While the school year has just begun, the Geneseo men’s soccer team has been hard at work preparing for the season. The Knights opened the season up with the Drew Tournament in Madison, New Jersey from Aug. 29 to 30. Geneseo hoped to defeat both Drew University and Susquehanna University but only won against the latter. The Knights' 2014 campaign started on Aug. 29 against Drew with a 1-0 loss. Junior goalkeeper Logan Calvey made two saves during the game and kept the clean sheet up until the 74th minute when John Nogiewich of Drew broke the deadlock.
“The two games that we played were very similar,” head coach Dominic Oliveri said. “We held possession well during the game and we held the run of play. We just did not capitalize on some opportunities that were presented to us.”
The Knights were presented with plenty of opportunities throughout the game. The team outshot Drew 14-11, but was unable to capitalize on its chances.
The Drew Tournament continued on Aug. 30 for Geneseo’s victory against Susquehanna. The Knights got off to a slow start, but then hit the back of the net in the beginning of the second half. Junior midfielder Jaisen Clark scored an unassisted goal. The Knights then tallied another goal as sophomore Matt D’Amico connected on a cross by senior midfielder Connor Beisner.
“The opportunities we missed against Drew, we got them against Susquehanna. We were able to capitalize on all the chances and we were firing on all cylinders,” Oliveri said. “Susquehanna is a team that made nationals the past two years, so I was very happy with the result.”
This year, Oliveri has implemented a new formation as well as a different emphasis on play strategy.
“Last year, we used a traditional 4-4-2 formation, but this year we are using a 1-5-4 formation and so far the guys really like it,” Oliveri said.
Geneseo lost a few seniors this past year, including captain defender Pat Lynch. Junior transfer Brad Campeon has filled the position well, however, exemplifying the depth that the Knights have this year.
The Knights hope to continue their winning ways in their season opener against Clarkson University at Geneseo on Friday Sept. 5, a team that the Knights have beaten each of the last two years.