Thor Lee’s Thundering Defense on CSUN Soccer Field Has Wrought : Matador Mythology

Thor, the mythical Norse god of thunder, wore a magic, strength-giving belt and wielded a mighty hammer. He fought the battles of mortals and gods against evil giants who represented threatening forces of nature. Legend has it that thunder was actually rumbling from the wheels of Thor’s goat-drawn chariot and lightning flashed from his hammer.

was the flash of his hammer.

Thor Lee, the Cal State Northridge god of defense, is somewhat like his namesake. As the stopper for the CSUN soccer team, Lee must thwart incoming attacks as the last line of defense before the goaltender. Opponents are often left rumbling, if not grumbling, after the wiry, wily Lee intercepts a pass with his blond flattop hammer of a head.

“I would put Thor Lee against any player in the United States,” said CSUN forward Joey Kirk, who is a member of the U.S. National Team program. “When Thor marks someone, the door is shut and the guy is out of the game.”

Lee, a senior, has been made life miserable for opponents since the second game of his freshman year, when he became the Matadors’ starting stopper. He has been accorded All-California Collegiate Athletic Assn. honors twice and was an All-American last season.

CSUN (6-0), ranked fifth in Division II, is trying to win its fourth straight conference title this season. The Matadors, who play at Westmont today and at Cal Lutheran on Sunday, are one win shy of equaling the school record for consecutive wins at the start of a season and have given up more than one goal only once. One of the main reasons is Lee.

“Thor is the best stopper there is at stealing the ball,” CSUN Coach Marwan Ass’ad said. “He is very good because he has the ability to improvise and be creative.”

Lee developed his skills out of necessity. Stoppers are traditionally strapping types who keep playing “even if you cut their heads open,” Lee said. But at 6-1, 160 pounds, Lee is an anomaly.

“He has a lot of quickness, finesse and timing,” said Scott Murray, a former CSUN teammate who is an assistant coach.

Lee, who played for the West team this summer in the Olympic Festival in Chapel Hill, N.C., dominates--literally and figuratively--by using his head. He anticipates on defense as well as perhaps anyone in the country, especially when the ball is in the air. Opponents trying to invade Lee’s airspace usually find their pass attempts ricocheting off of his skull and back toward midfield.

But what makes Lee twice as dangerous is his ability after a steal to lead an offensive charge.

“A lot of defenders, when they come up, kind of float into the midfield,” said UCLA Coach Sigi Schmid, who coached the West team at the Olympic Festival. “Thor keeps coming forward to finish the play.”

An All-Marmonte League player at Newbury Park High, Lee said his style is the result of having no professional or high-profile role models to imitate as a youngster. He heard about the great players but rarely saw them play.

“I guess I just kind of created my own image of the ideal player because visually I didn’t have it on TV and you couldn’t read about it unless it was some little leaflet,” Lee said.

The image Lee calculatingly created has made him one of the most recognizable collegiate players.

When Lee was a youngster, a friend’s father used to tell him that he had to have a personality on the field. In soccer, a player is capable of playing a great match but can go virtually unnoticed if he doesn’t score a goal. Without recognition, there is little opportunity to advance to the next level of competition.

A turning point in his career, Lee said, came two years ago when he decided to get his hair cut into a flattop.

“I thought it would be an attention-getter and it was,” he said. “I go play games in other leagues, have a totally different jersey on and people still know who I am because of the flattop. It was my luck manipulating the way people saw me.

“But I guess everything started with being good in the air. There’s no way to hide that kind of player.”

Things weren’t always so easy for Lee, whom Ass’ad described as “unimpressive” upon arrival at CSUN. Although Lee started as a freshman, Ass’ad rode him mercilessly about his turnover ratio, inability to pass effectively and penchant for initiating offense instead of concentrating on defense.

“Many times, I showed him my disgust and disappointment,” Ass’ad said. “But he worked on it and got better. That’s the type of player he is. Now, you rarely see him lose the ball. I think he believes in himself more than anyone else does. He knows he’s one of the best.”