For Wave’s Wiedabach, Saturday is chance to shine
BROOKFIELD – Saturday will be the sort of day for Andrew Wiedebach that makes four years of hard work in obscurity seem worthwhile.
The sort of day when the soccer-loving teens and ‘tweens he coaches with Elmbrook United will see him put into practice the lessons he taught them.
The sort of day that reminds him – as if there really were any question – a career in IT can wait.
“In terms of some of the other guys, I’m sure it’s just another game stepping out there,” said Wiedabach, a Mequon native who will take to the turf for only the third time this season Saturday night at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.
“But for me, being a guy that hasn’t had as much time out there under the bright lights with all the fans, there’s a little bit of butterflies, a little bit of nerves, but I think after that first shift, that first pass, that first tackle … I’ll probably settle in and be just fine.”
Wiedabach, a 27-year-old midfielder from Homestead High School and UWM, will suit up in the team’s regular-season finale partly because of injuries. The Wave (16-5) is down a couple of regulars, and virtually everyone else on the roster is banged up to some degree.
But the midfielder also will play – for just the eighth time in two years – because he has earned an opportunity through tireless hours spent on the training field at the Midwest Orthopedic Sports Complex.
“He’s a guy who’s got all the tools,” coach Giuliano Oliviero said. “He shows up every day, he works, pushes everyone to be better.
“And what he does on the training field, we definitely need to show up on the playing field, and I think he’ll have a great future. He’s got a passion for the game and does everything you ask.”
Milwaukee has been without highscoring forward Robert Renaud since he suffered a knee ligament tear in January. Forward Andre Hayne is hobbled by a knee strain, midfielder Drew Ruggles is out with a bad ankle, and goalkeeper Josh Lemos is sidelined by a shoulder injury that will give Rafael Dias his sixth appearance of the season Saturday.
So Wiedabach will take the field for the third time this season, fellow UWM alum Kyle Lance for the second and Isaac Pereyra the sixth when the Wave (16-5) will meet the Florida Tropics (1010) at 6:05 p.m. Saturday.
“From the beginning of the season we’ve been saying we have a deep roster,” said Stuart Grable, a defender from Neenah and UW-Green Bay.
“We’ve had plenty of injuries, plenty of key guys go out, miss a game here, miss a few games there. The next guy has come in and they’ve stepped up.”
The team’s Central Division playoff series with the Cedar Rapids Rampage (11-11) is set for games at 12:05 p.m. next Saturday at the Odeum Expo Center in Villa Park, Ill., and 1:05 p.m. March 11 at the Arena. The Wave won three of the four games the teams played in the regular season.
Soon 20-man playoff rosters will be set. Wiedabach hopes he’ll have a place on the Wave’s.
He has eked out a living in soccer through his modest paychecks from the team, coaching two teams at Elmbrook and instructing at the Wave’s summer camps, thus far able to avoid a desk job. Practice is rewarding, but the games are what it’s all about.
“For the majority of the season, 15 are playing in the game; I’m usually maybe 16, 17 or 18, so I’d like to think that my hard work has earned me a spot on that playoff roster and I think I’m prepared,” Wiedabach said. “I’m ready to step in and contribute.”