Men's club soccer at Michigan almost ceased to exist five years ago.

In 2000, men's soccer became a varsity sport, which not only stripped the club team of its best players, but also of its coach. But the players who loved the club team refused to let it die, and this year the team has realistic hopes of a national championship.

Thanks to an infusion of new blood - this year's club includes two freshmen and fourteen sophomores - the team is looking to improve upon last year's fourth-place regional finish.

"Last year was the first time in four years that we didn't go to nationals," said Scott Holzwarth, club president and one of two seniors on this year's club. "We had issues with scoring goals - we had five 0-0 ties."

Actually, no one ended up going to nationals in 2004. They were to be held in Austin, Texas, but due to flooding of the fields, all the games were cancelled. This year nationals will be in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, from November 18-21.

"Our goal is definitely to go undefeated, win regionals, and definitely win a national championship," Holzwarth said. "We have a really young team, but we have a good future ahead of us."

The time commitment for club soccer, while not as consuming as varsity, is still considerable. The team practices three times a week and plays two or three games each weekend, all against different teams. Sometimes games are played up to 5 1/2 hours from Ann Arbor.

The team maintained its unbeaten record this weekend. After defeating Ferris State 6-0 and Indiana-South Bend 4-0 on Saturday, the team returned home at 1 a.m. Eight hours later they played a friendly match against a tough Illinois team. Though the team was exhausted and playing without three of its four starting defenders, they gutted out a 1-1 tie.

The game won't count in the standings, but both teams played as if it did. Freshman Carey Hynes scored an early goal when the ball rolled between the Illinois keeper's legs. Illinois equalized at the beginning of the second half with a perfect header off a corner kick. It dominated the second half, but didn't score, thanks to Michigan's gritty defense.

The team began the season with three straight wins over Loyola-Chicago, Western Illinois and Indiana, outscoring its opponents 19-2. Eleven different players contributed goals in the first weekend.

"Our offensive attack is very strong this year," Holzwarth said. "We're multi-dimensional and don't rely on one player. We have many players who can score this year."

Despite their early success, the players aren't relaxing. Instead, they will continue to work on improving all aspects of their games.

"High pressure on the ball and pressing up top is something we need to improve on," Holzwarth said. "We need to win the ball in their defensive end to produce goals. That's the main thing we should work on, keep shaping the defense."