Southeast Community College’s
Beatrice Campus will add men’s and women’s soccer to the sports roster this
fall. Alex Scheuler of Lincoln will be the men’s coach, and John Hakari of
Lincoln will be the women’s coach. Both men bring an extensive background of
soccer coaching to SCC.
“Soccer has become a popular
sport at both the high school and college levels, and we are delighted that we
can add programs that can both attract students to our campus and better serve
our student body,” said Dan Johnson, SCC Athletic Director.
Hakari, 29, is from Green
Bay, Wisconsin. He played NCAA Division III soccer at St. Norbert College in De
Pere, Wisconsin. He then attended law school at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln
and works in immigration law. He’s been coaching soccer since he was 16 and
currently coaches for Villareal Nebraska Academy in Lincoln.
“Coaching college soccer has
always been a dream of mine,” he said. “I’m excited to get the program going, to
recruit, get a team, and start developing an identity.”
Hakari knows it will be a
challenge to recruit a roster in time for a schedule that begins in August, but
he looks forward to hitting the ground running. He said the first year will be
all about development and establishing a playstyle. He hopes to have a roster
of around 24 women.
“I’m glad I can start fresh,
I’m going to have the first batch of players,” he added. “I’m going to pour my
heart and soul into this SCC program.”
Scheuler played soccer at
Waverly High School and continued playing at Cloud County Community College in
Concordia, Kansas. He is currently the director of coaching at the Capital
Soccer Association in Lincoln.
“I’m excited about this new
experience,” he said. “I’ve coached at every level except college. I have a
good background to step into this role and build the program.”
Scheuler, 32, hopes to use
his club connections to build his roster, which can be anywhere from 18-40
players, he said. He hopes to have at least 15 players by the first kickoff in
August. He said there are several players who should consider playing for the
SCC Storm.
“It could be someone who got
in the recruiting process too late, someone who physically isn’t ready for
Division I or II, or someone who wants to play immediately instead of sitting
on the bench,” he said.
The first game is set for
Aug. 26 at Northeast Community College in Norfolk. The first home game will be
Saturday, Aug. 29. Men’s and women’s games will be back-to-back.
Nemaha Sports Construction
will build the Beatrice soccer field, which will be near the entrance of SCC’s campus.
Construction is set to begin in mid- to late March.
SCC also has baseball,
basketball, cross country, and golf for men, and basketball, cross country,
softball, and volleyball for women. The Storm competes in the National Junior
College Athletic Association. For more information, contact Johnson at djohnson@southeast.edu