Batman and Robin, Cheech and Chong, Lucy and Ethel. All three are iconic pairs that made each other better. The men's soccer goaltending duo of Dan Bell and Robert Shuttleworth, much like the aforementioned three, feel that only together can the Bulls win.
Over the last three seasons, Bell has started 53 games for the men's soccer team. However, the senior's playing time has been dramatically cut this season in favor of Shuttleworth, who is a sophomore.
Shuttleworth has been in goal for the Bulls' last five games (which were all wins), and had a streak of three consecutive shutout games earlier in the season.
"It's different when you're used to playing all the time and then you don't play as much, but it's part of the game," Bell said. "Bobby's been playing really well lately, so why change things up now when everything's just coming together? Everybody wants to play, but at the end of the day, you're all part of the same team."
While Bell has only started one game this season, it's one more than he was expecting to play. Bell was all set to begin the next phase of life after graduating last May. However, a loophole in the NCAA's new eligibility rules allowed Bell a second senior season.
"Basically, the NCAA changed their rules a bit for red-shirts for an individual," Bell said. "(Under the old rules) I played too many games my freshman year, but under the new rule change, I fall into the new category, so I got my freshman year back. They told me that I could come back about a week before graduation. Before that I was preparing to go home and move on."
With Bell coming back for another year, Shuttleworth could have been upset that the position of "starter," which had looked to be his, now had competition. However, he has taken the competition in stride.
"Regardless of Dan coming back or whatever, there is always competition for this position at any level, so with him coming back, I kind of saw this as a plus," Shuttleworth said. "He brings so much to our team. He's a good leader. I can learn a lot from him. It's always a plus to have a guy like that on our team."
Shuttleworth says that treating every practice as if it were a game allowed him to keep his skills fresh while he was sitting behind Bell last year.
"You practice as if you're going to play in the game," Shuttleworth said. "Either of us could be playing, we're on such an even playing field, and either of us could get the job done."
Bell said that he and Shuttleworth push each other every practice, and because of this, he sees an improvement in his game from last season. Bell also said that Shuttleworth has greatly improved in the past year.
"I think we work well enough at practice that we're at the point where we're pushing each other, we're working hard," Shuttleworth said.
Shuttleworth's success at goal has allowed Bell ample time to recover from a wrist injury that has been bothering him for over a year. The injury flared up during pre-season and Bell said it was affecting his play.
"In preseason, it was giving me a lot of trouble. We were trying to figure out a way to stabilize my wrist so it didn't bend too much and I was able to catch balls," Bell said. "In the beginning, it was rough, and it still gives me a little bit of pain now and again, but it's not as bad as it was during preseason."
Despite the possibility for bad blood, Bell and Shuttleworth have found a way to make the goalie competition a positive for the team.
"It's more of a positive than a rivalry," Bell said. "We work off each other and make each other better, so I don't think it's a rivalry, more of a competitiveness for the better of the team."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
