September 30, 2008

Dear Alums & Friends,

It was a very good weekend for the Rams as we traveled to Amherst, MA to take part in the UMass Invitational Soccer Tournament. It was excellent few days as we met up with America East Conference foes the University of Vermont on Friday and the University of Hartford on Sunday. These would be the 4th and 5th America East opponents the team faced in the early part of the season so we felt it was a great test for us building towards the A-10 part of the schedule.

We had a strange start to the weekend as the weather almost put a wet blanket on the tourney with torrential rain predicted for Friday. The UMass administration was worried about field conditions - not only because of the incoming weather - but also the fact there would be three games on Rudd Field that day. The UMass women were playing their A-10 opener at Noon, followed by the UMass men vs. Hartford at 2:30 pm and our match against Vermont at 4:00 pm. But in the end, the call was made for "game on" and off we went after training on Thursday.

It seemed like a long wait for the game on Friday... We filled the time with study hall in the morning and then our pre-game meal in the early afternoon. We were ready to go and the timing was right but the "best laid plans of mice and men often go astray"... the Minutewomen went to OT in their match as did their male counterparts versus Hartford (which won on a "golden goal" after a goalkeeping error). So, this left our game beginning at 5:15 pm, which was not good on a dreary, cloudy and rainy afternoon. The downpours and intermittent rain contributed to a rather sloppy game as well as the eventual suspension of the game after 70 minutes - due to darkness. Because we got that far the game was official and ended as a 0-0 tie. To be very honest, with the conditions and play it was a fair result.

After a good day off filled with morning training, some college football (and nap) in the afternoon and a great dinner at the home of sophomore midfielder Greg Balicki (Wilbraham, MA), the boys were ready to get back on the field for the second game of the weekend.

By the way, special thanks to the Balicki, Tanke and Preyss families for creating such relaxing atmosphere Saturday night as well as for the AWESOME food!!!

Sunday couldn't have come sooner... the weather broke and it was amazing how well Rudd Field had held up, considering all the rain we had received over the weekend. It would be an interesting game as junior transfer Kevin Shaw (Denny, Scotland) was facing his old team and friends. The game kicked off on time and both squads came out with some fire. Our Rams started off well, dominating play in the first 15 minutes but Hartford, coming off their overtime win over UMass, found their way and created some chances of their own.

The guys battled back and held serve, getting some good chances from freshman Errko Puranen (Visitasaari, Finland) and senior co-captain Kedan Crosby (St. James, Trinidad). Junior goalkeeper Chris Pennock (Middlesborough, England) managed the game well and even got a little help from the cross bar in the second half to keep it 0-0.

Regulation ended and overtime began with neither team getting any clear chances. In between the first and second OT periods, the boys were reminded by assistant coach Mitch Stone that this moment was the reason why "Coach Bergs" (Director of Soccer Operations Frank Bergren) works them so hard during fitness sessions - to be able to get to this point in the game and have enough left to finish it.

Well, "Finish" it we did... in more ways than one. Less than a minute into the second overtime Kedan Crosby fought for a loose ball on the right side off the kick off, dribbled past a Hawks defender and delivered a driven cross which Erkko "the Finnish Flash/the Sniper" Puranen got on the end of, headed down and the game was ours. It was well deserved and the result earned the guys the tournament championship as Vermont and the hosts tied 0-0 later that afternoon.

Although we were looking for two wins this weekend, we are happy with the results over the past 4 matches. We've done well only conceding 1 goal but need to work this week to create more clear cut chances for ourselves.

Our next game will be a special one as we welcome back former Ram and assistant coach Gareth Elliott to the URI complex - wearing the green and gold of his new Siena College squad. The match kicks off on Friday, October 3rd at 7:00 pm and will mark the end of our non-conference slate for this fall.

Hope to see you all there supporting URI men's soccer!

GO RAMS!
Coach O'C