September 27, 2010

Dear Alumni & Friends,

Some nights you have to look at a game and just chalk it up to a bad performance. I think after Friday’s 3-0 loss at BU, we just need to put it behind us and move on. I can tell you that everyone was disappointed and the frustration was evident, mostly due to shooting ourselves in the foot more than a few times.

First was conceding the first goal on a free kick that went through the wall. Second was giving up a goal with only 10 seconds left in the first half. The Terriers’ third goal was a cleverly finished ball - but again, a mistake in decision making that is correctable.

Assistant coach Mitch Stone made and interesting observation after the game that URI men’s soccer hasn’t had much historical success over the Terriers who hold a 13-5-2 record over the past 20 years. That darn 3-5-2!

On the night, Peyton Warwick (Prairie Village, KS) was good in goal. When you lose 0-3 that may not be as evident but he made several key saves that could have broken it wide open.

Senior Anthony Tavares (E. Providence, RI) finished up the game in net, keeping things organized in his second appearance of the season.

Jamie Eckmayer (Harrison Park, NJ) had a good match, bringing energy, confidence and enthusiasm to the squad, as did the guys that finished the game - including freshman Josiah Austin ( Arouca, Trinidad) and sophomore Andrew Tetzlaff (Livingston, NJ) who made his first appearance in a Ram uniform.

Yesterday it was a day off and a clinic for the Chariho Youth Soccer Association. For those of you who were there for the Siena game, CYSA held their “Youth Soccer Night” on that date and were there in full force! They had a pot luck tail gate in the Ryan Center parking lot before the game, pre-game festivities including a rally tunnel before the match and half-time entertainment games. We went to their home field of Ninigret Park on Saturday morning for a short clinic/demonstration followed by photos, autographs and give-a-ways. The guys even joined in some of the games (no scoring of course). It was a beautiful summer like day and a nice way to thank CYSA for their support of URI Soccer.

Now, we get back to training in preparation of our trip to Tampa for a Wednesday night match-up at South Florida. While there, we hope to catch up with former URI Coach Geza Henni who lives in Tampa, as does son Geza Henni Jr. ’82, so if you will be down for the game let me know so you can join us for dinner.

GO RAMS!
Coach O’C