Sitting on the bench near the end of last season, Phil Boerger started to put together his exit plan from Evansville. His dissatisfaction with the losing program had become insurmountable, and after being the starting goalkeeper for half the season, the benching only made it worse. Boerger had to get out.

In the last game he started for Evansville, Boerger gave up two goals in a 2-1 loss to Drake. They were the final two goals he’d ever give up for the Purple Aces. He sat on the bench for the remainder of the season.

‘We definitely weren’t playing to our potential at all,’ Boerger said. ‘A lot of guys ended up leaving. I was the first guy to leave in the spring semester. I started I think it was 10 games. And then one thing kind of led to another, and I knew I was going to leave there at the end of the season.’

As he watched from the bench, Boerger made up his mind to leave the program and play out his final year of eligibility elsewhere. Given his release from Evansville, Boerger was presented with some options, but none seemed better than the one Syracuse (1-2-0, 0-0 Big East) offered. It was the chance to reunite with SU assistant coach Mike Miller, who was an assistant coach at Evansville for Boerger’s first two years there, as well as an opportunity to play in the higher profile Big East conference.

Now the Orange’s starting goalkeeper, Boerger, who is in his senior season, has been given the opportunity to help build the program back up to a respectable level. He’s started all three of Syracuse’s games so far in 2011 and has made 10 saves, including a six-save performance in the team’s season-opening 1-0 loss to Colgate. All told, the decision to leave Evansville turned out to be a good one so far for both him and SU.

‘He’s made a couple of really good saves, important saves for us,’ head coach Ian McIntyre said. ‘I think he’s been very solid. If he continues to keep moving forward and growing, I think he can have a really important season for us.’

McIntyre never guaranteed Boerger the starting spot, sparking a preseason competition mainly between the transfer and junior Ryan Jones. Also in the mix were three freshmen, but they were certainly considered the underdogs in the competition that involved two veterans.

With the departure of Jeremy Vuolo, the Orange was looking for someone to step into that spot and make a seamless transition in goal.

Boerger became that new face, bringing along a semblance of stability having already gone through the collegiate learning curve.

Still, the Orange’s 2-10-5 record last season could have been a cause for concern to someone looking to finish out his career on a high note. SU hasn’t shown it can win consistently under McIntyre.

But that wasn’t enough to dissuade Boerger from transferring.

‘It was tough, obviously,’ Borger said. ‘With a record like that, it’s not appealing, at first. But looking into it, it was a great thing to be a part of to help build up. This is my last season, and hopefully I can help build onto that and maybe bring some prowess to the program.’

With Boerger being named the starter, a spot McIntyre said isn’t necessarily solidified, Jones was relegated to a reserve position for yet another season after sitting behind Vuolo in 2010. But Jones said he didn’t get caught up in Boerger transferring to SU, and the ramifications that it would have on his own spot on the team.

Instead, he took it as a reason to work harder. Improve every day in practice. And when given playing time in a game, capitalize on the opportunity.

‘It’s disappointing that I’m not the one starting,’ Jones said. ‘But it’s definitely great to have him here just for both of us to get better. …It’s been great so far that we’ve been working together, and trying to get better as a team. ‘

That’s Boerger’s goal exactly. He didn’t leave a floundering program at Evansville to join another in Syracuse. He left to resurrect a team that had fallen to the bottom of what he considers one of the best conferences in the country.

With his struggles in Evansville behind him and the starting spot in Syracuse secured for now, Boerger is focusing on how far this team can go. Along with his personal rejuvenation has come a lofty vision for the future of the program.

‘I know that this team can be one of the top programs in the Big East and in the country in the future,’ Boerger said. ‘I want to be part of that.’

cjiseman@syr.edu

Published on September 5, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Chris: cjiseman@syr.edu | @chris_iseman