Top Headlines
Ryan Souders Named Calvin Men’s Soccer Coach
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Ryan Souders is the new head men’s soccer coach at Calvin College. A native of Wheaton, Illinois, Souders (Sow-dirs) is a 2003 Wheaton Academy Graduate and a 2007 graduate of Wheaton College. Souders becomes the seventh head coach in Calvin men’s soccer history. He was preceded by Roul Bykerk (1959), Tony Brouwer (1960), Marv Zuidema (1961-1967, 1969-1997), Ralph Honderd (1968), Dave VerMerris (1998-2001) and Chris Hughes (2002-2011). Hughes departed Calvin earlier this spring to accept the head men’s soccer coaching position at Davenport University. The 27-year old Souders has served as an assistant men’s soccer coach both at Gordon College (MA) and at his alma mater Wheaton. He most recently spent two years an an assistant coach at Division I Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina. This past fall, he was part of a Davidson coaching staff that helped the school upset second-ranked North Carolina 1-0. Souders also has experience as both a player and coach at the professional level. He joined the Davidson coaching staff after competing for (non-professional) Bridges F.C. in Chicago in 2009. Prior to returning to the pitch, he served as the goalkeeping coach for the Cleveland City Stars Reserve Team. In 2010, he served as a goalkeeper for the Charlotte Eagles - a member of the USL-2 Pro Division.
Chris Hughes Departing Calvin Men’s Soccer Program
After more than 20 years with the Calvin men’s soccer program including 10 as head coach, Chris Hughes is departing Calvin to take the head men’s soccer coaching position at nearby Davenport University. A 1992 Calvin College graduate, Hughes has fashioned a won-loss record of 154-48-22 (.737) that includes seven MIAA titles and seven trips to the NCAA III Tournament (2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011). In 2009, Hughes took Calvin where no soccer team in school history had gone before - all the way to the NCAA III Championship finals as the Knights advanced to the NCAA III Final Four and defeated Dominican University 1-0 in the semifinals before falling to Messiah 2-0 in the finals. This past fall, Calvin again reached the NCAA III Final Four and finished second, bowing to Ohio Wesleyan in the championship game. A search for a replacement for Hughes will begin immediately.
Travis Vegter Named Prime Time Performer by CollegeSoccer360.com
Calvin College freshman Travis Vegter was recently named to the CollegeSoccer360.com Championship Week Prime Time Performer team. A native of Hudsonville and a graduate of Unity Christian High School, Vegter was saluted by the website for his efforts at the NCAA III Final Four earlier this month where he scored three goals and was named to the NCAA III Final Four All-Tournament team. Vegter finished the year with 16 points on the strength of six goals and four assists. He scored two goals in a 4-2 NCAA III Semifinal win over Oneonta State and scored another in a 2-1 loss to Ohio Wesleyan in the national final.
