In a program with 10 national championships, expectations are always high. And when coaches select that program to finish second in the conference standings, those expectations get even higher.
Such is the life for the Saint Louis University men’s soccer team.
But the year has not started as expected. A 1-3 start has left the Billikens with sluggish play, nagging injuries and a general inconsistency on the pitch. It has also left the Bills lurking near the bottom of the Atlantic 10 in the win/loss column. Don’t expect it to get much better this weekend.
On Friday, Sept. 16, the Billikens face nationally-ranked South Florida, a squad that has a history of giving SLU trouble in recent years. Sunday, Sept. 18, the team will travel even further south, to take on Florida Gulf Coast, another solid squad that has a strong defensive presence.
But what this weekend will provide – hopefully – is answers. Four burning questions loom over the squad as they depart for South Florida. Each of them needs an answer.
Which team is the real SLU? We watched the Billikens suffer an embarrassing loss at home to Northern Illinois, then turn around and beat No. 10 Notre Dame the very next weekend.
We watched the offense come within inches of tying the defending national champion Akron last Saturday at Hermann Stadium, then watched them completely fall apart in the second half and lose 4-0.
This weekend, the good guys will have to show up if we’ve got any chance of hanging with South Florida.
Will losing Alex Sweetin be fatal for the team? Sweetin is a leader on and off the pitch, and his injury has hurt the squad in more ways than just the stat sheet. An inconsistent team is indicative of an inconsistent midfield, and losing Sweetin can’t help the Bills situation.
This young squad needs the junior leader, and their biggest test will be how they respond to his loss.
Is the defense capable of keeping a clean sheet? The same team that held Notre Dame to one goal in 120 minutes of soccer gave up two goals in eight minutes to Akron.
The defensive inconsistency is to be expected with young players in the back four, but SLU needs to find a way to terminate threats off set pieces and corners. Sunday’s game against Florida Gulf Coast will be enormous on this front – one mistake could cost the Bills the game, while a shutout could be a huge confidence boost.
Can the offense run with the big guns? To put things quite simply, Akron looked more organized in Saturday’s match.
Northern Illinois looked like they were following their game plan perfectly when they beat the Bills a few weeks back.
The SLU offense has at times looked disorganized and sloppy, banking on transitional chances and long shots.
Think of a basketball team with speedy point guards that love the fast break, but as soon as they’re slowed down, the offense is meaningless.
This weekend the Bills need to get their offensive production in order by sticking to their guns, and following Coach McGinty’s game plan.
The weekend trip to Florida will be anything but a beach vacation for Billikens. They’ll board the bus tonight with a 1-3 record and a lot of questions.
Who knows what the numbers will be upon return.
The most important thing the Billikens need to find are the answers.
