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Notes from the coach on the 2007 campaign
Dec. 20, 2007
Note: Below is a review of the 2007 St. Bonaventure men's soccer campaign and thoughts on the future of the program put together by head coach Mel Mahler. With the crowning of a national champion this past weekend in Cary, North Carolina, the 2007 college soccer season is officially over with Wake Forest capturing the ultimate prize in Division I soccer. Congratulations to Atlantic 10 member Massachusetts for advancing to the NCAA College Cup and its representation of our conference. This time of year is for reflection and evaluation and I believe the foundation for success is preparation. We want our players to focus not so much on winning and losing, but the effort it takes to be successful. Therefore, we use words such as responsibility, selflessness, discipline and commitment as the cornerstones of our program and base our evaluations on these criteria.
My first impression on the year is that of disappointment for our senior class. They have worked very hard since my arrival three years ago. While finding a way to work through the transition of a coaching change after their freshmen seasons, they have led an inexperienced roster the past two years while overcoming some personal hardships and heartbreaking results. Mistakes that led to these difficult loses are part of the learning process and how they dealt with failure truly defined their character. From the first day of pre-season training, I was confident in our ability to advance to postseason play in order to send our eight seniors (Tom Burkett, John Darrah, Ken Lish, Jon Lopez, Nick Lopez, Ben Nida, Collin Omen and Nikola Vasilev) off with an accomplishment deserving of all their trials and tribulations. Obviously, we fell short of these expectations, but it was not due to a lack of effort. It is my hope that our seniors can look back on their last year as one that showed great progress - something they had a hand in whether their role was that of a full time player or in a supporting role. As I review our nine conference matches, it is quite clear to me that very little separated us from the teams seeded fourth through sixth in this year's A-10 Tournament. We did not play No. 2 seed Rhode Island or No. 3 seeded UMass so it is difficult to assess ourselves versus two of the premier teams in our league. However, with a 3-2 victory against conference tournament finalist Charlotte, a 1-0 loss to fifth seeded Fordham and a draw at sixth seeded Dayton, it is reasonable for our players to believe that we are right on the fringe of the postseason.
There is wonderful parity in our league as is evident by the final standings with five teams anywhere from one to three points away for the final playoff spot. Although we finished tied for 10th place, we realize the zero-point weekend at Fordham and LaSalle didn't help our playoff probability. Unfortunately, we were the victim of two draws in our remaining four matches that eventually doomed any recovery we had hoped for. In the future, we must begin to approach every conference match as though it is a knock-out game - one loss and you go home. Essentially, we are tired of being close for two seasons in a row with our focus for next year being no more near misses. I give our backline high marks for their play this past season. At one point or another, senior Nick Lopez, sophomore Matt Culo, sophomore Tyler Bellamy, freshman Kevin Okapal and freshman David DiNardo with support from sophomore Joe Miller, freshman Brett Allen and senior Collin Omen played a vital role in eliminating quality scoring chances by our opponents. They also made life easier for our freshman goalkeeper David Flynn, who garnered A-10 All-Rookie team honors in his first season. A great example of selflessness this season was displayed by Bellamy, who was converted to a center back after spending his high school and club career as an attacking player. Bellamy and his teammates accepted the responsibility of individual defending and developed the discipline necessary to work as a unit. Our defense proved to be among the best in the A-10 as we conceded just 0.88 goals per game (2nd), while allowing only seven goals in conference action. In as much as Flynn provided some wonderful shot blocking moments in securing six wins, he'll be the first to admit that any individual recognition he has received is directly related to the quality of the defenders in front of him.
For the first part of the season, we had a turnstile of midfielders in and out of the lineup in an attempt to find the right combination. John Lopez provided the work ethic necessary to win balls and then get forward into the attack. During the latter part of the season, Miller was a wonderful compliment to Lopez once we moved him into a forward position. We put a lot of weight on sophomore Stephen Bortolon's shoulders to run the midfield and his play improved from match to match. Complimenting him were first-year players that became more consistent as the season progressed: freshman Kevin Mjaatvedt, Allen, freshman Pasquale Rago and freshman Fabrizio Savarino. While our defending improved statistically, our attack still struggled. We consistently created quality scoring opportunities, but our ability to finish those chances again proved to be our Achilles heel. 2006 All-Rookie Team selection Samuel Maheu struggled with injuries during the second half of the season, but demonstrated the ability to break down defenses when fit. Darrah was another example of placing the needs of the team before any individual agenda as he moved from his normal defensive spot to a target player up front. Burkett was effective on the left flank and provided a quality work ethic while assisting on some timely goals. One bright spot on the attack was the play of Vasilev, who led the team in scoring in his final season on the pitch. He had three game-winning goals and it is unfortunate he wasn't recognized for his efforts with post-season honors for it is quite evident to all in our program just how important Vasilev was to our attack. When evaluating the team's commitment to training and willingness to improve every day, I must mention the importance of the non-playing members on our roster. It is without a doubt the most impressive accomplishment this year. We made great strides this year because these supporting players came out everyday to compete in practice and helped make their teammates better. We had some very competitive sessions that forced our first 11 to play at their best. I give high marks in this area as a whole and give credit to our backup goalkeepers Lish and Nida as well as first-year players Tommy Zaikos, Nathan Broedel, Andrew Bair, Peter Kilty, Dan Mitchell, Woodrow Trowbridge, Juan Trevino, Rago and Savarino. They have been patient with their development and I foresee some great soccer from this crew in future years.
The past two years we have struggled with having the mental fortitude to overcome adversity throughout a match. However, we have made tremendous strides in this area by learning how to believe in the game plan and by being disciplined to keep playing whether up or down a goal. This year we turned the corner and found ways to get back into matches and win them. Next on the agenda is to find techniques to put opponents away when given the opportunity. Nevertheless, I am also reminded at times we had up to eight first-year players on the field at once and we have no seniors on the roster for next fall. The learning curve for these players will be accelerated this spring in preparation for next year and is a wonderful up-side to our future. The returning players are anxious to get after it next semester and do everything they can to get physically stronger, become more technically proficient and tactically superior. We welcome the challenges that lay ahead.
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