a 1-1 record. The team opened the season with a 4-1 victory over Franklin (IN) College before falling to Goshen (IN) College 1-0 in overtime. Freshman forward Tim Caldwell recorded a hat trick with three goals against Franklin.
MVNC is off to a 3-1 start in 1999, and the Cougars are ranked #30 in the latest NAIA national poll. Junior forward Josh Robson leads the team with five goals, and he was selected as the American Mideast Conference and NAIA Region IX Player of the Week for his performances last week. Junior midfielder Rick Collins leads the team with three assists, while freshman goalkeeper Trevor Knowles has been outstanding in goal for MVNC.
"This should be another great weekend of soccer with many thanks going to our friends at Pizza Hut," said head coach Paul Furey. "Dan Peters and Bruce Polce have been such a terrific support to our program, and they have helped us to feature what I feel is one of the best tournaments in the Mideast."
This year's tournament marks the ninth straight year that Pizza Hut has been the sponsor for this event. The Cougars will be looking to claim their fourth title after finishing second last year.
