Wins all look the same on the stat sheet, but the men’s soccer team still has a lot to prove if they hope to stay above the .500 line.
The men’s soccer team sits at 3-2 – already an improvement for a squad that finished with just five wins last season. But there’s a bigger picture to see – one that could be a concern for GW.
The Colonials dominated VMI to the tune of 4-0 Saturday, but it wasn’t an unexpected victory. VMI is win-less on the season, 0-4-1, and has been outscored by opponents 17-4 during that time.
The Colonials’ offense, with 12 goals through five games, has shown its ability to churn out victories. This is especially true of senior forward Tyler Ranalli, who leads the team with 11 points and is coming off a career-high seven-point game against VMI.
Including the VMI blowout, GW’s defense has shut out three of their last four opponents, and enters its fourth week of play on a high note. Colonials’ opponents, however, have had a combined 4-17-5 record so far.
“This is definitely a building block for future games. We expected to win this game. We made sure that we went out there and took care of business, and now we’re ready to move on to the next one and win that too,” Ranalli said.
That next match-up comes against St. Peter’s on Wednesday. The Peacocks ,too, have struggled out of the gate, standing at 0-3-1 on the year.
The real tests will come this Saturday against Navy, which finished last season with an even 7-7-3 record, and next week against UMBC, which holds a perfect 4-0 record.
Junior co-captain Andri Alexandersson isn’t playing down the significance of their early wins, although, saying the confidence derived from their victories will give the team a boost in tougher contests.
“This definitely contributes to our rising confidence. We have a game on Wednesday, so we’re going to be going in with high confidence that we believe and that we can finish games off,” he said.
On the field, the biggest priority for the team is improving its play during transitions from offense to defense.
Head coach Craig Jones said he hopes his team has learned from a 1-0 defeat at NJIT, during which its defense kept the opposing offense locked down, but allowed a goal on a breakaway when the defense got caught out of position trying to realign after an offensive push.
It will be small changes – like improving transitions – that could improve GW’s already stellar defense. The back line has posted three shutouts in the last four games and hopes to keep making life easy for sophomore goalkeeper Jean-Pierre van der Merwe.
“We’ve gotta keep making sure we’re still defending as a team, and as a unit, and staying organized and making sure that as we transition as a unit – as we transition from defense to attack and attack to defense – that we’re getting organized as quickly as possible,” Ranalli said.
Alexandersson, the anchor of the backline, trusts his experience will help him organize this new defense.
The Colonials, for the most part, have been able to count on the offense to produce. In addition, Ranalli, three other players have scored goals this season, while nine have recorded at least one assist.
But the real question still remains: Will the backline and offense hold up against tougher opponents? The defense looked porous in a 3-1 defeat against American University, but has also been airtight in other contests, like the VMI game and consecutive 2-0 shutouts against Howard and LIU Brooklyn.
“Each game we’re getting a little bit better in every area,” Jones said.
