Men's Soccer still excited for upcoming year

The 2010-2011 Fairfield Stags men's soccer season kicked off Wednesday night against the University of Albany, the first of their long home stand to begin the campaign. Throughout their successful history, Fairfield has been blessed with teams that were considerable threats in their conference, the region, and in some years the nation. The team hopes that this upcoming year will prove to be another of those special seasons. Picked to finish second in the MAAC, the Stags return their two top scorers, their First Team All-MAAC Goalie, and 9 of their starters from a year ago. With all these pieces in place the Stags looked at their difficult non-conference schedule highlighted by games with UMASS and Boston College as games that can show them where they stand against the top schools.

The year did not get off to the start that they envisioned when they lost to the University of Albany 2-0 in front of a packed crowed that reached 850 fans. It was the first win for the Great Danes since 2008, after finishing last year with a record of 0-13-3. "We were bitterly disappointed," remarked Head Coach Carl Rees. But the result was not the only thing that frustrated the team it was also the thought of letting down their fans, "we had the bleachers jampacked with Fairfield faithful and we felt we let them down it was a missed opportunity for us to demonstrate our pride and how hard we can work," Rees also said. The Stags dominated their opposition in almost every category, Albany's 2009 MVP Adrian Foncette made 9 saves to thwart a Stags comeback.

The Stags offense showed up in Game number 2 against Bradley when they battled to a 2-2 tie. Adam Cowen scored the first goal of the Stags season with senior David Piedrahita following with a penalty kick in the next half. The Braves, who finished in last place in the MVC last year, also proved to be a hard loss for the Stags.

Besides going winless through the first two games, Rees is not worried about his team, "I want to see progress and improvement in the team and I've seen that." The Stags faithful have also enjoyed what they have seen. There has been a new energy at Lessing Field. Over 1,000 combined Fairfield fans swarmed the bleachers, cheering, and even doing the wave so far in both games. The crowd's energy is also an important part for the team, "It's such a great atmosphere. It's a big assest for us and a big strength for us." For a team that is expected to finish high in their conference they hope that the fans will continue making Lessing Field a place of energy and excitement as the team and their fans get ready for the ride that both hope will lead to a MAAC Title.