The Plattsburgh State women’s soccer team is looking to carry the momentum from their first SUNYAC victory of the season against Potsdam last weekend into this weekend against more conference opponents.
“After a tough road trip, you just want to get to practice to work out the kinks, and yesterday was one of our best practices yet,” head coach Tania Armellino said prior to their home victory against Potsdam. “We just have to think one game at a time.”
With a record of 5-4, after starting the season 4-0, the Cardinals will be looking to bounce back after a tough 1-0 loss against nonconference opponent Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Monday.
“You never want to lose, and you never want to lose on the road,” Armellino said. “I just want to get back on the streak we know we can get back on.”
Coming off of a loss makes this weekend against SUNYAC opponents even more critical being that the first full weekend of conference games will be at the comfort of their home turf.
“This weekend is very important,” senior forward Anissa Hartmann said. “We don’t want to lose on our home turf. I think these games at home will give us motivation to play that much harder.”
The Cards are 4-0 at home this season, which is something this team takes pride in and hopes to continue to that trend this weekend against conference opponents Oswego and Cortland.
“We have potential to do very well this weekend,” Hartmann said.
The 1-0 loss against RPI was a really important game for PSUC. It could have set them up ideally coming into this weekend, however, it was just another lesson learned as a team in a game which they played better than they did in their previous losses.
“If we focus on what we did wrong, and what we need to improve upon, it will definitely benefit us this weekend,” sophomore defender Jessica Mangieri said. “Against RPI, we didn’t shoot that much. So we’ll be looking to shoot more often.”
During an on-and-off stretch like one the Cards are experiencing right now, sometimes what needs to be improved is more mental less than physical. For example, communication is something that PSUC has been working on and looking to improve in these upcoming SUNYAC battles.
“Communication is key,” Mangieri said. “When we talk, it helps everybody. No matter if it’s the defense, offense or the midfield, it all helps.”
Last year, the Cards split this weekend series, beating Cortland 1-0 but falling to Oswego 2-1. This time around, PSUC will look to defend their home turf against these two teams and come away victories to propel them into the rest of the season.
“If we play our game and play how we play, and not worry about how they play, we’ll be great,” Hartmann said. “If we play the game we know against other teams, we’ll be very hard to beat.”
These games on their home field are important for shaping the rest of PSUC’s season. Coming out strong and putting their recent struggles behind them will be crucial against these SUNYAC teams.
“The biggest thing is learning from our mistakes and to keep pushing forward,” Armellino said.
“Nothing is going to be easy,” Armellino said. “For myself as a coach, I always tell them that they’re young, strong, capable women, and they need to believe that in order to perform like that.”
Email Ezra Kachaturian at sports@cardinalpointsonline.com
