The Boston University men's soccer team will travel to South Orange, N.J. Friday to take on Seton Hall University.
Seton Hall (0-1-1) is coming off of a tough 4-1 loss to the No. 4 University of North Carolina in its last game at the Carolina-Wake Forest Nike Classic. In that contest, Pirates senior goalkeeper Sean Carr was forced to make 16 saves, while the Seton Hall offense only managed to put one shot on goal.
In two games so far, Seton Hall has been outshot, 39-16. Worth noting, however, is that it played against two nationally ranked teams in UNC and No. 3 Wake Forest University. In their first preseason game, the Pirates defeated Stony Brook University, the defending America East conference champion, 3-1.
Before their thrashing by UNC, the Pirates played Wake Forest to a 2-2 tie, outshooting the Demon Deacons 13-11 and also leading them in corner kicks, 9-6. Seton Hall is not nationally ranked, but after settling for a tie in a back-and-forth game with one of the top teams in the country, it certainly cannot be disregarded this early in the season.
Though they own a winning record, the Terriers (2-0-1) may not be entirely satisfied with their play to this point. Against Columbia University Monday night, BU needed two late goals from seniors Ben Havey and Aaron O'Neal to break a 0-0 tie &- a tie that had only been preserved that long due to the outstanding play of redshirt freshman goalie Brandon Briggs.
"I think that was really just the first half," BU coach Neil Roberts said of the pressure put on Briggs on Monday. "The second half was not that bad. The team played better in front of him. I think that's the key &- just to play better in front of him."
Disappointing first halves have characterized the Terriers' play at home, but their play on the road has been the opposite. On Sept. 4 against the University of Hartford, BU took a 2-0 lead in the first 15 minutes of the game with two goals from O'Neal and went on to win 3-0. Just as importantly, the sometimes-inconsistent Terrier defense was excellent after not allowing Hartford a shot on goal in the first half.
Between Sept. 1 and 6, the Terriers played three games, including one on the road and one against the University of Massachusetts-Amherst that went to double overtime. Fatigue clearly played a role in the third match, against Columbia, but Roberts said that after having this week to rest, there should no longer be a reason for sluggish starts and weak first halves.
"They'll be fresher now, so that won't be a problem," Roberts said. "They've had 4 or 5 days off, so they should be fine."
In the victory over Hartford, junior midfielder Michael Bustamante received a red card and was therefore unable to play against Columbia. Bustamante, a dynamic part of the team's offense with 14 points last year, has one goal and two points through two games in 2010. He will return to action against Seton Hall.
"Obviously, he's an important piece to how we try to play, so that's always important," Roberts said of Bustamante. "It'll be good to have him back."
BU and Seton Hall have not met in the last five years, although they do share some common opponents this year, including Columbia and the No. 10 University of Connecticut. The Pirates will look to continue the success they had against AE in preseason play, and the Terriers will attempt to go through their first four games of the season without a loss, something they have not done since 2002.
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