A new season brings new hope for the University at Buffalo's men's soccer team and they have something to prove. In the annual Mid-American Conference poll, taken by the league's coaches regarding the chances of each team winning the coveted MAC title, UB finished a dismal seventh out of seven teams in the east division.
"We haven't been ranked to rule the MAC, but we will prove people wrong," said UB Head Coach John Astudillo.
The Bulls have a solid crop of new talent, a fresh outlook, and the desire to improve upon their 8-7-2 overall record (2-3-1 MAC) as well as their quarterfinal finish last November at the MAC Tournament. This is not to say that life is going to be easy for UB because, of course, there are hard-hitting problems this team must face. At the end of last season UB suffered a tough loss with the graduation of three of its starting defenseman (Kevin Pitra, Bill Norberg, and Matt Yeates), who were the backbone of the team's success.
This year UB will rely on their captains, midfielders Mike Peplinski and Dave Pidgeon, and goalkeeper Brian Wozniak to provide leadership, inspiration, and the emotional guidance the inexperienced players need.
"They will carry the captain's armband, but all of our other seniors (forwards Jenton Esworthy and Dan Wielechowski, defenseman Jason Seymour, and midfielder Geoff Thompson,) are all about leadership," said Astudillo. "When you experience adversity on the road and off the road you need strong leadership from those who have come to battle before. The coaching staff relies a great deal on inner leadership, the inner force will always drive the team."
The Bulls have added three freshmen and one junior college transfer to bolster its roster and add some depth.
Greg Galemore, a 5' 11" forward, led West Morris Central High School to a state championship title in 2000 and to sectional titles in 1999 and 2001. Thomas Osborne, a 5' 11" midfielder, led his Empire State team to its first gold medal since 1991 last summer. Michael Battiste is a 6' 3" defender who received All-State honors and scored 49 goals and had 67 assists during his high school career. Matt Stuczynski, a 6-2 defender, was named to the All-State First Team after leading Cathedral Prep to a 21-2-1 record and the 2001 Pennsylvania State Championship title.
UB also brought in junior college transfer Mike Skonieczki, who led Herkimer Community College to the NJCAA National Championship in 2000 with an undefeated 21-0 record.
"One of the team's main problems last year was the second 11, the lack of a strong second line made the first 11 suffer because when you can't play against better players in practice it slows down your progress," explained Astudillo. "This year our second 11 is much improved and there will be much more competition for spots. We are very pleased with our freshman class and are eager to see if they can make a strong transition to the next level."
Returning Players
The Bulls return 18 players from last year's team, and they enter the 2002 campaign with confidence and experience. Justin Higgins led Buffalo's freshman class in scoring last season with three goals and as a sophomore is hoping to take his game to the next level. Junior Patrick Beckley is a major offensive threat who led UB in scoring last season with 10 points (four goals and two assists) and the coaching staff is expecting big things from him.
The strength of the team is at midfield with Mike Peplinski. Last season he started 16 games, finished second on the team in scoring with two goals and four assists (eight points), and earned All-MAC first team honors. Peplinski typically plays more on the defensive end of the field, but will be asked to play further upfield to "add some punch" to the offense.
Goalie Brian Wozniak was a key figure in the team's success last season, keeping the Bulls in many games last year with a 1.07 goals against average and allowing one goal or less in 13 games. The coaching staff believes he is in line for a career year and will be the major factor in determining how far the Bulls go in the MAC tournament.
Overall, the men's soccer team is very positive about the prospects of the upcoming season.
"In order for us to grow, the offense had to grow and we have done that with the players we have brought in this off season. We are cautious about how long it will take some of the freshmen to come around, but we feel these players can make the transition to the college level," said coach Astudillo. "We are a team that gets stronger and stronger as the season goes on, as long as we keep it close, stay away from injuries, and steadily improve, UB will be ready to go for the title. We go into every match looking to defeat the team, our confidence has improved and we won't back off from anyone."
Outlook
This team has lost some central ingredients, but has also brought in a terrific freshmen class. UB is entering this season with confidence and with confidence comes success. When you're ranked at the bottom there's nowhere to go but up-the Bulls have a lot to prove to the rest of the MAC and they seem ready to show what they can do. Look for the team to finish somewhere in the middle of the east division.
