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Swnews4u.com All-Area Boys' Soccer Team
SWC champion Hornets earn top honors
pla soccer thole
Lancaster senior midfielder Logan Thole

     The sports editors of swnews4u.com gathered two weeks ago in Lancaster to select our inaugural all-area teams for the 2011 prep fall sports season.
     As a group we decided to pick our all-area teams a little different than other publications. Instead of simply naming worthy athletes to the team regardless of position with no limit on the number of athletes chosen, we elected to build our all-area teams like they were a fantasy team or an all-star team that would actually practice and play together in competition.  Therefore, we limited roster sizes and picked the best possible combination of athletes from our six-conference, 27-school coverage area giving us, the so-called general managers, the best chance to win.
     Here is our 2011 All-Area Boys Soccer Team.

STARTING LINEUP
F - Zander Rothering, Richland Center, so.
– As just a sophomore Rothering proved to be the key figure in Richland Center’s run to the conference title. The sophomore forward scored a team-high 13 goals for the Hornets, including the lone goal in the Southwest Wisconsin Conference title-clinching 1-0 victory over league runner-up Dodgeville/Mineral Point on Oct. 6. Rothering also assisted on a handful of goals and along with sophomore teammate Kyle Breininger made things happen offensively for Richland Center, which finished 9-2-1 in SWC games and won it first conference championship since 2005.

F - Samuel Hale, Platteville/Lancaster, so. -  Hale led both the Hillmen and the SWC with 18 goals and also passed out four assists. As the season progressed he became the focal point of his team’s offense and a target for opposing defenses. Hale led the Platteville/Lancaster co-op to an 8-14-1 overall record and 7-4-1 third-place finish in the conference. Hale is one of six underclassmen (sophomores or freshmen) in our starting lineup.

MF - Andrew Kordus, Prairie du Chien, jr. – The junior split time between forward and midfielder leading Prairie du Chien to its best season in the five-year history of the program. Kordus scored a team-high 15 goals and had three assists for the improving Blackhawks, who finished 6-11-1 overall and 3-8-1 in league play.

MF - Joseph Lawinger, Dodgeville/Mineral Point, sr. – Lawinger was named the SWC Player of the Year in 2011 after leading the Dodgers to a 10-10-1 overall record and a second-place, 9-3, record in league play. Lawinger was a three-year starter and a team captain for Dodge-Point this fall. The Dodgers transition attack ran through him. Lawinger finished his senior year with 9 goals and 4 assists.

MF - Kyle Breininger, Richland Center, so.
– Breininger teamed with Rothering to provide the best one-two punch in the conference.  Breininger played both ends of the field equally well. He scored 12 goals and assisted on plenty of others. Breininger was another key factor in the Hornets’ conference title run.

MF - Logan Thole, Platteville/Lancaster, sr. – One of the two seniors to crack our starting line-up (Lawinger was the other) Thole was one of the few consistencies this year for a Platteville/Lancaster program that battled numerous injuries throughout the season. Thole, a senior at Lancaster High School, scored 13 goals and had three assists, and was also a Hillmen co-captain.

D - Ryan Bell, Dodgeville/Mineral Point, jr. – Bell was the other Dodge-Point captain he scored 6 goals and had 3 assists while playing both center midfield and sweeper this last season. Bell was a key to the Dodgers defense that allowed just 19 goals in 12 conference matches.

D - Jonah Nelson, Dodgeville/Mineral Point, so. – Nelson started the season playing forward before being moved to defensive stopper halfway through the year. He totaled 7 goals and 3 assists in his first year on varsity.
 
D - Nathan Roling, Platteville/Lancaster, fr. – Roling scored just one goal on the season, but the Platteville freshman was the key defender for the Platteville/Lancaster defense that allowed 54 goals in 23 matches, including a league-low 17 in conference play.

D - Tyger Rothering , Richland Center, fr. – Rothering, along with Ross Beier, anchored a Richland Center defense that allowed just 19 goals in league play and just two in the Hornets’ last three SWC matches (all wins) which helped Center overtake Dodgeville/Mineral Point and win the conference title. Rothering scored one goal.

GK - Cole Hamilton, Richland Center, jr.
– Hamilton missed some time early in the season due to injury, but finished strong when he returned. He allowed more than two goals just twice in the Hornets final 10 conference matches, while compiling an 8-1-1 mark and a 1.50 goals against average during that stretch. Hamilton notched four shutouts throughout the season for the conference champion Hornets.

BACKUPS
F - Danny Adamany, Prairie du Chien, so.
– 11 goals, 5 assists
MF - Cole Pattison, Prairie du Chien , jr. – 11 goals, 9 assists
MF - Derek Dressler, Prairie du Chien , sr.
– 3 goals, 3 assists
D - Ross Beier, Richland Center, sr. - 1 goal, 1 assist
GK - Skyler Cullen, Platteville/Lancaster, jr. – 8-14-1, 5 shutouts, 2.56 GAA


HEAD COACH (Coach of the Year)
Joseph Stadler, Richland Center
– Stadler led the Hornets to a 9-2-1 record in league play and their first conference championship since 2005. Stadler was also named the Southwest Wisconsin Conference Coach of the Year.

TEAM CAPTAIN (Player of the Year)
Zander Rothering, Richland Center, so
. – As the best player on the best team in the conference, Rothering is our captain despite being just a sophomore.