You might say the Massachusetts women’s soccer team has more or less encountered some bad luck.
In a 4-1 loss to Yale last Friday, the Minutewomen hit the post three times. Sunday at Fairfield they out-shot and out-cornered the Stags but still fell 2-1. It takes two hands to count the amount of players that have already been sidelined by injuries.
But rather than sit around bickering and moaning about their adversities and bad breaks, the Minutewomen (0-3) are playing on with what they’ve got, this time with even more intensity.
“You play who you got,” head coach Jim Rudy said. “I had 16 [player] out there today, and everyone is going to get a chance to get in the ball game. These are the cards we’ve been dealt, so we’re going to have to play them.
“It’s not like they’re not fit. They were awfully skillful [in practice Wednesday] and did everything pretty well.”
But of course, Wednesday’s practice was no walk in the park either. After running the squad through three fitness workouts and then scrimmaging, Rudy was pleased with their performance.
“The key word is patience,” Rudy said. “I didn’t think we’d have to be this patient, but that’s what we’ve been dealt.”
If something is going to break, this weekend’s duel with the New Hampshire Wildcats, in Durham, N.H., will offer a prime chance.
“There’s an old saying from my old German coach, ‘after match is before match’,” Rudy said. “We need to move on from what has happened, we can’t afford to dwell on things. That’s the best we can do.”
The Wildcats return virtually the same squad from last season’s 8-9-4 (5-2-2 America East) team that played to a 1-1 tie with the Minutewomen a year ago today. Chiara Best tapped in a goal with 87 seconds left in regulation to tie things up in a very physical battle, with UMass coming home with four injured players. From then on, things were never the same in the 2003 season.
If the Minutewomen are going to make a statement, it will have to be through containing Best and junior Jackie Wishoski, two of UNH’s most skilled players.
The overly aggressive Wishoski (three goals, six points) has been the team’s leading goal-scorer since she came into the program in 2002. Last season saw the forward from Malden, Mass. put herself in UNH’s record books, setting new single-season all-time highs in goals (18) and points (41). The former America East All-Rookie also set an America East tournament single-game record when she racked up five goals and one assist for 11 points in the first round against Northeastern, as well as the record for most tournament goals (six).
“She’s everywhere, all the time,” Rudy said. “She is a real package to handle.”
The technically sound Best used finesse and craftiness en route to a team-high six assists and four game-winning goals. The forward from Rose Valley, Penn. is also a two-time All-America East and a 2001 All-Rookie.
Combining the skills of both forwards, and the Wildcat attack is like night and day.
So how does one go about handling such a diverse offense?
“Everybody’s got to be ready in the back,” Rudy said. “We can’t be holding back.”
Which means there will be a little bit of pressure on defender Nadia Villaroel to keep the young defense up to par. So far, the backfield has allowed eight goals through three games.
Meanwhile, freshman Britt Canfield has been bolstering the UMass offense, leading the team in goals with two. Although Canfield’s scoring touch has been a welcome addition, Rudy still has some reservations.
“Honestly, I expected more out of our returning players,” Rudy said. “Some may not be performing at the same level, which gives the freshmen and opportunity to make more of an impact. But we can’t rely on the freshmen; we need the upperclassmen to come around.”
