Flyers seek Atlantic 10 tournament berth

By: Edward Perez – Staff Writer

After a nonconference, 2-2 draw against Western Michigan University Oct. 28 and a 2-1 defeat against Fordham University Sunday, the Flyer men’s soccer team sits No. 8 in the Atlantic 10 standings with a record of 2-2-2.

If the season ended today, the team would sneak in the conference tournament as the last berth, rounding out the top eight teams eligible for the postseason tournament. The Flyers currently have eight points with two conference games remaining.

After a tie in UD’s nonconference matchup, head coach Dennis Currier expressed some frustration with the team.

“We put ourselves in a hole in the first half; we didn’t play well. We weren’t prepared tonight,” he said.

Against Western Michigan, the Flyers conceded a goal in the first two minutes of the game.

Currier said his team did not respond until the second half, when one of Western Michigan’s defenders scored on his own goal and brought the Flyers to life.

Fourteen minutes later, the Flyers were awarded a penalty that was taken by junior midfielder Amass Amankona. It looked as if the Flyer’s would take the game, until a Bronco forward floated the ball past the hands of junior goalie Chris Froschauer, who seemed to misjudge the path of the ball due to wet field conditions. The tie game led into what would be a scoreless overtime.

“We came out very weak,” junior midfielder Maik Schoonderwoerd said. “They were hungrier than us, and that should never happen.”

Looking to qualify for the A-10 tournament, Schoonderwoerd said that the team should use the remaining stretch to reflect and recover, adding that the team needs to look in the mirror and sharpen up for the upcoming games.

Last year at the same point, the Flyers record in the conference was also 2-2-2, before the Flyers closed out the season with two straight victories heading into the conference tournament.

“We have to get the momentum going here,” Currier said. “We’re still an inexperienced team and we need to learn how to close off games, that’s what we need to work on.”

Failure to finish off tightly contested games is the problem Currier hopes to fix before the closing of the conference.

“We’re in a position to advance to the conference tournament if we start to produce some wins here in the last [two] games,” Currier said.

“We have to do it together,” Schoonderwoerd said. “It’s a mentality question I think. We just need to get the proper mind set and move on.”

Schoonderwoerd and the Flyers return to A-10 action Friday against La Salle in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Game time is set for 7 p.m.