Leading goal scorer one of two vets cut from M. Soccer

Whitten, along with junior Damon Hamilton, was cut by Quakers coach Rudy Fuller after five days of training camp on August 30. The cuts reduced the size of the team roster from 29 to 27. "He was one of the guys we decided that wasn't really at the level we needed to be at," Fuller said of Whitten. More cuts will be made before the season begins on Friday to further reduce the roster size. The maximum number of players allowed to compete on the traveling squad is generally 18, but Fuller can take 20 to the season-opening George Mason Tournament in Fairfax, Va., on Friday. Although Whitten's absence from the team comes as a surprise to many, the 5'11'' forward was not shocked. According to Whitten's father, David N. Whitten, the Penn sophomore had predicted that he would get cut prior to leaving for training camp. "David said, 'Fuller's going to cut me because he doesn't like me,'" the elder Whitten said. Whitten's father admits that his son was not in particularly good shape for training camp and Fuller did not deny that this was one of the reasons he cut the Fort Worth, Texas, native. But the elder Whitten suspects that Fuller might have had an ulterior motive. "I think [Fuller] used some players last year in a self-serving way and never planned to keep them," David N. Whitten said. The elder Whitten suggested that Fuller had intended from the beginning to cut his son after one season. "I believe, in fact, that [Fuller] failed to utilize my son appropriately last year, taking advantage of him as he faithfully played the role of reserve/practice player as he developed other (apparently less skilled) players who for some reason were more appealing to him," the elder Whitten said in a statement last week. However, Fuller believes that the Quakers are simply a deeper team this season, a difference that can be seen in the freshman classes of this year and last year. "Last year we had to throw a lot of freshmen into the fire that maybe weren't ready," Fuller said. "This year the freshmen thrown into the fire have earned their shot." The younger Whitten, who could not be reached for comment, made the team last year as a walk-on out of Branson (Calif.) High School. Whitten did not see game action until the Quakers' 10th contest last season but quickly made a name for himself after scoring the game-winning goal in the 75th minute against St. Mary's of California. Three days later, Whitten scored another goal in a 3-1 victory over St. Francis at Rhodes Field, but the walk-on only saw one more start in Penn's final four games. Whitten played in a total of five games in 1998, starting three. He finished tied with fellow freshman Evan Anderson for second on the team with four points, behind only then-junior midfielder Reggie Brown, who had five points in 1999 off a goal and three assists. Anderson and Brown each played in all 16 of the team's games. Whitten was named to the NCSAA All-Far West team as a senior in high school. He also played for the Marine United Club that finished third in the California State Cup. Hamilton played in 14 games last season under coach Fuller. The Sharon, Mass., native, who is also a hurdler on the Penn track team, earned three starts but did not register a goal or assist in 1998.