Men's soccer relies on 'young' talent, leadership for success

With only a few games remaining in the regular season, the men's soccer team is doing everything possible to get ready for the playoffs. The players know they must play their best soccer down the stretch.

"We only got a few more games left, so we have to do really well in those games in order to be ready for playoffs. It's never an easy road," said Ryan Robertson, 24, a senior communications major from Northfield, Vt.

The team is on a winning streak, coming off a big 1-0 win against Johnson & Wales, Oct. 8. Joe Young, 19, a sophomore biochemistry major from Langley, Va., scored the only goal for the Cadets.

"I don't really remember how exactly I scored, it happened so fast. I ended up getting a good bounce in front of the net and I kicked the ball as hard as I could into the back of the net. I got a bit lucky, I guess," Young said.

Young has scored four goals in the last five games, with a total of 10 points during his breakout season. Young came into the season with a strong focus, according to team captain Ryan Robertson.

"Joe (Young) surprised a lot of people this year, he came in stronger, faster and just more determined around the net. He's been great for us the last few weeks," said Robertson.

The Cadets have some important games coming up in the near future, and hope they can continue on the winning path against Suffolk, Emmanuel and Rivier.

"Playoffs are just around the corner, but we can't be thinking about that too much. We have some big games coming up in the next few weeks that we need to be ready for. Especially against Lasell who beat us last year," said Anthony Amell, 20, a sophomore engineering management major from Northfield, Vt.

Joe Young was awarded the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Player of the Week award from his strong performance in the last few games.

"I think Joe really deserved the acknowledgement. It's about time that one of our players got that award. Joe has come up huge in the past few games," said Gavin Boyle, 19, a sophomore majoring in studies in war and peace from Harpersfield, N.Y.

Young scored both game-winning goals for the Cadets in two big victories over Lasell and Johnson & Wales.

"I hope Joe can keep scoring big goals with playoffs coming up, we're definitely going to need leadership from players like him and Robertson," said Colin Pope, 20, a junior architecture major from Tunbridge, Vt.

Leadership is going to play a big factor in the success of the Cadets, according to Roberton.

"It's going to take a team effort down the stretch, we will need our upperclassmen to really step up," he said.

The Cadets fell short last season, losing to Lasell 2-0. The team hopes to be ready for its opponent this year, according to Andrew Dustin, 19, a sophomore criminal justice major from Canterbury, N.H.

"Last year they I think they just caught us on a bad day. Just like in any sports, it's hard to show up every day. We're looking to get some revenge on them from what happened last year. Should be a big game," Dustin said.

Young, who was sidelined last year due to a minor ankle injury, did not get a chance to play Lasell. He is determined the team will be successful.

"I'm not nervous about the game at all, I think our boys are more than ready for the game. Everyone is pretty bitter about what happened last year so hopefully we can use those emotions to help beat them," he said.