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| All-Americans
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The winning tradition began under coach Isadore “Doe” Yavits. A member of both the Ithaca College and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) athletic halls of fame, Yavits led the program from 1932 to 1962.
The team’s success continued under Carlton “Carp” Wood, another Ithaca College Athletic Hall of Fame member, who took over in 1963. Two years later, Wood led the Bombers to their first unbeaten regular season and an inaugural trip to the NCAA playoffs. Ithaca lost, 2-1, to Brown, finishing 10-1-1. That year Ithaca Athletic Hall of Fame member Sandor Szabo set the school’s single-season scoring record with 35 goals and eight assists for 78 points.
The Bombers were back in the playoffs again in 1979. Under coach Allan MacCormack, Ithaca posted an unbeaten Independent College Athletic Conference (ICAC) record and was ranked 10th in the nation. Kim Christianson, Bob Durocher, Bob Locke and Bob Thompson each earned first-team all-ICAC honors. The Bombers won a second straight ICAC title and received another NCAA playoff invitation in 1980. Bob Stiles scored nine game-winning goals that year, and Ithaca defeated Buffalo State in the opening round of the NCAA tournament before falling in overtime to Binghamton.
The hiring of current head coach Andy Byrne in 1984 has brought even more success. The Bombers made nine consecutive postseason appearances from 1985-93. Byrne led Ithaca to a 12-5-1 record and an NCAA playoff bid in 1985, and was named the New York State coach of the year. In 1986 the Bombers captured the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Upstate New York championship. Ithaca made NCAA appearances in 1987 and from 1989-91. In 1989 the Bombers defeated Rochester, 2-0, in the first round before falling to national power RIT, 3-1, in the regional final. All-American midfielder Peter Lambert led Ithaca in scoring that season. Lambert was named to the school’s Hall of Fame in 2002.
Goalkeeper Zac Shaw and forward Jason Dove were both 1991 all-Americans. Shaw had 31 shutouts and a 0.64 goals-against average, and Dove recorded 18 goals and 11 assists for 47 career points. Shaw was inducted into Ithaca’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998.
In 1995 Ithaca reached the NCAA quarterfinals and enjoyed a school-record 15-game unbeaten streak, led by forward Todd Stephan, who ranks third in career goals (43) and points (96), and goalkeeper Eric Pepper, who ranks second in career wins (38) and first in career saves (407). The next year, all-American Dan Katz helped the Bombers to within one win of the national championship game. In 1997 the Bombers reached the third round of the NCAA playoffs for the third year in a row. Forward Mitshel Lavander joined Katz on the all-America team.
In 1999 the Bombers were again back in the NCAA playoffs, qualifying for regional play. The 2002 team advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. Ithaca won the Empire 8 regular-season title and hosted the league’s championship tournament in each of the next three years.
Over the summer of 2003, 18 members of the Ithaca College men’s soccer team traveled to Brazil for 12 days of soccer and sightseeing. The group visited Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and San Jose. The Bombers received training in Rio de Janeiro at the Zico Training Center from Julio Caesar and Andratti, two members of the 1994 Brazilian World Cup team, and in San Jose they received training from former Corinthian player Luis Fernando. They played matches with youth teams from Zico CT and the Corinthians. They also had matches with The University of Maua and two amateur teams. They visited Corcovado, Sugar Loaf and Maracana while in Rio de Janeiro. In Sao Paulo they visited the Corinthians’ club and attended a professional soccer match. In San Jose, a smaller city of 60,000, the group spent more time immersed in the Brazilian culture getting to know the local people, especially at the soccer club.
Dec. 21, 2007
Dec. 21, 2007