QU SOCCER ALUMNI NEWS

Dear Soccer Alum,

I hope you had a great Christmas and I wish you all the best for the New Year.

Our 2008 fall season finished 9-6-2. It was a winning season, but not as good a season as we expected. I believe all, players and coaches, are disappointed that we didn’t do better. We got off to a good start winning 5 in a row, including winning Soccer Bowl XV for only the third time in the last 15 years. Then the ‘wheels fell off the wagon’ and we lost 4 in a row (ugh). From our last 8 games we won 4, lost 2, and tied 2. We recovered, but not well enough to achieve what we had hoped for.

Completing their QU soccer career at the close of the 2008 season were starting defenders Steve Miller (DeSmet HS); Kyle Koenig (Quincy Notre Dame HS); Bane Isailovic (Belgrade Serbia)…starting midfielders Justin Bower (Quincy Notre Dame HS) and Mike DiSalvo (Whitfield HS in St. Louis)…and reserve forward Dan Merkel (St. Anthony HS in Effingham IL). All were very good teammates and contributors to the Hawk soccer program . They will be missed.

Award winners from the 2008 season were:
Most Improved Player…Ryan Hirtz (SO. from St. Dominic HS in O’Fallon)
Silver Boot Award…….Grant Ellison (SO. from St. Dominic HS in O’Fallon)
Gold Boot Award……..Jack Wedemeier (SO from Notre Dame HS in Cape Girardeau)
Best Defensive Payer…Bane Isailovic (SR from Belgrade, Serbia)
Most Valuable Player…Bane Isailovic (SR from Belgrade, Serbia)

Grant Ellison was selected to the ALL-GLVC 3rd Team
Bane Isailovic was chosen to the ALL-GLVC 1st Team

Bane Isailovic was also chosen to the 2nd Team All-Region Teams sponsored by both the NSCAA and by Daktronics.

During Homecoming Weekend 2008 both John Gallo and Craig Hingle were inducted into the QU Hall of Fame as outstanding Hawk soccer players as was the 1975 NAIA National Championship team. These inductions brought a lot of soccer players and their families and friends back for the HOF Banquet to celebrate with all the honorees. It made for a great night. I believe all really enjoyed getting back together here at QU reliving the great times they had here.

You may recall from my last Soccer Alumni Newsletter that I said I mentioned that I wanted to bring the teams of 1977-1978-1979-1980-1981 back to Quincy to celebrate their winning FIVE CONSECUTIVE NAIA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS. This was the first time any Men’s college soccer team…from any Division (NAIA, NCAA, NJCAA, NCCAA) had ever won 5 in a row (quite an achievement). In my last Newsletter I said the reunion date would correspond to QU’s 2009 Homecoming Weekend (10/23-25/09). HOWEVER, that will NOT be the weekend of the reunion because our GLVC playing schedule has been changed due to the inclusion of two more teams joining the Conference and we are now scheduled to play on the road 10/23 & 25.

The new weekend chosen for this reunion is September 18-20, 2009. The current Soccer Hawks will play two home games that weekend (Fri. 9/18 with Missouri S & T (Rolla) and Sun. 9/20 with Maryville. The reunion banquet will be on Sat.urday evening 9/19. I hope that all who were part of the 1977-81 Soccer Hawks…and I mean ALL (not just the 18 players that the NAIA limited me to take to the Finals) because every year it took the hard work of ALL on the squad (those who played a lot, and those who just practiced against them to make them better) to achieve the success each team earned.

I will get a separate mailing out to all the players on the ’77-’81 teams with more information about the event. Soccer Alums fro other years are most certainly welcome to join in with the celebration of the Quincy Soccer Tradition. If you want the event arrangements that I’ll be sending to those on the ’77-’81 teams just let me know and I’ll forward that information to you. I want this to be as inclusive as possible for all QU soccer alums.


