It seems like just yesterday when we were talking about fall sports finally making a return to campus, and now here we are with the season dwindling down to its end. Although the season is coming down to its last few regular season games, both the men’s and women’s soccer teams here at UMass Boston have aspirations to make it deep into the Little East Conference tournament and perhaps even further than that. There is still some work to be done before the LEC tournament, so let’s take a look at what is on the agenda for the rest of the season for the men’s and women’s soccer teams.
Men’s Soccer
Going into this week, UMass Boston men’s soccer sits in third place in the LEC with an intraconference record of 4–1–1 and an overall record of 11–2–1. The Beacons had a tough game against Keene State in which they tied with a score of 2–2. That draw against Keene State is currently preventing UMass Boston from taking second place, but the Beacons do still have a game in hand. This week, the Beacons will have a prime opportunity to dethrone Western Connecticut State atop the LEC standings if they can come away with a win against them this Saturday, Oct. 23. The easiest way to say it is, if UMass Boston wins out, then they can finish in first place going into the LEC tournament.
Women’s Soccer
As for UMass Boston’s women’s soccer team, they currently sit in second place in the LEC standings with a record of 5–0–1 in the LEC and 10–4–2 overall. The women’s soccer team is in a very similar situation to the men’s team, as they can both finish in first in the LEC if they win out. Western Connecticut has been a dominant force in the LEC, going unbeaten against Little East opponents so far this season. However, UMass Boston has been nearly as good against LEC opponents. They have not lost a game against any Little East opponents, having only tied one game against Plymouth State. Although UMass Boston can finish first, they will need to defeat Western Connecticut, and Western Connecticut will have to lose to Southern Maine. Odds are, Western Connecticut won’t lose to Southern Maine and UMass Boston might have to settle for second place, but I anticipate UMass Boston and Western Connecticut will likely meet again in the LEC tournament.
As the regular season comes down to the wire, we have gotten to a point where teams have to throw out everything that happened over the course of the season and concentrate on the task at hand: the LEC tournament. Once the LEC tournament begins, one bad game could lead to the end of your season. So, even if UMass Boston matches up against a team that they beat in the regular season, they have to take them seriously. Both the men’s and women’s teams have shown that they have what it takes to make a deep run in the LEC tournament and even win the tournament. However, UMass Boston cannot afford to have an off game going forward or else a team like Western Connecticut, who has dominated all season long, will take advantage and win the tournament for the men’s and women’s teams.