By Kenny Barto
The CCSU men’s soccer (3-9-2, 0-5-2 NEC) celebrated senior day with a 1-0 loss to Sacred Heart on Sunday, extending their goalless streak to seven games and an accumulated 670 minutes.
“I think the results haven’t been reflecting the way we’ve been playing,” Green said. “We really need a goal scorer, and the way we’ve played have changed our recruiting dynamics a little bit. We’re starting to look less internationally, and instead focusing more close to home.”
The team honored six seniors in their last home game prior to Sunday’s match. Robert Cavener, Connor Smith, Persis Oware, Joseph Laryea, Jared Spieker, and Blaine Veldhuis all saw action in their final home game.
“I think our seniors did great today,” said Green. “Cavener played quite well, Blaine, Jared Spieker, all a great bunch of guys and we’ll definitely miss them when this year comes to an end.”
CCSU had chances throughout the game, but like all season, the team was unable to bury any of them. In the entire first half, there was one shot on goal, which came on a free kick by Cavener in the 23rd minute.
The second shot on net came from Terrell Whitting in the 53rd minute, who struggled to get his full power into the shot from the top of the box due to the Pioneers strong defense. Whitting played a great game, getting behind the defense on a few occasions, but struggled to get the perfect setup pass from his teammates.
“Terrell is a great player,” said Green. “He’s a sophomore now, transferred from a great UConn program, and he’s been putting himself into those positions all year, he had two goals against Yale, and the game winner against Fordham, he’s truly a good player with lots of potential.”
Sacred Heart was able to get on the board in the 77th minute, when a loose ball was corralled by Marcello Castro on the left side of the box, who was able to score with little difficulty.
CCSU would get lucky, however, as SHU’s Konstantino Dekaneas would go in for a strong tackle that sent a CCSU midfielder to the ground. Referee Boris Medvedev instantly went for the yellow card, which was Dekaneas’ second of the game, which is an automatic ejection.
With a one-man advantage, CCSU launched a full-scale attack on the SHU defense. However, the Pioneers did not falter, and were able to handle the only two shots attempted in the final seven minutes.
The Blue Devils showed obvious signs of frustration during the game, which is a “sign of effort” according to Coach Green.
“If they’re not frustrated, then I’m worried about them,” said Green. “This is Division one athletics, and they’re supposed to get frustrated.”
Playing in his final home game, Cavener was eager to talk about his memories at CCSU.
“It was only four years, and it went by so quick,” said Cavener, a co-captain. “It doesn’t seem that long ago that we were in the Sweet Sixteen, back in 2007… I’ve got that and so many other memories to take away from this place, and I’ll never forget any of them.”
Cavener, who has been playing with a protective mask due to his broken nose, showed a rare sign of frustration by throwing it down on the ground after the game. Despite a bit of anger, Cavener wasn’t ready to give up on the season with three games left.
“We were just in the locker room talking, and nobody’s got their heads down,” said Cavener. “Even though the six seniors have only three games left, we’re ready to go out and try to win. This is a great team, and a great group of guys, and I’ll definitely miss them.”
CCSU finishes off the season on the road, facing the top-ranked Long Island on the Oct. 29, followed by St. Francis (PA) and Quinnipiac on the Oct. 31 and Nov.5 respectively.
