September 2002			Big-Picture Transformation End of an Era Fortunate Son	Letters Sports E Line Books Alumni Passages Classes From the Field First-Person Huskiana
		Goal Diggers of 2002 Women's soccer makes a run for glory. By Paul Perillo Few Northeastern athletic programs have developed faster than soccer. Under the direction of Ed Matz—who assumed coaching duties for both the men and the women in 1999—the men’s team has enjoyed back-to-back trips to the America East tournament, and last year narrowly missed a trip to the NCAAs. Matz’s work with the women, however, may be even more impressive. Matz had inherited a relatively new program, instituted on Huntington Avenue six years ago, with a poor history. In 1998, the year before he took over, the Husky women had allowed an eye-popping 68 goals during a miserable 2-17-1 campaign. Since then, the team has allowed just 90 goals over three seasons. They posted their first-ever winning record in 2000, going 11-7-1, and followed that up last year with another winning season, finishing 7-6-4. But despite the turnaround, NU is thirsty for more. During the winning years, injuries and tough luck down the stretch left the Huskies on the outside looking in as the conference tournament began. Matz and his players don’t intend to let that happen again. “It’s a very exciting time for Northeastern soccer,” Matz says. “Both teams are enjoying quite a bit of success. The women are almost mimicking the men with the way we’ve put the team together. We have a good blend of new and old—kind of like the men were three years ago.” The coach has turned the program’s fortunes by stressing defense and implementing his tight marking style. Rather than relying solely on defenders to keep the ball out of the net, Matz demands defense from everyone, imploring forwards and midfielders to make the commitment as well. The overall team attitude: The opposition simply isn’t going to score. Though Matz points to his veterans—such as Kelly Smith, the only senior on the club, and juniors Emily Haahr and Becky Viviani—as instrumental players, youngsters such as Liz Dyjak and Tanya Mello will likely lead the way to success. Last season, Dyjak, a sophomore from Ludlow, Massachusetts, earned a spot on the America East All-Rookie team and was second-team All-Conference, the first Husky to win the latter honor. She finished second on the club in points (16) and goals (5). But it’s her ability to set up others that separates her from the pack. “Liz was a big-time recruit for us,” Matz says of the two-time high school All-American. “She’s a bit on the small side [at 5-foot-6], and some of the bigger Division I schools maybe were worried about her durability. But she started every game for us, and is a very strong and feisty player. She’s very skillful and very creative with the ball. Liz has a great personality and is very fun to coach.” Given Dyjak’s passing abilities, imagine how excited Matz is to have Mello back, after the North Attleboro, Massachusetts, native missed all of 2001 with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee. During her freshman season in 2000, Mello netted an all-time NU best—9 goals—in just 11 games (before missing the remainder of that season with a stress fracture in her right foot). By last spring, Mello was healthy and ready. The only problem she has now is staying patient while waiting to take the field with a playmaker like Dyjak. “There were times last season I would think about what it would be like to field some of her passes,” Mello says. She should know soon. “I’ve been playing in a summer league, and I feel like I’m getting back in the flow.” Matz describes Mello, a 2000 All-Rookie selection, as an opportunistic scorer who relies on positioning to get the job done. She likes to set up in the box and wait for her chances. When she gets them, she almost always makes the opposing keeper pay. With cornerstones like Dyjak and Mello, Matz likes the direction the team is heading. Unfortunately, the club will play with heavy hearts when the season opens. On July 5, sophomore Kim Cochrane, of Lynnfield, Massachusetts, died in a car accident. Although the men’s and women’s teams attended her wake, Matz knows the hardest time will come when practice begins. “It will be tough when everyone comes back,” Matz says. “But I look at how strong these kids are, and I believe they’ll be able to pull together and keep Kim in their minds and overcome the tragedy. It’s something there’s obviously no way to prepare for.” Getting past the adversity will be difficult, but the Huskies have lofty goals in mind and believe the time to achieve them has come. “Everyone wants to get into that tournament,” Mello says. “And I don’t think there’s a single one of us who doesn’t believe that will happen.” McCaw Steps Down as Athletics Director Northeastern sports was presented with a new hurdle on July 15 when athletics director Ian McCaw announced he was leaving his post to become director of athletics at the University of Massachusetts. McCaw has been widely credited with reorganizing and energizing NU’s athletics program since arriving from Tulane University in 1997. President Freeland has said Northeastern will conduct a nationwide search for a new athletics director. In the meantime, the athletics department will be managed jointly by associate athletics director for business Todd Patulski and senior associate athletics director for internal affairs Jody Mooradian. McCaw, who earned a master’s degree in sports management from UMass in 1987, says his alumnus status played a big part in his decision. “It happened very quickly,” McCaw, thirty-nine, says. “I was contacted by them after [former AD] Bob [Marcum] stepped down. As an alumnus, I felt it was something I needed to look at. I met with the administration and the coaches, and had a good feeling about the opportunity.” UMass’s gain will be Northeastern’s loss. During his time on Huntington Avenue, McCaw implemented a five-year strategic plan, which set goals and objectives related to enhanced program competitiveness, equity, diversity, compliance, the student-athlete experience, and other key issues. Under McCaw’s guidance, football coach Don Brown and men’s and women’s basketball coaches Ron Everhart and Willette White were hired. The men’s hockey program saw a dramatic increase in home attendance. Other programs, such as men’s and women’s crew, men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball, baseball, swimming and diving, and men’s and women’s track, enjoyed highly successful runs. “I felt we made great progress,” says McCaw, who officially left the university on August 1. “With the development of our athletic staff and our coaches, I believe we came a long way. I leave here with a lot of fond memories. “Northeastern made a great decision to put Todd and Jody in charge,” he says. “I believe this is a much better situation than the one I inherited five years ago. We put Northeastern’s athletics department on stable ground, and whoever takes over will build on that.” McCaw is an influential member of the local and national athletic scene. He is a member of the NCAA Division I men’s ice hockey committee, and serves on executive committees for America East, Atlantic 10 football, Hockey East, and the National Consortium for Academics and Sports. Although McCaw’s move came as something of a surprise, Mooradian, for one, wasn’t taken completely off guard. “Ian’s very talented at what he does, so I always knew there would be a chance someday for him to move on,” she says. Because of the hard work McCaw and the rest of the staff put in over the last five years, Mooradian says, she and Patulski feel no pressure to work miracles as the university searches for a replacement. “Our main goal, really, is to just leave everything status quo,” she says. “This has been maybe the best five-year period in the school’s [sports] history. The staff’s all in place, and as the fall approaches the teams appear to be stronger than they have been in years.” No timetable for naming the new athletics director has been announced.