Finishing maneuvers, drills and two-a-days describes the preseason scene for the men’s soccer team.
“The practices are physically taxing,” midfielder Reggie Edu said. “But we’re pretty happy with where we’re at. It’s been a good preseason weather-wise.”
Like practices, the exhibition games were no pushovers. For the Aces, these were chances to evaluate freshmen talent against teams like Louisville, ranked No. 21 in the College Soccer News preseason poll. While the Aces lost to the Cardinals 2–0, they downed crosstown rival USI 3–0.
Coach Mike Jacobs said so far the younger players have shown they too know how to compete.
“Our rookies are more comfortable coming in and playing this year,” he said.
This enables the eight veteran starters to continue to compete the way they are accustomed to.
“How we will play won’t change much,” Edu said. “We have the right players to keep playing the way we have been.”
The Aces look to improve upon a season in which they went 10–9–1, 3–3 in the MVC, and finished in the conference semifinals.
Jacobs said he is confident the captains—Edu, goalkeeper Alec Dufty and defender Kipp Erskine—will be an extension of the coaching staff.
“Kipp has the more dominant personality,” he said. “On game day, you’ll hear his voice most. Alec and Reggie are more calming. They have a great balance. This is the most experienced leadership we’ve had. I’ve never had a team where I’ve known these guys personally.”
All three relationships have had a long time to develop, as Jacobs coached Dufty and Erskine while at North Carolina State and Edu on the high-school level.
“We have two-year leaders in the middle of our defense,” Jacobs said, referring to the duo of Dufty and Erskine. “We know what to expect from them.”
But Jacobs also wants to see the same nationally ranked offense that led the team into the MVC semifinals last season.
“Each of the last two years, we’ve [garnered] a reputation for being an attacking team,” he said. “This year, we want the same offensive production while conceding fewer goals.”
The MVC is seen as one of the toughest conferences in the nation, and the Aces were tabbed to finish second in the league’s preseason poll, putting them ahead of nationally ranked Bradley.
“I think it’s encouraging and flattering to see where our peers see us,” Jacobs said. “[But] I asked [the team] who was the No. 2 preseason pick last year; nobody remembered. I asked who finished No. 2 last year; no one remembered.”
With the knowledge that people often forget runners-up, Dufty said he is set on winning the MVC Championship.
“I think we can definitely exceed it,” he said. “We have enough talent to knock off some good teams. Some people were worried about [former Aces] Corey [Elenio] and Dustin [Awe] leaving. But the freshmen are fitting in really well.”
With three exhibition matches out of the way, the Aces head Friday to the Kentucky Tournament in Lexington where they will face Detroit. The tournament continues Sunday as UE plays Central Arkansas.
The Aces then return home to play Butler. While the schedule is a tough one, it will be crunch time starting Sept. 30 when UE faces Indiana and three other nationally ranked teams.
Patience was Jacobs’ advice when referring to the anticipation that comes from playing nationally ranked teams.
“It’s easy to circle those games,” he said. “When teams do that, they lose the easy games.”
Creighton is picked to finish first in the MVC and returns seven starters.
