We kicked off the season this past Saturday at home against Nebraska Wesleyan University with a come from behind 2-1 victory. We followed that up with an early morning ride up to Duluth on Sunday to play St. Scholastica for the first time in over a decade. A 3-1 score line may mask the fact that it was a tight game until the last twenty minutes when we found the net twice.
Coming out of the weekend I feel good about where we sit. We were able to get almost everyone into the matches to see how they would react. The competition was good enough to expose portions of our game that deserve our attention as we prepare for the MIAC. We also added a couple tools to our collective belt that will help us this season. We know we can battle back should we concede first and we know we can compete well on a back to back (think NCAA tournament games). . .and, in this case, our opponent was not on a back to back.
Because of the generous support we received from many of you this past spring in our now annual Go Johnnies Challenge, we were able to make an incredible addition to the coaching staff by bringing Noel Quinn into the family. He has had an immediate positive impact throughout the program. We have also been able to keep our other fantastic staff members in place including Chris Foreman, Grant Bell, and, the legend, Pat Haws.
Speaking of Pops, and this is a huge deal, he is being inducted into the J-Club Hall of Honor this homecoming on October 5th. This is the first full class induction to our Hall of Honor. It would mean the world to Pops to have you join the banquet that night. Click here to RSVP.
Quick Hits
--Our next match is Saturday night at Northwestern. We have a pregame social set up for alums, parents, and fans at a nearby Chili’s. Register here if you can make it!
--Our gear store got hung up this year, but it is now open. Go to
WWW.BIGTEAMSTORE.COM and use the password SJUSOCCER. It will be open until September 11th, and they will work to turn around the orders as quickly as possible for us.
--’85 grad and former standout wide mid for the squad, Michael Crouser, is releasing a book called “Saint John’s Through the Years”, which is entirely comprised of images from the archives of SJU and the Abbey. Click here to take a look and possibly preorder to get a jump on your Christmas shopping. Crouser’s other photo books are phenomenal as well. Mountain Ranch is my favorite!
