Spring Break
For the love of the game
Men's soccer team wins national championship
By: Travis Yoesting
Issue date: 2/6/08 Section: News
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Established in the 1970s, the men's soccer club competes at the highest level of club competition in the nation. In 2004, the team won the national championship.
The team is not recognized as an NCAA sanctioned sport, and therefore the club competes in the Texas Collegiate Soccer League, regionally, and the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association, nationally.
Playing roughly 20 games a year, the soccer club is composed of athletes who try out to make the A- or B-team, which have 22 players each. Coaches usually are students who volunteer and have either been injured or are otherwise unwilling or unable to play.
The A-team plays against club teams from UT, Baylor, Texas Tech and SMU, and there's still a sizable rivalry with Texas.
"The two games against UT are our biggest games of the season," said Ramiro Fernandez, a junior biology major who plays defense. "The intensity and passion in the UT games are incomparable."
In 2007, the club played the Longhorns to a 1-1 draw at the Aggie Soccer Complex for the first time in front of its largest home crowd of the season. The team will again have the opportunity to play at the home of the Texas A&M women's soccer team.
Eligibility rules are different from NCAA sports since players can play on the club team for up to six years, starting from the first game they play. Additionally, each club is allowed no more than three players who have played at the NCAA level.
Players said the commitment to the team, however, is comparable to NCAA teams. During the fall season, the squad practices for two hours three times a week and has at least one game every weekend.
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