“It's always hard to watch the team lose whoever we play,” said
Senior Kellen Kasiguran, “but losing to Endicott had a special sting to it.”
The Gordon’s
Men’s Soccer Team has never lost a game to the Gulls of Endicott until
now. On Wednesday October 3rd,
on their home turf, the Scots were faced with the reality of a devastating 5-2
loss to their biggest rivals, the Gulls.
And this, only days after the Scots celebrated their great win over
Nichols at 3-2 on Saturday, September 29th. What was the cause of this great
upset? How will the Scot’s bounce
back?
This season has
been a rough one for men’s soccer at Gordon. With an overall record of 3 wins, 7 losses and 1 tie so far,
the increasing amount of injuries to the team has been a great barrier to their
success. Former starter Kellen
Kasiguran ’13 has red-shirted this season due to a knee injury, starting goalie
Ryan Coil ’13 is out after breaking both his tibia and fibula and a variety of
other injuries have left many of the Scots’ first-string players on the bench.
“Every game I watch makes me want to play whether we are
winning or losing…” said Kasiguran. “It's hard not to be out there battling
with all my brothers.”
The head coach of Endicott’s Men’s Soccer
team, Joseph Calabrese, however, was thrilled about the win. The Scots’ lost-lasted dynasty over the
Gulls was finally broken and now the competition will rise. “Some people
have called this a rivalry game. I completely disagreed,” said Calabrese. “Our
program had never won a match against the Scots. The Scots have dominated this
local rivalry.”
Calabrese said he greatly respects Gordon’s
coaching staff. He specifically complimented the organization of the defensive
team. But the Gulls have been working hard and it paid off.
“We believe we have a good chance of winning against
any team we play,” said Odell. “It typically comes down to execution.”
Senior Captain
Ryan Daley ’13, however, does not let the overwhelming amount of injured
players or this loss discourage him.
“The loss stings a bit. Yeah, there is the
rivalry history. But that does not affect anything else in our season. We lost
one game. Now, we move forward.”
Though the Scots are down many key
players, they don’t count the championship out of the question. With a record of 2-2 for the conference,
the men’s season is far from over.
According to Daley, the Scots have all
the talent and potential that they need for the 2012 season. “I have confidence in our guys. We
don't feel bad for ourselves and no one else should feel bad for us.”
The whole team,
injured or not, is committed to fighting until the end. Their confidence is key to their
success. Even after the loss to
Endicott, the men kept their heads held high.
“Despite the loss and disappointment,” said Kasiguran, “there
was an air of confidence, and the focus was on what we have to do next to keep
moving forward.”
This confidence proved effective during
the Scots’ Homecoming game against Wentworth on Saturday, October 6th. After a 3-0 win, the Scots’ Men’s
Soccer Team may have found for themselves a new resolve. The question is, can the Scots keep up
the motivation without the fan base that they experienced during Homecoming
weekend?