The USM women’s soccer team welcomed St. Joseph’s College and the Coast Guard Academy into town this weekend looking to find some offensive firepower on their home turf, but left with two losses, no offensive answers, and an unexpected defensive question mark.
The Husky offense has scored a total of six goals in five games so far this season. Five of those goals came in a 5-0 blowout of the University of New England in Biddeford, leaving the Huskies shutout in three of five games.
In an attempt to find some answers to their lacking defense, the Huskies shifted their starting line-up and made some formation changes. However, these efforts fell short, as the team woke up on Monday with just one goal and two losses over the weekend.
“We were trying not to let the heat get the best of us,” Freshman mid-fielder Nicolette Greene said. “And it was difficult to relax after we were informed we’d be going into the weekend with a new formation. Needless to say, it was a very rough weekend.”
To make matters worse, starting goaltender Mindy Morneault’s playing status is now unknown as she suffered a leg bruise against the Coast Guard Academy. Although the loss of Morneault may make things difficult both defensively and offensively for the team, the Huskies find most of their depth in goal keepers. Sophomore Cyndi Michaels replaced Morneault in goal on Sunday, and will continue to be the starter as long as Morneault remains sidelined.
“We graduated key offensive players but we are strong defensively,” first year head coach Lisa Petruccelli said. “We are a young team with many players getting their first real taste of soccer on the collegiate level. It just takes a little time to adjust, but we are on the right path and it’s only a matter of time until we achieve the success we’re looking for.”
Thankfully, time is something Petruccelli has plenty of, with only a handful of seniors on the team and plenty of youth to mold and develop. Unfortunately, experience is something that can only be gained with time, so patience will have to be a virtue shared across the USM campus.