Soccer Home Openers this weekend

The Sea~Hawks soccer teams will open their home season this weekend as Acadia comes to town to play a weekend set at King George the V field. The home opener will take place on Saturday afternoon with the women getting underway at 1pm and the men following with a scheduled 3:15pm start. The teams will then play again on Sunday starting with the women at 11am and the men at 1:15pm.

Men’s Soccer Preview

The men’s team started off the 2010 campaign on September 11 in Antigonish where they lost a close 2-1 decision against St. FX on AUS opening day. The next day the Sea~Hawks travelled to Sydney where they came up with a huge win against the reigning AUS champion Capers. The team heads into this weekend with a 1-1 record.

The men’s team hopes to notch a pair of wins against the already struggling Axemen (0-3) in their much-anticipated home opener Saturday.

Memorial’s Steven DeLong was a forced to be reckoned with on opening weekend with a team-leading five shots on goal and a goal in both games. Promising young rookies Dan Rowe, and Michael Brushett each contributed a tally to the Sea~Hawks as well. Brushett’s goal was the deciding factor against the Capers. Look for them to start off strong against Acadia this weekend.
The Sea~Hawks need to execute their game plan against the Axemen, who finished ahead of Memorial in the overall standings last season. Acadia brings eight new first year players to the pitch this season, giving the competition a much different look on the field.

Players to watch on Acadia
Sophomore player Erik Merchant, an attacking striker, really made an impact for Acadia last season. Merchant, though only a rookie last year, was selected to the AUS Second All Star Team, an accomplished feat for a first year player. For a Newfoundland connection, the lone men’s soccer player on Acadia is rookie Keegan Ezekiel.

Women’s Soccer Preview

The Memorial women’s side suffered two losses to open their season, but morale is still high as they hope to kick off the home season with two big wins to jump right back into the middle of the AUS standings.

Ashley Dawe and Lauren Windsor were great in the first games of the season, providing stability defensively, while jumping up to join the attack when needed. In the game against St. FX Dawe and Windsor contributed a total of five shots to the Sea~Hawks nine shot total. Watch Dawe and Windsor and the rest of the women’s team look to get back to their winning ways this weekend at King George V.

The Acadia women (1-1-1) are bringing in plenty of rookies to change the look of their team in 2010. This year they have eight young up-and-comers ready to prove their worth.

Players to watch on Acadia
Elizabeth Leighton hails from Naples, Maine. She currently has four shots for Acadia this season, and had the game-winning goal against the 2009 third place Capers a couple of weeks ago. She has been main offensive star for Acadia early this season.

Back at King George V

The Sea~Hawks are back lakeside at King George V field this season after playing last season mainly at Smallwood Dr. in Mount Pearl. King George has a long history of flooding so Hurricane Igor provided a good test to the new system designed to prevent such occurrences. All indications suggest the field is ready to go for the weekend.

Special Anniversary

This season marks the fortieth anniversary of the 1970-71 national champion Memorial University men’s soccer team. The championship is Memorial’s only national championship in history. Six of the team members have gone on to be elected into the Newfoundland and Labrador Soccer Hall of Fame, including head coach Dr. Alan Ross. Starting last season, the Memorial varsity soccer most valuable players were awarded the Dr. Alan Ross Trophy in his honour. The early 1970s were a golden era in Memorial Soccer, with four conference champions and a national title.

Contributed by Alex Gibson