Coach holds Hannig for tournament play

Junior goalkeeper Colin Rogers spent most of his three years at IU benched behind National Player of the Year candidate senior T.J. Hannig.\nThis weekend in Berkeley, Calif., Hannig will serve as Rogers' backup, as the Hoosiers face Stanford and Cal.\nAfter injuring his knee in practice Sept 26., Hannig returned to full training with the Hoosiers Monday following five weeks of rehabilitation. He had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee Sept. 29.\nMen's soccer coach Jerry Yeagley said Hannig most likely won't play this weekend in the Cal-Berkeley Classic, but might return for the Big Ten tournament Nov. 10-12.\nAside from Hannig, four other starters are injured and might not play Saturday and Sunday. Senior forward Matt Fundenberger sprained his ankle in practice Monday while sophomore midfielder Phil Presser sprained his MCL in a 1-0 win against Ohio State Oct. 22.\nFor three weeks, a high ankle sprain has limited junior back John Swann's playing time, and junior midfielder Bobby de St. Aubin suffered a high groin strain in practice last week.\nAll five injured starters will travel to California but all might not play, team trainer Joe Lueken said. Rogers will start as goalkeeper.\n"T.J.'s a great goalie, and he's been working hard to come back, and I know he's going to be ready," Rogers said. "I feel confident right now, and I think it's really good for the team that we have two goalies that have been tested and ready to go."\nBefore Hannig was sidelined, Rogers didn't play a minute for the Hoosiers (13-3) but has started every game since then. And since his first appearance in a 3-2 win against then-No. 2 Penn State, Rogers has allowed one goal, against winless Northwestern Oct. 15, and has won six consecutive games.\n"I don't think I've ever been comfortable with the backup position," Rogers said. "But at the same time I've worked behind T.J. for three years now. If it's best for the team with T.J. being the starting goalie, I'll be ready and willing to accept that role as well."\nHannig would most likely start in the postseason because he has successful tournament results, Yeagley said. \nBefore the 2000 season, Rogers played only 77 minutes and never started a game while Hannig compiled a 56-5 career record to go along with two national championships. Rogers was named Big Ten Player of the Week Oct. 23, an award Hannig won Sept. 26, the same day he injured his knee.\n"T.J.'s going to have to show that he is in top form for us to take Colin out of there," Yeagley said. "We're not automatically putting T.J. back in just because he's been cleared to play."\nThe competition between Hannig and Rogers could be similar to Hannig's battle for the starting role with then-freshman Doug Warren last season. Warren has since transferred to Clemson so he could start for the Tigers.\n"I always loved the competition factor," Hannig said. "(Rogers) did a really good job for us. He got us some big wins in some big games. He pretty much kept us alive for post-season play."\nBefore Hannig had surgery, Lueken said Hannig would not play for three to four weeks. Hannig had said before the surgery he hoped to return Oct. 18 to play Kentucky, but after the surgery, the time-off period was extended to five to six weeks. Yeagley said Oct. 18 the goal was to have Hannig ready for the Cal-Berkeley tournament.\nBut the severity of the injury was greater and rehabilitation took longer than originally expected.\nThe torn meniscus in his knee could have been removed or repaired, Hannig said. It was repaired.\n"The trainers said it was probably for the better (that it wasn't removed) because five or 10 years down the road, I'd probably have chronic knee pain without the meniscus," Hannig said.\n Hannig returned to practice with his teammates early last week, but often played for only 30-45 minutes a day. He worked on improving his knee's range and motion and did repetitions on a leg press during rehabilitation.\nTo replace the four other injured Hoosiers, Yeagley plans to use regular substitutes and take players out of position. Sophomore Michael Bock would probably replace Fundenberger, and freshman forward Lucas Christian might see considerable playing time, Yeagley said.\n"Fundy's always been a big-game player," Yeagley said. "Missing him is tough. He's big and strong and he puts his body on the line. He's gotten goals in big games, so we're going to have to have (junior midfielder Ryan) Mack and (sophomore midfielder Pat) Noonan pick some of that up and have a lot of people help along the way."\nSophomore midfielder Marcus Chorvat would replace Presser at center midfield, where Aubin would have gone if he wasn't injured. Junior Ryan Hammer, who played as a marking back against the Buckeyes, would start in place of Swann.\nIf Swann plays, Hammer could play wide at midfield against a physical Stanford team (14-1-1).\n"I'm not one to make excuses for injuries, and I feel you need to have depth," Yeagley said. "But I do know that, to go all the way and win it all, you have to have your best players available. And then you've got to have some good fortune. And hopefully our best players will be available by the time we start postseason"