2008 Woodie Awards
Men's Soccer: UMass hosts Siena in home opener
Scott Feldman, Collegian Staff
Issue date: 9/5/08 Section: Sports
With two games under their belt, the Minutemen will look to add another 'W' in the win column this Saturday when they face Siena at Rudd Field.
In UMass' opener against Holy Cross last Friday, the No. 13 Minutemen were upset 1-0 in a game with several chances to tie, but couldn't convert their opportunities into goals. Two days later against Boston University, the Minutemen (1-1) earned a 3-2 double overtime victory after tying the game with three seconds left.
The Maroon and White hope they will be able to play with more consistency at home against the Saints (1-1). UMass head coach Sam Koch has been preparing all week to make sure they will correct some of the errors made in the team's road games.
"We still have things that we need to work on to make sure we aren't giving the ball away when we're under pressure, making sure we're making better decisions with the ball when we are in those kind of situations," Koch said. "That's one thing we've talked about. It's important to stick to our game plan and do what we do well and make sure we don't go away from that."
At Rudd Field last season, UMass finished with a 9-1 home record, including wins over BU, University of Illinois at Chicago and Central Connecticut in the NCAA tournament.
With all the practice put in, UMass is looking to bring out a better defensive effort than they had against BU. The Terriers managed 26 shots including 13 shots on goal, many of which were taken in the box.
Siena comes into the game as an underdog against UMass, having been picked to finish eighth out of 10 in their conference. The Saints are coming off a 2-0 shutout loss to Buffalo in a game they were outshot 22-9. They were also outshot 21-12 in their opening game against the New Jersey Institute of Technology, but managed to earn a 1-0 victory off a header 10 minutes left in the game.
However, just because their statistics are less than impressive does not mean that UMass can look past the Saints. Last year, Siena defeated the Minutemen 1-0 despite taking only eight shots compared to the Minutemen's 16. That game took place in Loudonville, N.Y. This time, the Saints are on the road, so it will be much tougher for them to beat the Minutemen this year. Still, Koch will not allow his team to overlook Siena.
"This is a tough game. They always battle us. It's always a game on the schedule that as coaching staff you are concerned about. You know how big a game it is for Siena," Koch said. "I think our guys understand it better now, especially after the Holy Cross game."
Saturday's game will help the Minutemen gauge how good they are compared to last year. Although a slow start does not indicate the team will have a bad season, Koch wants the Minutemen to improve on each game's mistakes as the season rolls on.
"We're looking at our own performance and we are improving. That's what we want to make sure we accomplish the week that we play."
Scott Feldman can be reached at sfeldman@student.umass.edu.
In UMass' opener against Holy Cross last Friday, the No. 13 Minutemen were upset 1-0 in a game with several chances to tie, but couldn't convert their opportunities into goals. Two days later against Boston University, the Minutemen (1-1) earned a 3-2 double overtime victory after tying the game with three seconds left.
The Maroon and White hope they will be able to play with more consistency at home against the Saints (1-1). UMass head coach Sam Koch has been preparing all week to make sure they will correct some of the errors made in the team's road games.
"We still have things that we need to work on to make sure we aren't giving the ball away when we're under pressure, making sure we're making better decisions with the ball when we are in those kind of situations," Koch said. "That's one thing we've talked about. It's important to stick to our game plan and do what we do well and make sure we don't go away from that."
At Rudd Field last season, UMass finished with a 9-1 home record, including wins over BU, University of Illinois at Chicago and Central Connecticut in the NCAA tournament.
With all the practice put in, UMass is looking to bring out a better defensive effort than they had against BU. The Terriers managed 26 shots including 13 shots on goal, many of which were taken in the box.
Siena comes into the game as an underdog against UMass, having been picked to finish eighth out of 10 in their conference. The Saints are coming off a 2-0 shutout loss to Buffalo in a game they were outshot 22-9. They were also outshot 21-12 in their opening game against the New Jersey Institute of Technology, but managed to earn a 1-0 victory off a header 10 minutes left in the game.
However, just because their statistics are less than impressive does not mean that UMass can look past the Saints. Last year, Siena defeated the Minutemen 1-0 despite taking only eight shots compared to the Minutemen's 16. That game took place in Loudonville, N.Y. This time, the Saints are on the road, so it will be much tougher for them to beat the Minutemen this year. Still, Koch will not allow his team to overlook Siena.
"This is a tough game. They always battle us. It's always a game on the schedule that as coaching staff you are concerned about. You know how big a game it is for Siena," Koch said. "I think our guys understand it better now, especially after the Holy Cross game."
Saturday's game will help the Minutemen gauge how good they are compared to last year. Although a slow start does not indicate the team will have a bad season, Koch wants the Minutemen to improve on each game's mistakes as the season rolls on.
"We're looking at our own performance and we are improving. That's what we want to make sure we accomplish the week that we play."
Scott Feldman can be reached at sfeldman@student.umass.edu.
Be the first to comment on this story