It was a little bit of a roller-coaster ride for Trevecca Nazarene last fall as the Trojans started strong in the conference schedule before falling victim to multiple close decisions down the stretch.
TNU started 2-1 in the G-MAC slate, opened up October with back-to-back conference wins, but experienced a trio of 1-0 losses from Oct. 10 and forward. The Trojans pushed Ohio Valley to the brink in double overtime in the conference tournament, but couldn’t quite finish their upset bid on the road.
Trevecca Nazarene only loses three seniors from a year ago and impact contributors like Jeremiah Wright and Ryan Hogan, both all-conference players, are returning.
Eighth-year head coach Danny Leavy knows his program can play at a higher level and is ready for his team to progress to the next level.
Leavy has loaded up the non-conference schedule with four Division II opponents, including Alabama-Huntsville (Gulf South), Southern Indiana (GLVC), Lee (Gulf South) and Tusculum (South Atlantic).
He aspires to establish Trevecca Nazarene as one of the stronger programs in the region and has pushed the standard even higher this year. Taking aim at strong programs like the four above will help TNU set the bar at a different level.
Wright and Hogan are a good place to start. Both have been conference athletes of the week in the past and are players that need to be marked on the field by opposing coaches.
Wright and Hogan and No. 1 and 2 on the Trojans in points with 12 and 11, respectively. All-freshman team members Nicolas Reinhard and Luis Vital combined for five goals and two assists.
Six seniors will be on the fall roster along with eight newcomers (seven freshmen). Six players also played in all possible 17 games last season and all return (Wright, Jake Singer, Baylor McKay, Liam Roche, Frank Down, Noah Mudd).
Goalkeeper will be a position to completely replace as Daniel Mudd (4 W) and Stephen Sherer (3 W) have both moved on. Either freshman Tyler Delgado or Jonas Loock will most likely get the opening-day nod at keeper for the Trojans.
Head Coach: Danny Leavy (8th season)
2015 Record (Overall): 7-10-0
2015 Record (Conference): 5-7-0
2015 All-Conference Performers: Jeremiah Wright (Second Team), Ryan Hogan (Second Team), Nicolas Reinhard (All-Freshman Team), Luis Vital (All-Freshman Team)
Quotable: “We need to perform more consistently. We were unlucky at times with injuries and it was hard to get a good rhythm going. We added a good amount of depth this offseason so that should help us to cope better.”
- Trevecca Nazarene Head Coach Danny Leavy
Records Watch: Jeremiah Wright ranks fifth all-time among G-MAC players in career points with 52 (21 G, 10 A)…Those overall figures have helped him average over a point per game in his career (1.02) to stand in sixth…His next goal will tie Christian Alexander, formerly of Cedarville, for fourth all-time in career goals…His next assist (currently at 10) would break a four-way tie for third…Daniel Mudd closed out his career ranking eighth all-time in career saves (90).