Freshman Sawyer has made integral
By CHRIS FEDERICO
Sports Writer
This was to be a year of change for the men's soccer program. A new coach with a new scheme and many young players with a new attitude were given the task of turning a struggling 2000 team into a contender in the Big East conference this season.
Freshman goalkeeper Chris Sawyer is one glimpse of the future of Notre Dame soccer who has already played an instrumental part in his team's success.
At the end of regular season play, the Irish have climbed to third place in the Big East with an 11-5 overall record. For the first time since 1996, Notre Dame finds itself ranked in both the Soccer America and NCSAA polls — 19th and 23rd, respectively.
A new attitude
Often in sports, in order for a team to begin winning, they have to have the attitude that they can win.
"Chris has kind of brought a little bit of attitude to the team," sophomore co-captain Greg Martin said. "He's kind of given new life to the defense since he came in. There's a bit of confidence that I think he carries, and that's certainly a positive for us."
When Sawyer took over the starting spot from junior Greg Tait five games into the season, the Irish were 2-3 and searching for identity. Since taking over, the Irish have gone 9-2. In those eleven games, Notre Dame has allowed only six goals, and at one point it had a stretch of five consecutive shutouts before dropping a 1-0 loss to defending national champion Connecticut.
"Chris has done well in training since the beginning, and he brings a great level of intensity," Martin commented. "He's probably one of the best goalkeepers in the country, especially with the way he's playing right now."
Heading into the season, Sawyer wasn't even sure if he'd see playing time with two experienced keepers ahead of him, Tait and junior Cole Straub.
"I came in with the assumption that I'd have to fight my hardest to get any playing time at all, and then it just worked out that [head coach Bobby Clark] gave me a chance," Sawyer said.
After securing the full-time position from Tait and Straub, Sawyer has spent all but nine minutes and 57 seconds of play in net. In that time, he has posted a .53 goals against average — a mark that would place him fourth in the NCAA and first in the Big East.
Sawyer credits much of his current success to his two predecessors.
"If it weren't for Greg [Tait] and Cole [Straub], I wouldn't even have a chance of playing at all because they could just as easily be in my position right now," Sawyer stated. "They've helped me so much that I wouldn't even have a chance of playing if it weren't for their help early on."
A little help
Part of the identity the Irish have established since Sawyer has come in is that of a dominant defensive squad, having recorded six shutouts and four one-goal performances in their last eleven contests.
"Our defense starts with the strikers," forward Erich Braun said. "Then the midfield takes over, and if the ball gets through, the defenders are the next option we have. Then back in goal there's Sawyer, and if anything gets through the defenders, hopefully not, he's there to save it, and he's doing a tremendous job of that."
Sawyer understands how important this idea of team defense is to the goalkeeper in keeping the opposing offense away from the net.
"[Our defense] has made my job easier than any other goalkeeper in the league," he said. "There have been games when we've only allowed one or two shots, or even in some cases none."
Sawyer has also benefited from the knowledge of an experienced backfield. All three of the team captains —Griffin Howard, Andreas Forstner and Martin — are defenders in front of Sawyer.
"The captains in the back have helped me a lot to figure out my role and what to do in some of the tougher situations," Sawyer said. "Basically, I can just look at my defenders for guidance."
With the more experienced players such as Howard, Forstner and Tait guiding him, Sawyer has been able to settle into his position early in his career.
"They always keep giving me advice on and off the field," Sawyer states. "Once I started playing, they were the first people to show me my role and help me fit into it."
Age doesn't matter
Since there are only four seniors on the Notre Dame squad, the young team has had to look for many underclassmen to step up and fill roles.
"One thing our team has done this year is they've kind of eliminated the age boundaries completely," Sawyer said. "They don't put you down for being a freshman. They don't put you down for being a sophomore. Anyone can be a leader on this team."
It's this team mindset that has helped the freshman Sawyer to be so productive this year. A goalkeeper must stay calm and confident in crucial positions and not worry about age or inexperience.
"I don't think it really matters whether you're a freshman or a senior," Clark said. "You've either got that calm demeanor or not, and Chris has that. It is one of the essential qualities for a quality goalkeeper. It's an instinct."
Great Expectations
Sawyer is an example of things to come in the future for the Irish — a sample of the variety of young talent on the team. With only five players not returning after this season, the brightest days seem to still be ahead for the youthful squad.
"We know how young of a team we still are, and that's one of the reasons I came to this school," Sawyer said. "[It's exciting] looking at how young our team is and how much potential we have."
All Sports Stories for Wednesday, November 7, 2001
