Spring Break
Harder, better, faster, stronger
Brettschneider ready for another successful season on the field
Drew Lattier, Michael Baumann
Issue date: 8/22/08 Section: Sports
Blake Brettschneider - By Drew Lattier
Brettschneider ready
for another successful
season on the field
This time last year, Blake Brettschneider was attending his first classes, just like most typical freshman would. What wasn't so typical about the Lilburn, Ga., native was that he had the shoes of a Division I soccer player to fill.
A standout athlete coming from Parkview High School, Brettschneider entered the 2007 season eager to play at the collegiate level. For as big of an adjustment that it is to transition between high school and college soccer, the athletic freshman made it look easy.
His first collegiate goal was the game-winning shot in an overtime victory over archrival Clemson. The forward went on to start all 19 games that season and was named to the Conference USA All-Freshman team.
"Freshman year went very well for me," Brettschneider said. "Coming in as a freshman is a learning experience where everything is new, but I think by the end of the season I was comfortable with our system."
Making such a smooth adjustment to college athletics is a tough task, and Brettschneider credits the ease in transition to positive support from a myriad of people.
"I had a lot of people that I could go to if I had questions, or people that could help me along the way," he said. "My parents were always there for me and I had great coaches."
While in high school, Brettschneider looked up to older, more experienced players for advice on success in soccer at the next level. One of those players was Jeff Scannella, a standout player on this year's squad. The two played club-level soccer together at a younger age, and when the year-older Scannella went on to USC and had tremendous success, he was able to help his future teammate do the same.
On top of playing extremely well on the field, Brettschneider has been able to do just as well in the classroom. As a freshman, the public relations student was selected to both the SEC and C-USA Academic Honor Roll.
Brettschneider ready
for another successful
season on the field
This time last year, Blake Brettschneider was attending his first classes, just like most typical freshman would. What wasn't so typical about the Lilburn, Ga., native was that he had the shoes of a Division I soccer player to fill.
A standout athlete coming from Parkview High School, Brettschneider entered the 2007 season eager to play at the collegiate level. For as big of an adjustment that it is to transition between high school and college soccer, the athletic freshman made it look easy.
His first collegiate goal was the game-winning shot in an overtime victory over archrival Clemson. The forward went on to start all 19 games that season and was named to the Conference USA All-Freshman team.
"Freshman year went very well for me," Brettschneider said. "Coming in as a freshman is a learning experience where everything is new, but I think by the end of the season I was comfortable with our system."
Making such a smooth adjustment to college athletics is a tough task, and Brettschneider credits the ease in transition to positive support from a myriad of people.
"I had a lot of people that I could go to if I had questions, or people that could help me along the way," he said. "My parents were always there for me and I had great coaches."
While in high school, Brettschneider looked up to older, more experienced players for advice on success in soccer at the next level. One of those players was Jeff Scannella, a standout player on this year's squad. The two played club-level soccer together at a younger age, and when the year-older Scannella went on to USC and had tremendous success, he was able to help his future teammate do the same.
On top of playing extremely well on the field, Brettschneider has been able to do just as well in the classroom. As a freshman, the public relations student was selected to both the SEC and C-USA Academic Honor Roll.
Be the first to comment on this story