The Hawks soccer team lost their place in the NSCAA/Continental Tire Top 25 last week, but continues to receive votes in the rankings. In the Top Drawer Soccer Tournament 48, the Hawks were number 42 as they opened up Northeast Conference play last weekend.
The Blue and White spent the week preparing for a Friday afternoon match against Quinnipiac, and arrived in Connecticut only to see the weather cause a postponement.
“When you travel on the road like that and you’re trying to get prepared for a game, it’s disappointing when it gets cancelled,” said head coach Robert McCourt. “But it was certainly the right decision because they had flash floods up there and really heavy rain.”
A makeup date is in progress, but has yet to be determined.
Staying in a hotel for the weekend, the team was able to practice on Central Connecticut State’s football field Saturday. On Sunday afternoon, they were ready for a 3:30 pm match against CCSU.
Getting out shot 10-4 and whistled for seven fouls, Monmouth fell to CCSU by a score of 1-0, putting their record at 5-2-1. CCSU’s Jesse Menzies scored on a penalty kick in the 38th minute in what eventually was the game winner. Hawks midfielder Francois “Paco” Navarro tallied 2 shots and goalkeeper Alex Blackburn had 4 saves in the defeat. The team, overall, played quite well and didn’t stray away from their game plan, they simply didn’t execute on their chances.
“It was our first conference game, so it would have been nice to start off with a win, or at least a tie just to get some points away from home,” said senior midfielder Ryan Clark. “We just have to forget about it now; it’s just one game and there’s ten in the conference.”
“I thought the guys were tremendous,” said coach McCourt. “It’s very difficult to be in a hotel for three days before a game. They responded really well, we just made one silly mistake on a penalty kick and it cost us the game.”
The narrow field at Central Connecticut was enough to keep the Hawks a little off their game. The style in which MU is accustomed to playing was negated with the size of the field. “Now that we’re home on Friday and Sunday, we hope we can play the game and the style that we want to play and not let the size of the field dictate how we play,” said McCourt.
Remarking on how the team can brush the loss off and turn it around in the upcoming games, McCourt said, “We don’t really change what we do, we just try to prepare as much as we can. It’s very early in the conference and conference games are always a battle. Teams beat each other often in the conference so we just have to get back to work.”
The Hawks have scored only two goals since being recognized in the national standings. Clark thinks generating some offense and capitalizing on their chances is the key to a quick turnaround.
The Blue and White, 0-1 in the NEC, is looking forward to re turning to the Great Lawn on Friday at 7 pm, when they play their first home game in 19 days. Under the lights, it is the first night game for MU since a loss at Seton Hall on September 14.
Clark views the Friday night match against intrastate foe Fairleigh Dickinson as a must-win.
“We’re playing our rival Friday night; it’s crucial to win every game at home,” said Clark. “We’re looking forward to being in front of our home fans and having that energy behind us. The energy is higher during night games which bring up our atmosphere, so that always makes it more fun for the players.”
MU also has a home game on Sunday, October 7, at 1 pm on the Great Lawn. They will face Bryant and try to work their way up the NEC standings. The Hawks are 3-0-1 at home this season.
face Bryant.
No matter what athletic event you are at, whether its games or practices, there is a good chance you will see one fan in the stands, and that is President Gaffney.
“We ought to encourage this because I think it does a lot for the general morale on campus, the spirit on campus, gets us connected to our alumni, so I try to support athletics whenever I can,” says President Gaffney.
He went on to say, “I want everyone to get something out of it, I think it’s fun, it brings everyone together, and sets a good example for good team spirit.”
Since approximately 12 percent of the student body are varsity athletes, President Gaffney feels that supporting the Hawks is important as it will connect the campus with the community and allow people outside this area know who MU is. He feels that the names on our jerseys are important and we should represent the school as best as we can.
The University’s athletics have been getting bigger each year, big enough for local professional athletes to make appearances at home games. New York Knicks guard JR Smith was spotted at the football home opener against Rhode Island, as four-time Olympic Gold medalist Christie Rampone was seen at the women’s soccer game Friday night. One player who has yet to be seen this year, but always makes sure he goes to at least one football and basketball game every season is Dallas Cowboy wide receiver Miles Austin. Continue to show your Hawk pride at the next MU game. Who knows who you could be sitting next to as you cheer on the Hawks.
