Young Huskies Look To Continue Recent Success

The University of Washington men's soccer team plays Stanford

Photo by: Red Box Pictures

August 22, 2019 | Men's Soccer

2019 Schedule 2019 Roster 2018 Statistics

Fans of the Washington men's soccer program will notice several new faces in the 2019 starting lineup. Gone are six starters from the 2018 team which accounted for 16 goals and 14 assists en route to helping the Huskies post a 12-7-1 record and reach the NCAA Tournament for the fourth-straight season.

And while this may spell "rebuild" with other programs, the 2019 Huskies look to be just as strong as last year and possibly better.

The key to last season's success was the defense. The Huskies showed off that strength in the final quarter of the season last year, finishing 2018 with five-straight shutouts. That left UW just one shy of the program record of six-straight cleansheets, set back in 1973. And Head Coach Jamie Clark, who enters his ninth season at the helm, is not ready to see that streak end.

"We started to hang our hat on defending late in the season again to put together that streak and it will be the big emphasis of the early season: to realize that games are won by being compact and organized and capitalizing on minimal opportunities," said Clark. "Early on this season, you must find a way to get results and continuing that shutout streak would be the easiest way to do it."

Washington could have one of the deepest groups of goalkeepers in the country this season, led by redshirt junior Bryce Logan. Logan saw action in eight matches last season including making six starts, and has a 6-2-0 record with a 0.89 goals against average in 10 matches with four shutouts.

"Bryce is the heir apparent in terms of experience and games under his belt at Washington," said Clark. "He has taken a big step forward and become a leader on this year's team. But we bring in two young goalkeepers who have USL and national team experience."

Highly touted freshmen Sam Fowler and Jacob Castro will be battling to unseat the incumbent in goal while Andrew Morrison provides a solid back-up option as well.

"Sam is as far along as any young goalie could be in terms of experience," said Clark. "He has a great demeanor and his composure is incredible. He won't be rattled by any situation, so we are confident with that.

"Jacob looks like he should be playing for the U.S. National Team and hopefully one day he will be," Clark added. "He's got the physique, he's got the hands, we just have to keep getting him reps and hopefully he will get the opportunity to show why we are so excited about him.

"Morrison returns as the other elder statesman," said Clark. "He is a very confident goalie and we would be very confident using him at any point."

The back line for the Huskies is incredibly strong, with three of the four starters returning from last season anchored this year by sophomore Ethan Bartlow and redshirt sophomore Freddy Kleemann.

"Ethan is as talented of a defender as there is in this country," said Clark. "We've got a guy who can play-make and defend at the top level. So, we are very comfortable with that spot. Freddy showed just how dominate he can be at the end of the season. Down the stretch—when our season was really on the line—Freddy was there and a big part of those shutouts. He is an absolute beast: physically dominate, great in the air and can really pass the ball."

In addition to the two sophomores, redshirt junior Ryan Sailor and fifth-year senior Ryan DeGroot look to see a lot of time along the back line.

"Sailor has been plagued by injuries since he got here, but had a great summer and started preseason strong," said Clark. "We have high hopes that he will find a way to play in games and turn heads because he is an elite athlete and has all the physical tools. In certain ways he is our most talented defender, it's now just a matter of getting him healthy and the experience necessary.

"DeGroot comes back for his fifth year with a lot of games under his belt," added Clark. "We know we can rely on him whenever needed. He is a great passer of the ball and is a steadying effect on the team."

The Huskies also have a lot of returning talent on the outside wings with redshirt juniors Kasey French and Cole Grimsby returning after playing the bulk of the minutes there last season. Joining the two are sophomore Charlie Ostrem, and seniors Andrew Conwell and Daniel Ribas.

"We feel like we could have two of the best left backs in the conference in Cole Grimsby and Charlie Ostrem," said Clark. "Cole is such a smart player who understand the game well. He is a quiet competitor who sees the game well and is an excellent passer. Charlie has made the biggest strides of anyone on this team over the last three to four months. He looks like he is going to be a dominate player for this team. We are going to find a way to make sure both are playing. Whether that means pushing Charlie up to left wing or playing Cole in the midfield, they both have to play because they are both deserving and both impactful.

