The head men’s soccer coach, Willy Roy, landed one of the best soccer players in this region of the country—a freshman Sigerud Slaastad, and he didn’t even have to recruit him.

The fine Physical Therapy Program here at our great institution is what lured this talented Norwegian soccer player to come to NIU.

When Sigerud made up his mind that he wanted to study abroad and play soccer, he was only left with one place to turn. The U.S.

That is because in other countries throughout the world colleges do not have the same types of athletic programs that we have in America.

Sigerud knew he wanted to play at the Division I level so he researched a few of the different schools at the Division I level in the Midwest. His final choice came between NIU and Ohio State.

NIU won out over Ohio State for two reasons. First and foremost, NIU has a really tough Physical Therapy Program. The second reason was that the NIU men’s soccer team is coached by Willy Roy. He is European and he has had professional experience both as a player and coach. For these reasons Sigerud felt that coach Roy could appreciate his style of play and his attitude about the game.

Sigerud is a fine addition to an NIU soccer team that has looked promising in their first two matches of the season.

He is presently holding down fort at the middle halfback position and does a great job controlling the tempo of the game for the Huskies.

Of his role on the team Sigerud said, “I hope to play as good as I possibly can, and in turn I hope that will help the team to play really well.”

Sigerud’s goals for the future are to get his degree in Physical Therapy, look for an opportunity to play professional soccer, and if that doesn’t pan out, put his degree to good use working in the health care field.

When asked about this weekend’s scheduled match with the University of Wisconsin, a school ranked 14th nationally at the Division I level, Sigerud replied, “I hope to come away with two victories, but I know it will be tough.”

Not only is Sigerud a member of the soccer team here at NIU but he is a member of the wrestling team. Last winter at the University Nationals in Chicago, Sigerud took second place in the 180.5 lb. division.