CLU SOCCER EARNS PAYOFF; MEN HOST EARLY PLAYOFFS.

Byline: Patrick Hipes Daily News Staff Writer

Dan Kuntz doesn't seem the type to go in for cliche, so when he says that he's been to the top of the mountain and seen the future, it might be best to take his word for it.

Because, in fact, he has.

At the beginning of every season since he took over the men's and women's soccer programs at Cal Lutheran in 1993, he takes his teams on a small run up the side of Mt. Clef on the Thousand Oaks campus.

``It's not a big hill, so it's not so much for the run as it is symbolic,'' Kuntz said. ``We go up there and talk about our goals and what we want to accomplish. You sit down with them and say, `What are we going to do?' ''

It must have been a doozy of a chat this year. Both Kuntz's teams won Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles and both were invited to the NCAA Regional playoffs. The women fell in the first round last weekend in La Jolla and the men open their version today against Claremont-Mudd at 11 a.m. at North Field - hosting the tournament for the first time since the school joined Division III in 1992.

Success, Kuntz is discovering, is a tiring effort off the field as well as on. In addition to the normal rigors of a coach responsible for two programs, Kuntz found less than 72 hours ago that the NCAA had chosen his Kingsmen (15-2-2) as hosts.

``It's hard to find time to sit back and appreciate it,'' Kuntz said. ``You can't help but get caught up in it. You come home and it's 8 p.m. and it feels like midnight. Then you go to bed and wake up at 6:30 a.m. and do it again.''

The postseason is the newest twist for Kuntz, who has been shuttling between his programs since taking over the duties from his brother, George, now a coach at UC Irvine.

``It's nothing new for us,'' said senior midfielder Edwin Astudillo, who had two goals and four assists this season. ``We've known for four years now that he goes to the women's practice and when that's over he comes to ours. I don't know about the luxury of having a full-time coach, but I don't know any other way.''

Whatever, Kuntz is succeeding. The Kingsmen's only two losses have come against Division II teams - defending champion Grand Canyon and Cal State Dominguez Hills - and the last defeat came on Sept. 16.

In the meantime, the men won the SCIAC title with a 9-0-1 record and the women won their seventh consecutive SCIAC crown to finish 15-4 overall before losing to Gustavus Adolphus College on Saturday.

At the same time the Regals were playing that game in La Jolla, the Kingsmen were playing host to Claremont-Mudd in the SCIAC title game. After deliberation, Kuntz decided he would travel south and allow his assistants to watch over his boys.

``When it comes down to the playoffs, you can't blame him,'' midfielder Jeff Smilen said. ``He had confidence in us and the other coaches.''

The Kingsmen and the Stags played to a 1-1 draw, giving the title to CLU in the process. At that point, it was time to wait for the NCAA to make its playoff selections.

``Before either team was selected into the NCAAs, there was a lot of dreaming going on,'' Kuntz said. ``A lot of what-if.''

Now it's a reality.

``When you have soccer in your heart, you can't let it go,'' Kuntz said. ``It's very rewarding.''

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2 Photos

Photo: (1) Cal Lutheran goalkeeper Guillermo Alvarado and his league-champion teammates start the NCAA Regional this morning vs. Claremont-Mudd.

(2) Cal Lutheran coach Dan Kuntz talks to his players during practice. Kuntz coaches the men and women and has had success with both teams.

John Lazar / Special to the Daily News