Vanguard University

NAIA All-American: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
all-region II Team: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
all-region II Player of the Year: 2004
all-GSAC: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
GSAC Player of the Week: Five times (one in 2004, two in 2002, two in 2001)
GSAC Scholar-Athlete: 2003, 2004
NAIA Scholar-Athlete: 2004

Matt Hess arrived at Vanguard University for the start of the 2001 men’s soccer season and instantly made an impact that evolved into a record-setting career.

Hess started all but one game in his career. The Lion’s talisman for goal scoring began his career with 15 goals and five assists in 2001, putting up 60 shots across 19 games. As a freshman, Hess received NAIA All-American Honorable Mention, All-GSAC, and All-Region II accolades. He was named the VU team MVP and made the Dean’s List with grade point averages over 3.00 in both semesters. His freshman coach Dave McLeish (whom he joins in the Hall of Fame) would then retire, ushering in Randy Dodge’s (a future HOF member himself) arrival for the 2002 season.

The new coach knew what his star striker could do and allowed him to focus on scoring goals, which Hess did in batches over the next three years. In 2002, Hess collected 21 goals and three assists for 45 points in 20 games. He had 88 shots and a team-best three game-winning goals. He again captured NAIA All-American Honorable Mention, All-GSAC and All-Region II plaudits. In addition, he repeated as team MVP, as well as being named the Vanguard Male Athlete of the Year. Hess also made the Dean’s List for both semesters with GPAs over 3.40.

Hess had a legendary 2003 campaign, rocking the league with 29 goals and six assists for 64 total points on 104 shots. He pocketed five game-winning goals and helped the Lions to a 13-6-1 record overall and a 6-3-1 GSAC mark, good for a third-place finish. He set numerous single-season records in 2003, as he still owns the top mark for points, goals, points per game, goals per game, shots, shots per game, and shots on goal. He set personal highs for points with 12 - also a single-game program record - against San Jose Christian on September 26 in a 15-0 blowout. In that game, he tallied a personal-best and single-season program-record five goals. He received all the 2002 awards again in 2003 and had the Vanguard Champion of Character Award added to his impressive haul.

Though that was the highwater mark statistically, he still finished with a bang in 2004 and helped the Lions to a record win total that stood for 13 years. VU finished 16-5 overall and 9-1 in the GSAC to capture the program’s first conference title. Hess remained a dominating presence, as he tallied 21 goals with a career-high seven assists for 49 points in his senior season. He had 98 shots and six game-winning goals, and his 2004 season totals rank second in individual points, goals, points per game, goals per game, shots, and shots per game in program history. Vanguard toppled Fresno Pacific, 1-0, in the program’s first playoff game before falling to Azusa Pacific to end the magical season. He earned the long-awaited and deserved GSAC Player of the Year Award and was tabbed the All-Region II Player of the Year to go along with making both the All-GSAC and All-Region teams. He was the VU Offensive Player of the Year and clocked a 3.92 GPA in his final semester. Hess also graduated Cum Laude a semester early in December 2004 with a 3.60 GPA.

Hess helped to redefine the sport at Vanguard and gave the coaching staff a future platform to aid in recruitment. He compiled career totals of 193 points in 80 games on 86 goals and 21 assists, leading VU in goals, points, and shots each season he played. He also collected 14 career game-winning goals along the way. Nearly 20 years later, Hess remains the individual record holder for points, points per game (2.41), goals, goals per game (1.08), shots, shots per game (4.38) and games started (79).

CAREER STATS

Season	GP-GS	G	A	P	Shots	Shot%	GWG	PK-ATT
2001	19-18	15	5	35	60	.250	0	0-0
2002	20-20	21	3	45	88	.239	3	1-1
2003	20-20	29	6	64	104	.279	5	0-1
2004	21-21	21	7	49	98	.214	6	0-1
TOTAL	80-79	86	21	193	350	.246	14	1-3