Maire Hunter
Staff Reporter
Tim Wineke breathes soccer. When the quiet, lanky 19-year-old walks by, it may be hard to imagine him on the field even wearing his green sports jacket. But a couple of questions about his favorite sport and the words start pouring out.
When the season ends, off-season workouts begin, and as soon as the summer starts, Wineke helps former Baltimore Blast player Mike Stankovic run his many summer camps for kids in kindergarten through high school. Over the past few years, Wineke has taken on more administrative duties in addition to coaching the kids, often traveling between camps across several counties on a given day.
Tim Wineke, junior midfielder from Reisterstown, MD, is the leading scorer for the Green Terror soccer team. Last season McDaniel only scored 12 goals
“It was a rough year, but this year we surpassed that fast,” Wineke said.
By the fifth game, Wineke was responsible for nearly a quarter of those goals, including the lone, game-winning goal against Marymount.
Wineke is quick to point out the efforts of his teammates, “Team chemistry is ten times better than in previous years,” he said, adding that the team is working better “as a unit.” This is especially impressive in light of the team’s challenge this year, trying to incorporate 11 new freshman players.
At North Carroll High School, Wineke played mostly stopper, a midfield defensive position, and even though he would have liked to contribute more, it was important to the team that he “anchor the defense.” Wineke was named first team all-county and all-conference.
The move to McDaniel meant that there were “better players around” and everyone was a soccer player, not just an athlete. When Wineke moved to striker his freshman year, an offensive position he’d rarely played before, he just said, “I had to be open-minded about where I play.”
By the second half of his freshman year, he became part of the starting line-up. Despite his humility, he is now clearly a team leader.
His sincerity shines through when he discusses his team, even though his teammates describe him as goofy. Wineke is a team joker who genuinely loves the game, especially since he started trying “to have fun after” a goal.
“I like to celebrate…and pump up the crowd whenever I can,” says Wineke, especially during home games.
With only four games left in the season, and all of them conference games, Wineke and his teammates have an intense few weeks ahead of them.
Their final game will be against Gettysburg, who defeated McDaniel 3-2 in the season closer last year. Expect Tim and the gang to be ready to make sure there is a different result this time around.
