Andy Schmetzer

Infobox Football biography


playername= Andy Schmetzer
fullname = Andy M. Schmetzer
nickname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1967|4|26
cityofbirth =Seattle, Washington
countryofbirth = United States
height = height|ft=5|in=10
currentclub =
clubnumber =
position = Midfielder
youthyears =
youthclubs = Sporthaus FC
Nathan Hale High School.
years = 1985
1985-1988
1988-1990
1990-2001
1997
clubs = F.C. Seattle
Cleveland Force "(indoor)"
Tacoma Stars "(indoor)"
Cleveland Crunch "(indoor)"
Charleston Battery
caps(goals) =
23 (3)
manageryears = 2001
2002-2004
managerclubs = Cleveland Force "(assistant)"
Cleveland Force
pcupdate =
ntupdate =

Andy M. Schmetzer (born April 26, 1967 in Seattle, Washington is a former U.S. soccer midfielder and indoor soccer coach.

Youth

Schmetzer grew up in Seattle, Washington where he attended Nathan Hale High School. He learned to play soccer under the tutelage of his father Walter who coached him with the Lake City Hawks youth team. Walter, a native of Germany, had played in the German Third Division before immigrating to the United States. Schmetzer, and his twin brother Walt led Nathan Hall to the 1985 3A Washington State boys soccer championship. Andy was also a member of the Sporthaus FC youth team which won the Washington State championship.

F.C. Seattle

After graduating in 1985, both Schmetzers, along with their older brother Brian signed with F.C. Seattle of the Western Soccer Alliance. ^{[http://a-leaguearchive.tripod.com/1985/stats85.htm#Seattle]}

MISL

In 1985, the Cleveland Force of Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) selected Schmetzer in the first round of the MISL draft. He played three seasons with the Force before moving to the Tacoma Stars after the Force folded in 1988. However, in 1989, Cleveland received an expansion MISL franchise, the Cleveland Crunch. Schmetzer moved back to Cleveland in 1990. In 1992, MISL folded and the Crunch moved to the National Professional Soccer League. Schmetzer and his team mates went on to win three NPSL titles in 1994, 1996 and 1999. He retired from playing professionally in 2001 having spent five seasons as the Crunch’s team captain.

Charleston Battery

In 1997, Schmetzer spent a single season with the Charleston Battery. ^{[http://www.charlestonbattery.com/history_pregister.asp?pid=126]}

Coaching

Following his retirement from playing in 2001, Schmetzer returned as an assistant coach with the Force. In 2002, he became the team’s head coach until he retired in 2004. Schmetzer continues to coach at the youth level. In 2000, he co-founded the Cleveland Soccer Academy and spent five years coaching the Girls Premier team. He was also a Super Y League Boys coach in 2003-2004.

Futsal

In 1992, Schmetzer played with the U.S. National Futsal team that placed second in the FIFA Futsal World Championship held in Hong Kong. ^{[http://www.fifa.com/tournaments/archive/tournament=106/edition=3381/teams/team=1890409.html]}

External links

* [http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/9392/22.html Cleveland Crunch fan site]
* [http://www.soundercentral.com/museum/VideoClips/FC%20Seattle%202-3%20Chivas.AVI Schmetzer scores a goal in 1985 with F.C. Seattle]