Quick Facts (PDF)

East Stroudsburg University faces a season of transition on the men's soccer field in 2011. The PSAC's premier program over the last three decades will play its first season without Jerry Sheska on the sideline since 1981, and saw three of its four first team All-PSAC selections graduate after making yet another conference final in Sheska's last campaign.

Rob Berkowitz, who has led ESU's women's team to three PSAC Tournament appearances in his first four seasons, adds responsibility for the men's program this fall.

The perennial contender, which won 15 PSAC championships and made 16 NCAA Tournaments in Sheska's tenure, was picked seventh in the PSAC preseason poll but will look to post its 29th consecutive winning season – every year since 1983 – along with a return trip to the PSAC Tournament.

While the Warriors will look to replace All-Region midfielders Danny Drago, Michael Kane and Shastri Spencer, their lone returning All-PSAC selection, sophomore back Khriswayne Wallace, anchors a defense that brings back four players with starting experience.

Juniors Steve Sollecito (20 starts) and Garrison Draper (five starts) will contend for the other starting nod at center back, while junior right back Suane McLeish leads the Warriors with 38 career starts and sophomore Dominick Morizio enters the lineup at left back.

At goalkeeper, sophomore Andrew Chongaway replaces Troy Hernandez, a third team NSCAA All-Region selection who ranked second in the PSAC in goals against average and posted eight shutouts. Sophomore Ryan Nosti and freshman Sean Murphy are tagged as the backups.

Berkowitz will implement the same formation that has helped the Warriors' women's team post a 43-29-8 record over the last four seasons, with a defensive midfielder, two center midfielders and three attacking players in front of the back four. Sophomore Andrew Cerda, who played in 15 games and made one start last season, will give the Warriors an extra level of defense in the midfield.

The two offensive-thinking midfielders will be sophomore Matthew Geidner, who had four goals and an assist while starting 15 games, and junior Nick Fischer, a junior college All-American from the County College of Morris (N.J.) and All-State selection in high school at Morris Catholic. Junior Derek Lopez and sophomore Joan Sebastian Parra, both contributors last season, will also see time in the midfield.

Up front, senior Greg Schook enters his third season as a starter and has scored five goals in each of the last two seasons. His 11 career goals are by far the most of the team, seven ahead of Geidner's total from last season.

He will be joined in the starting lineup by senior Josh Arcona and freshman Wesley Fossile, with four more players – junior Kevin Lombardo, sophomores Marc DeFeo and Vinnie Simeone and freshman Brian Capone – all in contention for additional playing time.

Arcona started 36 games at left back over the last two seasons and gives ESU a physical presence at forward, and Fossile was an All-Suburban One forward at North Penn. Lombardo scored two goals last season, including the game's only goal in a 1-0 win vs. Millersville in the PSAC semifinals. DeFeo also scored two goals as a part-time starter and Simeone saw time in 11 games, both as freshmen.

The wide-open PSAC, which saw half of its 10 teams receive a first-place vote in the coaches' preseason poll, should be tightly contested with the Warriors aiming for one of the four spots in the conference tournament.

ESU has a front-loaded schedule and will play seven of its nine PSAC games between September 14 and October 8, including road games at preseason favorite Millersville and No. 4 pick California early in the season. Six of the Warriors nine games will be played away from Eiler-Martin Stadium. They get defending champion Shippensburg, which edged ESU in penalty kicks in the final, at home on October 18.