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Men's soccer team enjoys storybook seasonThe URI men's soccer team just completed one of the most exciting and successful seasons in school history. A season that saw Rhode Island lead the country in scoring (76 goals and 72 assists in 24 games) and advance to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the last five years. But what made this team so special was not just pure athletic ability and success, it was diversity and collectiveness. With players from six different countries (Jamaica, Canada, Trinidad, Ireland, England, United States) and 10 different States (Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, New York, Illinois, California, Kentucky, New Jersey, Ohio and Massachusetts), the Rams truly are a melting pot. And the man responsible for forging the many personalities, cultures, and backgrounds together is 11th-year head coach Ed Bradley (URI, 1968). "This team has been as much fun if not more to coach than any team in my career," said Bradley, who led the Rams to the 1999 Atlantic 10 Conference regular season and tournament championship. "I've had teams with as much talent, but never have I had a team with so many different people involved in the winning equation." Bradley had the enviable task of taking a talented team with great leadership and adding four new impact players: The Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year, Anthony Curtis (Jamiaca); All-Conference goalkeeper Mark Bryant (England), who tied the school record with 13 shutouts; gritty defender Ross Smith (Canada); and perhaps the team's best overall player, midfielder Winston Griffiths (Jamaica). Add in the nation's third-leading scorer, Nicholas McCreath (21 goals, 16 assists) and a four-year starter on defense, Neil Lewis, and you have one of the most talented teams in school history. Perhaps the Rams' success could be attributed to Bradley. Or perhaps McCreath should be the focal point for his electrifying offense, or maybe even the defense should get the credit having allowed only 16 goals (only five in A-10 play) the entire season. Perhaps. But the real driving force behind this team was fifth-year senior Ryan Chmielewski. Only six months ago, the Oxford, Conn., native lay in a hospital bed, fighting for his life. A violent vomiting episode had torn a hole in his esophagus which, in turn, punctured a hole in his lung. "It was like someone had just stuck a huge knife in me," said Chmielewski, who at 5-foot-9, 150 pounds had a reputation as a physical fitness buff. "I thought to myself 'I've had it. They're going to punch my ticket.'" He beat what the doctors called million-to-one odds that someone 21-years-old would get what was diagnosed as Vorhaaves Syndrome, and another million-to-one odds of survival. Less than a month after leaving the hospital--and 20 pounds lighter--Chmielewski walked onto the field at the URI Soccer Complex with the rest of his teammates. "We wouldn't have been so successful without Ryan's focus," said Bradley. "The kids respected his resolve and wouldn't dare slack off knowing he literally came off his death bed to be there." The storybook season didn't actually have a storybook ending as the Rams lost, 2-1, in overtime on a fluke goal at Brown in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The ending crushed the dreams of a team that felt it was destined to be national champions. But this story will be continued, because the Rams return all but five players next season and are determined to write their own ending next time. "Losing the way we did will make us work harder in the off-season, and we will come back with goals of winning not only the Atlantic 10 Championship, but the National Championship, as well," said Bradley. By Jamie Zeitz |
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