Our QU Soccer Alumni Golf Shootout in May was once again a great success. We had 32 foursomes playing and quite a few others join in at dinner and the social that followed.
Thanks to our loyal golf committee (Jim Eagan, Erv Pesek, Bob Hanson, Bill Fann, Craig Hingle, Paul Geerling, Mike Gallo) for all the work they have put into this event over the past 5 years. They are the ones who make it a “happening”. Thanks to our major sponsors Marty Schafer, Drury Southwest Inc., Wachovia Securities, Bill Lawrence, and Tom Dawson who underwrite a good portion of the event. And thanks to all who purchased hole sponsorships or who donated items as prizes or for the auction, particularly Dave Brunette and Brian Belobradic who came through for us big time. Of course, thanks to those of you who come and play golf. This event is a great way for you guys to keep connected with each other and to keep connected to the soccer program and the university as well. If you haven’t been to one of our QU Soccer Alumni Golf Shootouts you’ve missed out on a real good time. THE DATE FOR OUR EVENT IN 2009 WILL BE, FRIDAY, MAY 29. MARK THAT DOWN. SEE YOU THEN!


For QU’s Homecoming weekend in 2009 (10/23-25) I want to encourage a whole lot of you guys to come back for that one. Why? Because that’s when QU is going to celebrate the Hawk Soccer Teams of 1977-1978-1979-1980-1981…the teams who won FIVE CONSECUTIVE NAIA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS. Throughout the entire 2009-10 school-year (QU’s 150th) the University is celebrating a number of special occasions. You were chosen for Homecoming because you were the first and only Men’s collegiate soccer team in America to accomplish this feat. Please make note of the date (10/23-25) and make plans to be here.

Congratulations to Bob Pollihan who will be inducted into the St. Louis Soccer Hall of Fame on September 19th, and congratulations to Mike DiRaimondo who was inducted into the DuBourg Hall of Fame last Spring.

In case you hadn’t heard, I was honored at QU’s graduation on May 18th with an Honorary Degree, along with former Athletic Director/Basketball Coach John Ortwerth, Women’s Coach Sharlene Peter, and History professor Dave Costigan. All were recognized for many years of service to QC/QU. This was a real surprise to all of us. If any of you may have been wondering when I was going to retire let me say it won’t be for a while yet. I just signed a three year contract renewal to coach our team through the 2010 season. If my health holds up to see me through the next three seasons I will have coached here for six decades. Wow. It’s been a great run and I hope to finish out strongly and successfully. My passion for Hawk Soccer still runs high.

This Fall’s Alumni game at North Campus Field will be on Saturday night, August 23. Kick-off will be at 7 PM. If you plan on playing will you please let me know by
e-mailing me back so I know who to expect? You can get our 2008 schedule and roster by going to www.quincy.edu and clicking on to the Men’s Soccer section. I hope you get a chance to see us play either in Quincy or at a venue near where you live.

Best wishes,

Jack


If I may, let me give you something to think about and reflect on. The other day one of our younger coaches was talking to me about the many years I’ve coached here. He said, “With as long as you’ve been here, and with all the success you’ve had, I’ll bet you get a lot of donations and support from your former players”. My answer was no, I really don’t. I only get support from my golf committee, and the sponsors, donors and golfers who participate in that one event. (And thank God for them.) Otherwise, basically nothing comes back to the soccer program (or even to QU as an institution) from the majority who have benefited from their experiences here on the soccer field, in the classroom, and around the campus. When I send out these Soccer Alumni Newsletters, I personally attach the mailing label on to each envelope. As I put each label on the envelope I look at the name of the player and recall his experiences here. The majority (not all) have had some tremendous experiences and benefits from attending QC/QU and being a member of this storied soccer program. I see names of players who got pretty good scholarships…who played on one or more National Championship teams…who got to make a foreign playing trip to places like Israel, Central America, Holland, Mexico, Scotland, England…who during the regular season were flown to Florida, New York, California, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, Georgia, Ohio, North Carolina…and I wonder why so many neglect to “give back” to the program and school who provided them with so much. Why? This soccer program and university has never been and will not ever be perfect. However, the soccer program and university have honestly striven to provide all of you with the best we have to give. If you will, please think about this. If you had a lot benefits and good experiences while here, and perhaps have been negligent in “giving back”, please consider finding a time (and a way) when you can get on board and help the Soccer Hawks and Quincy University progress and excel for the benefit of our current and future students.