The Massachusetts club soccer team takes on Yale this Sunday, fresh off receiving an automatic bid to the national tournament. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. behind Rudd Field.
The Minutemen won last year’s meeting, 3-0.
Yale has a 7-2-2 record this season, with wins coming against opponents such as Kings College, Sacred Heart and Trinity.
The Bulldogs are coming off their 5-1 dominance over Fairfield, with Conrad Lee netting two scores in the contest.
UMass showcases solid depth on its roster, evenly distributing its offensive production throughout the season.
“The idea of the team is to be one unit,” goalkeeper Miles Bisher said. “And that’s the key to winning.”
Four senior co-captains lead the Maroon and White: Kevin Frechette, Erik Alvarenga, Forrest Iwanik and Bisher. The team does not have a coach, which leaves substitutions and starting lineup responsibilities on the captains’ shoulders.
UMass hopes its physicality and relentlessness will help their performance on Sunday. Alvarenga, a center midfielder, explained how “a lot of teams can’t deal with that.”
The Minutemen have a 9-2-3 record this season, defeating Holy Cross, West Virginia and Cornell along the way.
The turning point of the team’s season came in a tournament at Penn State.
The Maroon and White tied the undefeated Nittany Lions, 1-1, providing a remarkable confidence boost for the club. The trip brought the team closer together, resulting in great team chemistry for the remainder of the season.
UMass qualified for the 2010 NCCS National Soccer Championships after a stellar performance in the regional tournament, in which they emerged as co-champions along with Delaware.
The team earned an automatic bid to the national tournament, one of only 18 distributed across the nation. The tournament begins on Nov. 18 in Phoenix, Ariz.
“It’s the first time the club soccer team has ever qualified for the national tournament,” Frechette said.
The Minutemen had to play five games in a single weekend, defeating Georgetown, Vermont and Pennsylvania along the way.
“It was a grueling two days,” Frechette said. The senior later described winning the tournament as “an awesome feeling.”
The Maroon and White hope to build off its performance at the regional tournament with a win over Yale.
Stephen Sellner can be reached at [email protected].