The men’s soccer team kicked off its season with an away game at Seton Hall University last Thursday before hosting Le Moyne College on Wednesday. The Leopards split their games, starting their season off 1-1.
Coming into the new season, the Maroon and White upperclassmen emphasized helping the new guys adjust to the team.
“We’ve been trying to get them acclimated to campus,” senior goalkeeper Eric Axtman said. “Being a fall sport, class has started. You have more to do than just your sport, you got to get them used to living alone and doing all that stuff without other people looking over them.”
Head coach Dennis Bohn said that the attitude has been great on a team that is made up of two-thirds underclassmen.
“It’s unbelievably positive, great leadership, great unity,” Bohn said.
Bohn added that “it was time for some guys to step up,” with a couple of starters out due to injury.
The first game of the season was physical up until the final whistle. The Pirates (1-0-1 overall) held a commanding presence for the first half of the game, putting up nine shots. Axtman stepped up to the challenge, recording three saves throughout the half.
In the 24th minute, a scrum in the box after a Leopard handball allowed Seton Hall to convert on a penalty kick, giving it the lead. Three minutes later, Axtman recorded his third save to set up a potential scoring opportunity for the Maroon and White. Junior midfielder Samir Dishnica found sophomore midfielder Cade Maglione for an open pass, but the Leopards could not find a shot.
The Leopards came out of halftime firing. Junior midfielder Max Fujimori found freshman forward Nicolas Papadopoulos running into the box in the 49th minute. His quick shot did not fall, though, as it ricocheted off the post and the Pirates cleared the ball. The Leopard offense struggled for the remainder of the contest, as they were limited to only one more shot.
The Pirates added the final goal of the game in the 89th minute to secure the 2-0 defeat for the Leopards.
“Goals come in the 89th minute and the first minute,” Axtman said. “Making sure that kind of attention to detail from minute zero to minute 90 plus is something we’ve definitely been focusing on.”
Going into Wednesday, the Leopards came out hot against the Dolphins (0-2 overall), putting pressure on them the entire 90 minutes. With 11-8 shot and 7-2 shot-on-goal advantages, the Leopards dominated the field position.
“We definitely had a good game plan,” Dishnica said. “We studied a lot of film, watched a lot in the morning. So I think just coming out exceeding the game plan, we did really well in the first half.”
The only goal of the game came from Dishnica when he scored off a penalty kick in the 59th minute, securing his first goal as a Leopard after transferring from Clemson University this offseason.
“It feels amazing,” he said. “It’s definitely a great team effort for 90 minutes, so especially to be on the home field, in front of the home crowd, it was amazing.”
“For us to be successful and win a championship, this year is not going to be about one individual being maybe even Player of the Year,” Bohn said. “It’s going to be about a great team. And tonight, I think the unity showed through.”
The Leopards return to action at Bryant University (1-0-1 overall) on Saturday.