Transfers getting their kicks at IU

Corrado returns to Indiana after spending year as backup at SMU

For most students, moving out of the cornfields of Indiana and into one of the biggest cities in the United States, playing college soccer for a national title contender and making it to the Elite Eight of the championship tournament all mean life is good.
Not for A.J. Corrado.

To live only an hour and a half away from his family and play soccer with friends he’d known since he was nine years old — that’s what Corrado desired more than the spot on a top-five ranked men’s soccer team.

So after a year at Southern Methodist University, Corrado returned last spring to Indiana and was welcomed by coach Todd Yeagley and Corrado’s new teammates, including a former high school teammate, sophomore Harrison Petts.

“We came on most of our college visits to IU together, and we were best friends growing up,” Petts said. “We used to live five minutes from each other, and now we’re rooming together. It’s great to have him back.”

Petts and Corrado have played on soccer teams together on and off since they were nine, coached by Petts’ father in a junior league. The pair moved from one club team to the next, playing together intermittently, before finally settling down with
Carmel United.

There they joined forces with another current Hoosier, sophomore Nikita Kotlov, and won two U.S. Soccer Federation Academy National Championships in 2008 and 2009.

During these years, Corrado and Petts saw similar success as members of the Zionsville Community High School men’s soccer team. They made it to the state finals before losing to Evansville Memorial High School on penalty kicks. Then the duo hoisted the state title one season later, defeating Homestead High School 3-1.

Though these championship victories were on a much smaller stage than college soccer, Yeagley said he feels this championship experience is one of Corrado’s most
important strengths.

“He’s played for some really good teams and in some big environments, and winning championships is difficult to do at any level,” Yeagley said. “We look for players who can help their team win championships, and A.J. is a player who helps his team be
successful.”

Even as a freshman at SMU, Corrado seemed to fill that role. He contributed a goal and an assist and played in 18 games last season in the Mustangs’ first trip back to the NCAA tournament after a two-year hiatus.

Corrado said he recognizes that he played with talented players at SMU who helped the Mustangs reach the Elite Eight, a round further than Yeagley’s team advanced in the tournament. But a successful team wasn’t everything.

“We did have a very good team last year, but I just really felt like I wanted to be closer to home,” Corrado said. “Along with the atmosphere here, it just felt like a more
fitting place.”

Although IU came into the season ranked No. 17, 12 spots behind Corrado’s former team, he said he felt like the campus, the proximity and the huge hype about the soccer program made Bloomington a great place to finish his college career.

“There’s such a great buzz around campus about this team, and that’s not true for every college soccer program,” Corrado said. “We get some of the top players from around the country, and it’s just really a fun team to be a part of.”

Vollmer transfers to IU from Butler after Bulldog coaching staff leaves

After playing only a year of college soccer, Jamie Vollmer had a choice to make — and he chose cream and crimson.

Vollmer spent his freshman season at Butler University playing in 19 matches, starting four on a Bulldog squad that finished the season with a 16-3-1 record before he transferred to IU in the 2011 offseason.

Vollmer will join fellow transfer, sophomore A.J. Corrado, on the field this season for the Hoosiers.

He grew up in Westfield, Ind., so it was a logical choice to attend Butler in nearby Indianapolis. After a change in the coaching staff he decided to look in another direction.

“Our coaches left Butler, and they went to NC State,” Vollmer said. “I just thought I would look around. I played with all these guys on club teams. I just wanted to be back with them.”

His new coach quickly saw the value of having Vollmer on his squad. IU Coach Todd Yeagley said he sees certain natural mental qualities in Vollmer.

“One of the biggest things that Jamie has brought is a toughness both mental and physical,” Yeagley said. “He’s an excellent communicator. He’s got edge to his game. He’s got bite. He’s very good going forward, making things happen, and he doesn’t stop on a play.”

Although Vollmer is new on the roster, he understands IU has high expectations every year. He thinks he and his teammates need to stay focused.

“I’m hoping for big things. They [the Hoosiers] won the Big Ten [tournament] last year, so repeat that and see how far we can get.” Vollmer said.

It didn’t take long for Vollmer’s new teammates to take notice of the sophomore’s skills on the field. Goalkeeper Luis Soffner said he has taken notice of the two aspects of Vollmer’s game that are most recognizable — speed and communication.

“He’s been playing really well. He’s got a really quick step; he’s always talking, which obviously helps with the younger guys in the midfield,” Soffner said.

Senior Chris Estridge said he immediately noticed Vollmer has a high soccer IQ and has been able to pick up the defensive system the Hoosiers run.

“He’s given us a good set of wheels on the outside and he plays outside back, so he knows what he’s doing,” Estridge said. “He came into a good system. He fit in quickly, and I think he will continue to do well.”

Soffner said Vollmer’s familiarity with his IU teammates from before college has quickly manifested itself on the field.

“Him [Vollmer] being from Indy and knowing some of the guys, I think it gives him more of the confidence to talk,” Soffner. “He came up early before the season started, got to meet everyone, and we played for a little bit together.”

As the Hoosiers continue their journey for their eighth star, Vollmer will be a key component during the next three years as he fits into his role on defense.

“I’m hoping to just solidify the back,” Vollmer said. “I’m hoping to just give good minutes and good communication.”