A native of Norway who previously played at Bergen University, Knut Leroy played soccer for the Dons from 1991 to 1992, and graduated from USF in 1994.
Newcomers to this mix include Todd Woodhouse, a freshman from Bethel, Washington who Associate Coach Erik Visser terms "a budding star" and Norwegian Knut Leroy, a sweeper from Bergen University.
What do the Vikings of the ninth and tenth centuries have in common with the USF men's soccer team of the 20th century? The Vikings were Scandinavian pirates who ravaged the coasts of Europe and were feared by most of the known world. The 1991 Dons are also an intimidating force, not to the political world, but to the world of soccer. Negoesco's team has its own Vikings: Jan Nordvik, Staale Soebye, Ola Tuntland, Knut Leroy, and their powerful leader Cato Solberg. In the last six games, the Norwegians have scored 13 of the team's 19 goals in the potent Don attack. Solberg is the Dons leading scorer and is in the top five nationally in scoring, with four goals and five assists. Nordvik, Soebye, and Zack Taylor are also nationally ranked. Tuntland and Francois Duny have two goals each. I asked senior captain Andrew Kreichbaumer how the team feels about this Norwegian powerhouse. Kreichbaumer said, "We are all glad they're on the team. They contribute so much on the field, but what is really great is that we all get along and are good friends."
Head Coach Stephen Negoesco described his team's play against an overmatched Sacramento State by stating, "We could have done better, bul we didn't do bad. We had a lot of mistakes. We're still trying to find a fluid combination of old and young players in the middle. We need a better transition from defense to offense." USF struck quickly and dramatically as Knut Leroy scored his first goal of the season on an assist from Ken Folan. Folan crossed from the left-corner to Leroy who headed in the ball past a stunned Hornet goalkeeper at 1:55 into the game (TheFoghorn).
