2008 Woodie Awards
Men's Soccer: Difficult to duplicate success
Cinderella run over, UMass must prove itself once again
Scott Feldman, Collegian Staff
Issue date: 9/2/08 Section: Sports
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Last year was among the most exciting seasons ever for the program, as the team set a multitude of school records including overall wins (17), goals-against average (.790), as well as recording the second-most shutouts in school history with nine.
At the start of the season it appeared as though the Minutemen were going to endure another average season after starting 3-3 in their first six games.
However, the team began to gel, picking up six straight victories including a huge win over then No. 12 Saint Louis. The team then managed to clinch its first Atlantic 10 tournament appearance since 2002. What followed was a spectacular run that fans would not soon forget.
Following a narrow victory over Dayton in a game decided by penalty kicks, the Minutemen stormed their way through the A-10 tournament, defeating Charlotte in the finals to earn a slot in the NCAA tournament for the second time in the 75-year history of the program.
UMass then proved it was not content to simply appear in the big dance, defeating its next four opponents, including overall No. 1 seed Boston College, and advancing to the College Cup before being knocked out in a heartbreaking, 1-0 loss to Ohio State.
The Minutemen became overnight celebrities getting national coverage during their run. UMass coach Sam Koch was even invited to throw the first pitch during a Boston Red Sox game on May 19. (That game was arguably as memorable as the soccer season since Jon Lester pitched a no-hitter the same night).
As impressive as the 2007 season was, it's now just a memory as UMass must start a new journey and create new memories. Every team's record is now 0-0 ¬- a fact that Koch is making sure the players keep in mind.
"[Last year] was nice for all the recognition that all the players are getting, and it's nice for the recognition that the program is getting," Koch said. "But that's last year, this is this year, it's a new team, a new season, we have got to throw everything that we did last year out the window because it doesn't matter now."
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