WOMEN'S SOCCER BACKLINE MAKES CONFERENCE STATEMENT
Oct. 21, 2010
BULLDOG BACKLINE MAKES CONFERENCE STATEMENT
by Sean Donahue, Athletic Communications
The Bryant University women's soccer team (5-9-2, 3-2-1 NEC) opened up 2010 conference play with four-straight shutouts, cruising to a 3-0-1 record to place the Bulldogs near the top of the conference. Though their impressive 424-minute shutout streak ended on Friday in a 2-1 overtime loss at Wagner, the Bulldogs defense has continued to shine, holding the Northeast Conference's top team in Long Island University to just one goal on Sunday.
"It has been a while since I've seen such a long shutout streak," said head coach Chris Flint. "It was very nice, especially in the early going. Early on, it seemed like we were shooting ourselves in the foot, giving up early goals, so it was nice for [the defense] to put that together. I think that's a huge component of being successful and what allowed us to get out of the gate with a strong first four games within the conference.
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Freshman Alyssa Kozlowski
and the Bulldog backline will look |
"When you can put a zero up, you know the worst case scenario is it's going to be a tie," he continued. "Then it's just a matter of can we capitalize on our one, two or three really good opportunities, and fortunately in the early going, that's what we were able to do."
Bryant's young defense gave up 16 goals in its 10 non-conference matches, but since starting Northeast Conference play has only allowed a trio of scores in six games, an average of just half a goal per 90 minutes.
"I think [the improvement] was just a matter of time," said Flint. "We've made some moves in the back overall, but when you look at the back four from the start of the year, it was four players who hadn't played together. It was going to take time."
The Bulldogs have made a few changes over the season, some forced by injuries and others by choice. Junior left back Amanda Worrall (Hamilton Square, N.J.) went down with a season-ending injury early in the year. Flint moved senior Steph Del Mistro (East Williston, N.J.), who had been playing right back, to forward. The moves transformed Bryant's starting defense into a unit made entirely of players who had no more than a year of Division I experience heading into the season.
"Freshman Alyssa Kozlowski (Ellicott City, Md.) took over at left back," said Flint. "Stephanie Morse (Warwick, R.I.) is a transfer [from CCRI], so even though she's a junior, it's not like she's been there for three years. Regan Marin (Bedford, N.Y.) is only a sophomore, but she broke her leg and missed half of last year as a freshman. And Kaitlyn Fare (Millstone Township, N.J.), who is now playing right back, is just a sophomore.
"It's a completely different group, so I think it's just a matter of playing together over time," added Flint. "That's been the biggest thing. As they've come together, it's really made a difference on the team as a whole. That's what allowed us to be successful in the early going of the conference schedule. We were always in every game, it's just, the less chances that the other teams are getting, the better off we'll be."
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| Junior transfer Stephanie Morse is part of a Bulldog
defense that posted four consecutive shutouts to open NEC play. |
To support their young defense, the Bulldogs have needed someone on the backline to step up as a leader, and, according to Flint, Morse and sophomore goalkeeper Kelsi Jacob (Mahwah, N.J.) have gotten the job done.
"Morse has been very consistent," he said. "She just does a great job for us. Our goalkeepers, freshman Lauren Viverito (Dayton, N.J.) and Jacob, a sophomore, have alternated. Jacob has really become more vocal as the year has gone along.
"It's not necessarily any one person, I think it's just the unit – the back five with the goalkeeper – have become more comfortable together."
Flint's young netminders have been impressive, with Viverito holding an 0.87 goals against average (GAA) and a .878 save percentage in six games, while Jacob boasts a 1.27 GAA and a .754 save percentage in 12 contests.
"It's a work in progress," said Flint. "They're both working on different things. They are different types of goalkeepers and have different strengths. It's a matter of them getting used to the back four, as well. A big component is what they see in front of them. They can help themselves out by how they work with the back four, so we are constantly talking with the goalkeepers about being vocal and communicating to their defense. They can cut out some things before they even happen if they are vocal enough."
Though the Bulldogs' conference unbeaten streak ended this weekend with a pair of one-goal losses to Wagner and Long Island, the goal is still for the team to finish in the top four. Bryant currently sits in fifth-place in the 11-team conference.
"First and foremost, it was more of a team goal to try to finish in the top four," said Flint. "Although we're not eligible for the postseason, we want to be in the top four, which come 2012 will allow us to play in the NEC tournament. We really want to establish ourselves as consistently one of the top-four teams. That's still our goal and our expectation.
"This weekend didn't help our cause, but we'll bounce back from it," he continued. "We understand that Long Island is the top team in the conference and has given up very few goals. They capitalized on one of our miscues, which led to the result that we got. With that said, we know that they're having a great year, and we were right there with them, 1-0. We're very confident going into our final four games."
With a young and talented squad, the Bulldogs look to be in a good position when postseason eligibility does come in 2012, but Flint says he still expects the team to win now.
"Youth has to contribute," said Flint. "It can't be a crutch. We want our freshmen and our sophomores to really stand out and to improve each game. I think that will position us well for the future, but you can't predict injuries or setbacks that you might have, and that's one of things you have to deal with. Not only do we have to keep getting better, but we have to be able to handle the adjustments and handle not knowing what setbacks could come our way. Depth is a huge component."
The Bulldogs have just four games remaining on their schedule, starting with their last home game of the season on Friday, Oct. 22 against Quinnipiac at 3:00 p.m. Friday will be senior night for the Black and Gold, as seniors Del Mistro and Sarah Donovan (Storrs, Conn.) play their last game in front of the home crowd. Flint is hoping the team celebrates with a victory led by another strong defensive performance.
"We still want to get into that top four," said Flint. "That's the same expectation that we've had all along, and I think it's going to come from good defending. We're going to need to keep teams off the board to be successful."