Trittschuh, who will celebrate his 55th birthday in April, is a local product who starred under former U.S. national coach Bob Kehoe at Granite City North High and under another U.S. Soccer Hall of Famer, Bob Guelker, at nearby SIU Edwardsville.

A defender, Trittschuh started his pro career with the St. Louis Steamers in 1987 and later played indoors with the St. Louis Ambush as that squad captured the city’s lone professional soccer championship.

“The really special thing about that team was it was pretty much all St. Louis guys,” Trittschuh recalled.

His playing career ran from 1987 through 2001 and included action in the MISL, the American Professional Soccer League and Major League Soccer. In addition, he earned 38 caps with the U.S. national team that included one game at the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

In that one game, a 5-1 loss to Czechoslovakia, Trittschuh’s play caught the attention of a Czech assistant coach who was also head coach of Czech power Sparta Prague. Trittschuh eventually signed and played one season there, becoming the first American to compete in the European Cup.

“It was really a crazy time, with the transition from communism to democracy,” Trittschuh recalled.