THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, July 6, 1994 TAG: 9407060535
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LEE TOLLIVER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
After completing a successful career at Virginia Commonwealth University last spring, Neil Mason made the difficult choice of leaving behind a lifetime of soccer for a future in the business world.
But curiosity killed that cat.
``I really wasn't thinking about soccer at all. I wanted to start work on my master's degree,'' said Mason, a 24-year-old native of Trinidad, who will play in the U.S. Interregional Soccer League All-Star Game at 7:30 tonight at the Center for Effective Learning.
``Then the opportunity to play for the (Hampton Roads) Hurricanes came up and I thought I'd just give it a try. I was curious about some things.''
He now sees soccer far into his future.
Mason, a member of a national championship team in high school who was named to the All-Metro and All-South Atlantic Region teams as a collegian, now has his eyes on a professional league that might be forming next season. Or, at the very least, sticking with the Hurricanes while working on his MBA.
Several factors kept the ball rolling.
For one, soccer, which he's played nearly all his life, runs thick in his blood.
Secondly, he says the Hurricanes' inaugural season has been a real, well .
And, undoubtedly, there is his selection for the initial USISL All-Star Game.
Mason said joining Hurricanes teammates Mark Waite and Tim Figureido, a late addition to the squad, was a pleasant surprise, but added that the support of the local soccer community has pleased him even more. It is that support that brought tonight's game to Hampton Roads. The Hurricanes are leading the 72-team league in average attendance.
``Hey, it it were not for the fans, there would be no soccer,'' Mason said. ``Around here, we compete against the baseball team and there are so many other things to do. But there is a lot of support for soccer in this area. Still, I am surprised at how well a first-year team is doing.
``We really love playing here.''
Mason credits the fans with keeping the Hurricanes in several of their closely fought home games.
``Our fans don't sit on their hands,'' he said.
And if they have made that much of a difference, it's a good thing they don't.
During the first half of the season, the Hurricanes needed all the support they could get, suffering through several one-goal losses.
But it was understandable. The Hurricanes were a squad of players unfamiliar with each other and whose styles didn't mesh. At times, having fun was extremely difficult.
``If it's not enjoyable, it doesn't make sense to be playing,'' said Mason, a defender who has scored one goal this season. ``But our fans have made it very much fun. And the guys have all gotten to know each other better. We do things together now, and we laugh and have a good time. Because of these things, we are now one of the better teams in the (Atlantic) division.
``We are really starting to come together.''
At first, Mason thought little about playing in tonight's game. But as the starting whistle nears, he admits to butterflies.
``I get more and more nervous,'' he said. ``I'm kind of playing at home here, and I don't want anybody to think I am playing just because they needed some Hurricanes on the team.
``I also want to play well for our fans because they are the ones that have brought the game here. It will probably be like a schoolyard pickup game, because we have no practice time. And those games can be very entertaining - for the fans and the players.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
MARCIE YAECKEL-LAUMANN/Beach Images
Neil Mason, center, will be one of three Hurricanes on Atlantic
Division team for the USISL All-Star Game at 7:30 tonight.
by CNB