Men's soccer team 'disappointed' after semifinal loss to St. Francis
Charles White
Issue date: 11/9/06 Section: Sports
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"We were really angry after the game," said senior outside back Max Squarcia on the FDU's men's soccer team's 1-0 double overtime loss to St. Francis (PA) in the North-East Conference (NEC) semifinals last weekend.
With a 6-1-2 record in the NEC, the FDU Knights captured the second seed in the tournament and faced the third-seeded Red Flash. The Knights' hopes of reclaiming the NEC tournament title from three years ago were dashed in the second overtime. "Both teams were pretty even throughout the game," said sophomore center back Marcos Morales. "St. Francis started pressuring us in the first overtime and, after two amazing saves by goalie Tomer Chencinski, they succeeded in scoring," he added.
This was a tough loss for the team. "We were very disappointed and some of us cried afterwards," said senior center back Elkana Mayard. It was even harder because, "We knew we could've gone farther in the tournament," added Morales.
The disappointment especially affected the six seniors. "It was our last chance to make a run for the title and now this is it for us," explained Squarcia. "After the game, I thought about what I could've done differently, but now it's time to move on with my life," said Mayard.
On a positive note, according to Squarcia, "Coach wasn't angry about the team losing this time as he was two years ago. He was only upset and he understood that these things happen. He said to us that he enjoyed working with such a good group of players."
The Knights are already looking forward to next season. "Though the team hasn't talked about next season, we want to do better than we did this season," said freshman forward Samson Malijani. "We have some spots to fill with the seniors leaving, so we want to do good recruiting and work hard for next year," added Morales.
With a team full of tournament-experienced players from this year and a strong work ethic, the men's soccer team looks to have a great 2007-2008 season. Go Knights!
With a 6-1-2 record in the NEC, the FDU Knights captured the second seed in the tournament and faced the third-seeded Red Flash. The Knights' hopes of reclaiming the NEC tournament title from three years ago were dashed in the second overtime. "Both teams were pretty even throughout the game," said sophomore center back Marcos Morales. "St. Francis started pressuring us in the first overtime and, after two amazing saves by goalie Tomer Chencinski, they succeeded in scoring," he added.
This was a tough loss for the team. "We were very disappointed and some of us cried afterwards," said senior center back Elkana Mayard. It was even harder because, "We knew we could've gone farther in the tournament," added Morales.
The disappointment especially affected the six seniors. "It was our last chance to make a run for the title and now this is it for us," explained Squarcia. "After the game, I thought about what I could've done differently, but now it's time to move on with my life," said Mayard.
On a positive note, according to Squarcia, "Coach wasn't angry about the team losing this time as he was two years ago. He was only upset and he understood that these things happen. He said to us that he enjoyed working with such a good group of players."
The Knights are already looking forward to next season. "Though the team hasn't talked about next season, we want to do better than we did this season," said freshman forward Samson Malijani. "We have some spots to fill with the seniors leaving, so we want to do good recruiting and work hard for next year," added Morales.
With a team full of tournament-experienced players from this year and a strong work ethic, the men's soccer team looks to have a great 2007-2008 season. Go Knights!
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