"On the right side, Kasey is as steady as can be," said Clark. "He makes all the right decisions. He doesn't get in the scorebook very often other than starts and minutes. But the reason why he gets those minutes is because he does all the little things right. Backing him up will likely be Daniel Ribas, who can be a right back if needed but also plays well in the middle of the park.

"Conwell is back for his senior year and we've moved him from the middle to left back this season," said Clark. "He is very versatile and can provide great depth and leadership to this team."

In the midfield, the Huskies will look to senior John Magnus to play the crucial holding midfielder position.

"Magnus will anchor our team in midfield," said Clark. "We don't think there is a better soccer-playing six in the country. He just controls the game, doesn't turn the ball over, is great in the air, is very composed and a fun player. So the right sort of guy to build a team around."

Backing up Magnus are redshirt sophomore Ryan Crowley and Ribas.

"Crowley will be a good reserve six as will Ribas," said Clark. "Both have made big strides in the offseason—especially Ryan, who when healthy, always seems to challenge for a position."

Clark has options to surround Magnus in the midfield including junior Tyler Smith and redshirt junior Jasper Malamud.

"They have really grown into their roles over the spring and should really push to play," said Clark. "When we need to put out a stronger, more competitive team, those guys will factor in greatly."

A trio of young guys—sophomore Dylan Teves and freshmen Cristian Soto and Imanol Rosales—who are short in stature, but big in talent will serve on the attack.

"We've got littler guys like Teves and Imanol, who are prime time players," said Clark. "Imanol being a new guy will open some eyes because he is as good of a freshman as there is in the country. He has international experience with the U17 Mexican national team and he sees passes that others don't see. Soto is going to play a lot of minutes for us. His engine is unbelievable. While his size is small, his heart and his fight may be bigger than anyone else on the team."

On the wings, the Huskies are blessed with a boatload of talent including two-time First-Team All-Pac-12 selection Blake Bodily. Bodily, who was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy watch list awarded to the top collegiate player, has had a hand in nearly a quarter of Washington's goals over the past two seasons despite missing time to injury last season.

On the opposite side, senior Jaret Townsend is back after turning heads with a goal and three assists in just 800 minutes.

"Blake is a complete handful and his pace terrorizes defenders," said Clark. "Jaret was a guy who really came into his own last year," said Clark. "He was a guy that every team was worried about and knew that 1-v-1 he is an absolute menace. So you've got both wings really covered."

Other options for Clark include junior James Smith, redshirt sophomore Lucas Meek and redshirt freshman Michael Rojas.

"James has done a really good job on the wing for us," said Clark. "When he plays, his service is fantastic! He is a little bit of a different player but really started factoring in for us last year. Meek is another guy who started to factor in for us early in the spring. He understands the system and his experience gives him an edge on the other guys. Rojas is a similar-type of player who has figured out the system and will be ready to make an impact when called upon."

The Huskies also have youth on the wings with a trio of freshman in Gabe Threadgold, Jensen Jabara and Nick Scardina.

"Gabe, Jensen and Nick all have the athleticism to stretch the defense and make runs," said Clark. "Those three will be competing with each other to see who can come out on top. We are certainly going to need one of them to help us out this year and it will come down to who can make the biggest impact in the shortest amount of time."

The starting forwards will look much different this year with sophomore Gio Miglietti and redshirt senior Joey Parish.

"Joey and Gio up front will share that role for the most part," said Clark. "Joey has a little more versatility and will find himself playing wide, but those are two prime-time goal scorers. They aren't concerned with being involved in the build-up, they are concerned about the end product and in turn I think they are going to bucket a lot of goals."

Freshman Jayson Baca also looks to factor in the mix up top.

"Baca is a little different because he is smaller but more powerful and is an in-behind threat," said Clark. "He's come in early in preseason and turned some heads and been really promising."

The Huskies have a deep team with a lot of potential, but according to Clark the season rides on just one thing: boxes.

"This team is going to be very good in the middle two-thirds of the field," said Clark. "I think we are going to say we deserve most victories, but the boxes will dictate whether we get them. And that will come down to how clinical we are finishing and how brave we are defending. We lost some players last year that were heart-and-soul guys, who rolled up their sleeves and came ready to play every day. Now, it will be fun to watch this group develop into those roles."

Washington opens the regular season on Friday, August 30, hosting No. 18 Denver at Husky Soccer Stadium. Kick-off is slated for 7:00 p.m.