Senior midfielder Andrew Dorman has proven he can dish it out for the Boston University men’s soccer team. The former two-time All-Conference First Team selection has not only led the America East in assists each of the past two seasons, but he needs only 10 more to pass Chris Verhaegan as BU’s all-time assists leader.

But during the start of this season, Dorman had to prove he could take it as well.

The Flintshire, Wales-native had not missed a single game during his collegiate career, a span of 53-straight contests, before a pulled quad muscle sidelined him for the first two games of the 2003 campaign. The hardest part, Dorman said, was watching his teammates take on cross-town rival Boston College in the Terriers’ first home game of the season.

‘It was really hard to sit out the BC game, especially because I didn’t travel down to [the University of South Carolina] for our first game,’ he said. ‘It isn’t as hard if you’re not at the game, but when I was there watching, it was very frustrating.’

But this past weekend saw the return of the two-time All-New England First Team selection as the Terriers (1-3-0, 0-0-0 America East) took on the No. 24 University of Connecticut and Georgetown University at the UConn/adidas Soccer Classic in Storrs, Conn.

While BU split games with the two teams, losing a tough 1-0 decision to host UConn and claiming a 2-1 victory in double overtime over the Hoyas, Dorman shined as he always has, making everyone else around him better.

Dorman set up each of the two Terrier goals over the weekend, and with the two assists, brings his career total to 27. One of those scores secured BU’s first win of the season in the game against Georgetown Dorman laced a perfect corner kick into the box that found freshmen forward Anders Ostli for the game-winning score.

Even with the pressure of returning to play against a Big East powerhouse like the Huskies, Dorman said he was more excited than nervous to lace up his cleats and make it back on to the playing field.

‘I was really looking forward to coming back,’ he said. ‘UConn is a really good team, and that field [at Morrone Stadium] is amazing.’

Dorman’s high level of play didn’t surprise BU head coach Neil Roberts. He knows he can expect this type of game from his senior co-captain every day.

‘[Dorman] can go to goal, he can cross balls he’s athletic, and he’s fast,’ Roberts said. ‘There are all different parts of his game that he brings to us and just makes us a better team. He makes people around him better, which is a special gift that he has.’

And with Dorman’s return, it means more to the team than simply having another skilled player on the field. As junior back and co-captain Erik Evjen puts it, it brings a little more life to the BU squad.

‘Andrew Dorman is a big asset to the team,’ Evjen said. ‘With him back, it gives all the guys some hope back. It’s a real confidence-booster.’

Ever since Dorman first suited up in the scarlet and white back in 2000, he has made a difference at Nickerson Field. As a freshman, he ranked second on the team in goals, points and shots.

The following year, his 13 assists tied him for the second-highest season total in program history. That same year, he was also fourth in the nation with an average of .67 assists per game.

Dorman’s junior year saw him continue his strong play as he ranked 10th in the nation with more than half an assist per game, and third in the America East in scoring at 1.29 points per game.

Even with the late start to this season, Dorman is working his way back in shape, and with him in the lineup, Roberts knows that the road will be a little easier the rest of the way.

‘He really played well [this past weekend] and that really helped our team,’ Roberts said. ‘When he plays well, we are simply a better team.’

When asked about his own performance on Friday and Saturday, Dorman didn’t spend too much time on himself. Instead, his focus shifted to the other 25 players on the BU roster.

‘We keep getting better as a team,’ Dorman said. ‘We just have to take a lot of confidence from this weekend. It’s good to get our first win.’

The Terriers will try to make their way back to the .500 mark this weekend when they play at Fairfield University on Saturday at 7 p.m.