Indiana University Athletics
Hoosiers Visit White House for Second Straight Year
8/15/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
May 13, 2005
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The two-time defending national champion Indiana men's soccer team visited the White House on Friday, May 13, in a ceremony recognizing NCAA Champions in the East Room. Indiana was one of four national championship teams honored. Others included the Stanford University's women's volleyball team, California State University Fullerton's baseball team and the Notre Dame women's soccer team.
"It was exciting to have the chance to meet President Bush again," Indiana head coach Mike Freitag said. "To be honored at the White House two years in a row is a great achievement. The President joked about the boys shaving my head after we won the national championship, but it was a great time."
President George W. Bush made his remarks at around 2 p.m. EDT. He commented on a variety of things with the Hoosiers, including the two sharing the similarity of winning back-to-back. He also made light of IU's rookie head coach promising to shave his head following the Hoosiers winning the title.
President Bush once again received a personalized Indiana soccer jersey. Last year, former Hoosier Drew Shinabarger presented Bush a crimson road IU jersey in the ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House. This year, senior Pat Yates honored President Bush with a home white, No. 1 jersey along with an IU soccer scarf.
Along with the jersey and scarf, the Indiana Soccer Program purchased a water buffalo and donated it to a family oversees. The donation was part of Heifer Project International. It is a non-profit organization that alleviates hunger, poverty and environmental degradation through gifts of food- and income-producing farm animals and training. Since 1944, Heifer has helped over four million families in 125 countries become self-reliant. To learn more about Heifer, visit http://heifer.org.
Following the ceremony in the East Room, the Hoosiers took a tour of the World War II Memorial. The team and traveling party also enjoyed a tour of Washington, D.C., that included stops at the Korean War Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.
