Back to Brown

Wondering whether the Boston University men’s soccer team is ready to compete with the nation’s elite?

Consider these sobering statistics: In three losses to ranked opponents this season – No. 6 Santa Clara University, No. 11 Harvard University and No. 21 Boston College – the Terriers have netted exactly one of 30 shot attempts while yielding six scores on 47 tries.

In pursuit of a signature victory before the start of America East play this weekend, the Terriers (4-4-0) travel to Stevenson Field in Providence, R.I. tonight to do battle against yet another nationally recognized foe, No. 14 Brown University (6-0-1).

“Brown is a very good team,” said BU coach Neil Roberts, who has guided the Terriers to a 9-5-1 mark against the Bears during his 23-year tenure. “They’re strong. They beat Santa Clara, who is probably the best team that we’ve played. They are very athletic and have a talented group of frontrunners, and they’re very solid defensively. They possess the ball and slow the game down.”

The unbeaten Bears, who will be in action for the first time since a Sept. 23 tie against the University of California-Irvine, practically mirror the Terriers in goal production, with 14 tallies to BU’s 13. Led by a two-headed scoring monster in senior forward Kevin Davies and junior forward Dylan Sheehan (combined 12 goals and 27 points), the Brown offense has engineered an eye-popping 105 shot attempts.

“[Brown] has the ability to turn the game into a track meet,” Roberts said. “We’re not that kind of team. We aren’t a team that will continue to run with them. That’s not our style.”

Brown also features a talented goalkeeping tandem with two three-game winners, Paul Grandstrand and Jarrett Leech. The duo has combined for a sparkling .794 save percentage and stingy 0.97 goals-against average through seven contests.

Nearly a month into the season, the Terriers’ style of play has been, at best, inconsistent. For every breakout performance, there’s been a regression in development. For every snuffed-out scoring opportunity by the defense, there’s been a costly foul resulting in a set piece goal. And for every offensive outburst, there’s been a subsequent offensive struggle.

“In some games we’ve played pretty well,” Roberts said. “In others, we’ve made mistakes and got punished for those mistakes, but the kids responded pretty well. Hopefully this pays off over the next month.”

If the purpose of a team’s non-conference slate is to work toward consistency, it’s awfully difficult to peg the current Terrier season a success. With an anticipated bout against defending conference champion Binghamton University on tap for Saturday night in Vestal, N.Y., BU has reached a point in its season where early-season kinks seem to be morphing into season-defining flaws.

For starters, the Terriers’ feeble response to adversity is troubling. BU has been saddled with 1-0 deficits in its four losses to BC, Santa Clara, Harvard and the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, while jumping out to early advantages in each of its victories over Northeastern University, Fordham University, the University of Central Florida and the University of Rhode Island.

“In any game it’s important to score first because when you’re down, you’re chasing the game a little bit,” Roberts said. “Against a good team that’s probably gonna happen, so you try to get the first goal and put the pressure on them. Then you can dictate what’s going on.”

In tonight’s game, BU has been afforded a rare opportunity to cap its non-conference shortcomings with a momentous victory heading into America East action.

“[A win] would make life easier, but we want to go into this game and get some questions answered,” Roberts said. “We to have everything we need to know by Friday afternoon.”

Or, as they have proved time and again this fall, the Terriers could slide back into the undisciplined style that has come to characterize their non-conference season.