NDNUTIMES

The Long Wait Comes To A Short End

by Marcel Sanchez
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Notre Dame de Namur University men’s soccer team fell short of expectations but earned their spot in the record books. The Argos finished the season with a conference record of 9-1-2 and outscored their opponents 35-5. That amazing record carried school history also, enabling Notre Dame de Namur men’s soccer into the NCAA Tournament in their first year of eligibility. Chris Arceo, the starting forward on the team, commented on the year so far. “This year has been great and I can’t wait to prove to everyone that we are a playoff team. We deserve more then we get credit for and our team is ready to show that on the field during the tournament.” When asked about the next game, Arceo replied, “I do not expect the next game to be easy but it will definitely be a test for our young guys and the veterans.”

The soccer team earned the No. 4 seed in the West Region and had to head down to Southern California to take on the No. 1 seed Dominguez Hills. Both teams were excited for the game and neither seemed to underestimate the other soccer team. The head coach of Dominguez Hills, Brad Smith, claimed that he expects to win the NCAA Tournament, “I know what our guys are capable of and that is a championship. Even though we are favored to win, you can never count out the underdog and this will be a great test for both teams mentally and physically.”

The Argos fell short of expectations and lost their first tournament match 3-0 that seemed all too easy for the powerhouse forwards of Dominguez Hills. The goal keepers for the Argos were kept busy all game due to being out-shot 22-6 and the defenders constantly on their heals. The goal keeper for the Argos, Brian Meherg, was making super hero like saves throughout the game but could not stop the well placed shots. “Their shots were on target all game, our defense needed to pick it up because at the rate they were going it only seemed like a matter of time that one would slip by.” When asked what he could have done more to help his team Brian replied, “We needed better communication out there. Our defense seemed lost, always trailing behind the players and never getting stuck in. As the last man on defense I needed to make them more aware to keep the mistakes to a minimum to have a fighting chance and have our forwards sneak one by.”

To follow the historic year for the Argos the team will have to wait a long spring and summer to have their chance at another tournament run. Although the Argos did not win the NCAA Tournament their effort and hard work will be rewarded. For the first time the Argos will be ranked #25 in the national poll with a record of 14-4-3. After a post-game interview the Argos coach, Jim Nort, commented on the historic year. “Our team did great this season. We achieved something that has never been done before at this school and players should be proud of themselves to help the team get this far. We have a long road ahead of to be a top team in the nation but we definitely set the bar high for ourselves and we expect nothing but the best.” When asked what being ranked in the national poll means for the team, Jim replied, “It means a lot but that does mean we should just settle for that. We want to be the best and we will come out fighting hard next season to prove that we can compete with the best in the nation.”