With a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) championship title under its belt, the question that remains for this coming season is whether the women’s soccer team can live up to last year’s success.
“A [championship] repeat is predicated on finding our way into the top four in the MAAC,” said Head Coach Jim O’Brien. “With only four teams in the competition, we need to fight to get one of those spots.”
Fairfield will be hosting the MAAC tournament this fall. According to O’Brien, the Fairfield women’s soccer team has not been one of the top four teams in the tournament since 2003. Therefore, this has become one of his top priorities.
“We look to compete against the best in college soccer,” said O’Brien. “We are one of the only programs in our conference that make our non-conference schedule as demanding as possible.”
This fall the Stags will face some of the top teams in women’s college soccer as they try to win the conference title. According to forward Laura Mrowka ’07, the team will not only need to have the same intensity but must also go into each game with more heart and hustle than their competitors.
“Although it is tough on our student- athletes, we feel that we will be the most prepared team to win our conference title,” said O’Brien. “Early season games against top flight teams give us an indication of what we need to work on to improve.”
With nine freshmen joining the team this year, pre-season was spent introducing new members to the rest of the team and seeing what the newest members have to offer.
“Things are coming together slowly but surely,” said Mrowka. “We are still in a building state, which like anything else is a process.”
The long pre-season stretch gave the strength and conditioning coach, Mark Spellman, sufficient time to prepare the team physically. According to O’Brien, the key to the team’s success is to avoid injury by keeping the team fit and strong.
With the team coming face to face with some of the top college teams this fall, its progress thus far has been nothing to complain about. Although the Stags lost both matches in the UConn Classic against Hofstra University and the University of Maine in late August, the women’s soccer team has held its own against Providence College and St. John’s College, where they tied with both teams in overtime.
Following this past Tuesday’s game against Boston University, the Fairfield women’s soccer team will be on the road to face the University of Delaware and the U.S. Military Academy in the BAE Systems Classic in West Point, N.Y. The team will return to Lessing Field on September 24 where they will host Hartford University.
“We have our work cut out for us,” said midfielder Betsy Nyman ’07. “With the previous year’s title on our backs every game is going to be a battle, but the most important thing for us is to keep our goals in sight by working on our strengths as a team.”
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