After last season’s groundbreaking run, UMass Boston’s Men’s Soccer team is ready to etch their name into history once again. In the second season at UMass Boston, Coach Jake Beverlin’s squad received nine All-Conference selections and four All-Region honorees. In just two years, Beverlin has tuned up the once abysmal program into a conference powerhouse and a National contender.
Now, in his third year, Beverlin has his sights set on attaining goals that the Soccer program has never reached before. “Our team goal is to win the conference tournament and finish number one in the regular season,” said Beverlin. “We believe that we can reach new heights this year by finishing the season nationally ranked in the top 15 NCAA DIII soccer programs.”
Coach Beverlin’s goals seem to be realistic considering their roster. For starters, the team only graduated 4 players, and the main core of the team will remain intact. Beverlin stated that he “expects the returners to elevate their games and become leaders.” Some of these players include Captain Alfonso Rosales, Captain Arlindo Goncalves, Josh Khang, and Marcelo Cunha. Despite the small change in numbers for the roster, Beverlin still brought in a large freshman and transfer class. “We have ten new players total. Six freshmen and four transfers,” said Beverlin. “I want our new recruits to come in and contribute to scoring goals. That’s why we brought them here.” UMass Boston’s strong roster has earned them a preseason polling as #1 in the LEC conference. NCAA scouts expect them to win the LEC and make a deep run in the postseason.
With a difficult road schedule, the team expects to be comfortable with the travel-heavy postseason and the NCAA tournament. Beverlin believes that when teams are comfortable traveling, they have an easier transition into the NCAA. Currently, the team is in Washington for a series of away games. This is the farthest the program has ever travelled for a regular season game.  “I prefer to be on the road. We wouldn’t host a home game for the NCAA tournament anyways so we might as well prepare for being on the road.”
Not only has the team developed, but Beverlin has also made positive strides within his coaching style. The more the team has experienced success, the more Beverlin has begun to trust the process he originally implemented.  As a first year coach, Beverlin got worked up when games didn’t swing the right way. However, as he has experienced sustained success, he has become more patient and trusting in the team and results. “I think I’m more relaxed this year. I don’t get as worked up and I trust that things will work out more,” joked the Coach. “Overall, I think I am more prepared. Experience always helps.”
Overall Beverlin seems excited to be a part of such a special team. Currently, the squad is undefeated, and they don’t anticipate to see a mark in the loss column any time soon. “I have had a bunch of fun with this group thus far and I’m looking forward to keeping the momentum going,” said Beverlin. “The group is a bit more relaxed, but the talent is much higher and we’re much deeper than usual.  I can’t wait to get our conference season started on October 19 at Rhode Island College!”

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