After winning three straight home games, the Boston University men’s soccer team looks to win a fourth tonight at Nickerson field against the No. 7 ranked University of Connecticut.
BU coach Neil Roberts says the game will be a hard-fought battle, but the team is ready to play its best.
“UConn is a really well-behaved team, and you can’t really sit against them,” Roberts said. “They’re a very technical team, so everyone has to play their best and come together.”
Both the Terriers (3-1-1, 0-0-0 America East) and Huskies (3-1, 1-1-0 Big East) have posted winning records at the start of the season, with both teams coming off a win this weekend. BU battled Dartmouth College this past Friday night, defeating them, 1-0, while Connecticut notched its first Big East win, beating Virginia, 2-0.
The Terriers will have to play smart and maintain possession of the ball while taking advantage of every opportunity they have in front of the net.
“Our big goal is to try to defend really well, keep possession and attack well because we’ve struggled on keeping possession in the past,” Roberts said. “With a team like UConn we aren’t going to get a lot of chances to score, but when we do we just have to try and finish on those.”
Unfortunately for BU, Connecticut’s freshman goalkeeper, Adam Schuerman, has posted three straight shutouts for the team. He was also awarded Big East goalie of the week for the week of Sept. 2. The Huskies have not just won games so far this fall, they have dominated opponents. After beating American University, 3-0, on Sept. 6, the Huskies destroyed the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, 5-0, on Sept. 8. Their only loss came in the season opener against Seton Hall University, 3-2. BU will also have to keep an eye on senior Damani Ralph, who scored both goals in the Huskies win over Virginia this past weekend.
Injuries became an issue last week for the Terriers after a rough battle with Fairfield University. Sedrick Chin, a freshman midfielder and solid contributor to the BU attack, sat out Friday’s game against Dartmouth after suffering a leg injury against Fairfield. While Chin sat out against Dartmouth, sophomore Federico Bianchi played through the pain after being carried off the field only three days earlier against Fairfield.
Roberts said the team looks healthy for tonight’s match, and everyone should be able to contribute.
“Everyone seems fine coming into the match,” Roberts said. “Fortunately, there are no injuries.”