he men’s soccer program celebrated its 50th anniversary last November, and the reunion brought together players and coaches from various eras in the team’s history. People like Joe Garcia, the team’s first varsity coach, and Pete Telfer, its first All-American, were able to trade stories with former Coach Bill Schiefflin, who guided the program through its golden years in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Frank Selca, Albany’s all-time leading scorer, and Afrim Nezaj, a household name to soccer enthusiasts in the Capital Region because of his professional soccer stints and his ownership in two indoor soccer facilities, recalled playing in the NCAA Division III tournament. And current coach Johan Aarnio discussed his team’s future.

Whether they competed on a struggling team that didn’t even have its own field on which to play, or they were part of UAlbany’s best soccer teams that drew thousands of fans to their games, the soccer players had much in common. They appreciated their opportunity to play the game they loved, but they also realized how fortunate they were to receive an outstanding education and to create lifelong friendships.

occer at Albany began not with a roar, but with a whimper. “I left Ohio State as a coach, and I came to Albany,” recalled Garcia, who is considered the father of the program. “When I first stepped on the field, they had been a club team, and the next year, they made varsity status.”

It was Garcia’s job to get the team off and running, but his resources were limited.

“The University president (Evan Collins) told me clearly what he wanted,” Garcia recalled. “He told me to provide a program for the student body, and that whatever happened, happened. He was my staunchest supporter, but there was no money. We played at St. Mary’s Park on Partridge Street. We used to have to cut the grass and pick up the garbage before we played. We had no shower or our own dorms, and we didn’t have any place to dress as a team until we got to the game. Eventually we played at Bleecker Stadium and Hawkins Stadium, but it was a great challenge and a lot of work.”

Frank Selca, right, in 1975

Afrim Nezaj, left, in 1980

Although Albany struggled with wins and losses in the early years, the players made their mark as a team representing a strong academic institution.

“The key thing was that we had students and athletes on the team,” said Garcia. “They weren’t just athletes.”

Telfer, B.S.’53, who recently retired as the principal at Scarsdale, N.Y., Middle School, agreed. “Coach Garcia twisted my arm and made me join the team,” he said. “He went through the halls to get people for the team. I had never played soccer before. I was a basketball player, but I was sick, and I couldn’t play basketball, so Garcia made me a goalie. It was a struggle, because Albany was always a strong academic school with no scholarships. You had to really want to play, and you had to keep up your grades.”

lbany eventually became a national power on the Division III level under Coach Schiefflin, who took over from Garcia in 1968 and coached the team until 1987. “When I first took over, we had a couple of years when we struggled,” Schiefflin said. “But then I began to recruit kids out of the New York City area. We had a combination of athletes from Long Island and some Albany kids. They were so talented that I tried to use their technical ability, and we played ball-control.”

During the mid 1970s and early 1980s, Schiefflin’s teams earned two NCAA Division III tournament bids. Talented players like Selca and Nezaj were mainstays.

“We played Southern Illinois, the defending Division I national champion, and they beat us, 3-0, but we had 4,000 to 5,000 fans watching us at Bleecker Stadium,” said Schiefflin. “We had a very strong team.”

The players Schiefflin recruited from the New York City area also came from more diverse backgrounds. Selca’s story was an unusual one. “I was born in Yugoslavia,” said the 1977 graduate who lives in Guilderland and now works for a local home improvement company. “My dream was always to play soccer. I came to America in 1970 because Yugoslavian President Joseph Tito allowed different ethnic groups to leave the country at that time. I was Albanian.

Frank Selca, left, and Afrim Nezaj, were two of UAlbany’s most talented players during the mid-70s and early 80s. Nezaj now operates the indoor soccer facility in suburban Albany where this photo was taken.

“My father wasn’t making a lot of money, and I was only in the country four years when I entered the Educational Opportunities Program at Albany,” said Selca, who following graduation played in the American Soccer League in 1978 and 1979.

“I got a great education, and I got the chance to play some great soccer. We were ranked nationally, in the top 10, at one point, and we had tremendous talent on those teams.” Selca, a 1998 UAlbany Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, still holds the Great Danes’ single-season scoring record with 19 goals and 10 assists in the 1975 season.

The 42-year-old Nezaj, B.A.’82, who also had a long professional soccer career with the New York Eagles, Pennsylvania Stoners, Rochester Flash, New York Nationals, Capital District Shockers and the Alley Cats, is now an assistant coach at Siena College in suburban Albany. He also operates both the Center City and Colonie Athletic Club indoor soccer facilities. He remembers his time at Albany as “the best time of my life.”

Schiefflin during his coaching days.

Garcia with the 1951-52 team.

fter posting a solid 8-7-3 record as a first-year member of the competitive Atlantic Soccer Conference, UAlbany is now moving to the America East Conference. Aarnio, the Danes’ current coach, is pleased.

Soccer Reunion: Four former coaches were honored at a UAlbany soccer reunion last fall. From left: Roy Pfiel, Bill Schiefflin, Joe Garcia, Associate Athletics Director Gail Cummings-Danson, who made the presentation, and Aldo Nardiello. Johan Aarnio, right, is the current soccer coach.

“It shows that we are moving forward,” he said. “We had very good soccer in the Atlantic Soccer Conference, but they had no automatic berth for the NCAA Tournament. America East does have that automatic berth, and they have some excellent teams. Vermont won that league’s title last year, and we lost to them, 1-0, last season. Boston University, Hartford, Drexel and New Hampshire are all good soccer schools. We lost five starters from last year’s team, but we are happy to be in a national forum with the America East Conference. I think the move will do a lot for soccer at UAlbany.”

Bob Weiner, B.S.’82, is a sports reporter for the Daily Gazette in Schenectady, N.Y.

For more information about alumni athletic team reunions, please contact Melissa Samuels, director of Alumni Relations, at 518-442-3083. E-mail: msamuels@uamail.albany.edu.