By Jonathan Sawyer
Sports Editor
The St. Bonaventure women’s soccer team will head to Florida for the weekend as they take on the Florida Atlantic University Owls and Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles. The team has begun the season 2-3-1 and freshman forward Sydney Cerza, second on the team in points with five, says the team is coming together.
“We have started connecting on the field and it has helped us find the back of the net. Also, we have gotten some players back from injuries which has helped a lot.” Cerza said.
Junior forward Danielle Vis tied for first in points on the team and leads the team with shots on goal, believes that with such a young team, it is going to take time to get used to.
“It took us a while to start connecting with each other because it was such a new line up with many incoming players contributing a lot,” Vis said. “I think people have more confidence now and we are understanding how each other play and are working hard for each other.”
Cerza believes that there are a lot of positives to look at so far this season.
“We have really started connecting on the field and getting results which we struggled with a little in our first couple of games,” Cerza said. “We really get along off the field which will create better chemistry for us as a team on the field as well. One negative we had was our pre-season rank but I think that has fired us up to train harder and prove to everyone that we deserve to be higher up on the list.”
Last year the Bonnies only won three games in A10 play, and with A10 play approaching in just three short weeks, Cerza said her team needs to keep up the intensity.
“As A10s are approaching and we need to continue working hard in practice and pushing each other. I think if we go into games with a lot of energy and a positive mindset we will surprise a lot of teams and prove our place.” Cerza said.
“We need to keep connecting with each other and make smart passes. We also need to continue to work hard and transition better,” Vis said.
Vis also said she thinks her team is in a better place than last year.
“We are scoring a lot of goals from multiple players which is nice to see. We also have a very experienced back line.” she said.
With Cerza being a freshman and not knowing about last season, she said that the team was disappointed in their pre-season ranking. The Bonnies are ranked to finish last in the A10s.
“We are using that as motivation,” Cerza said. “We are determined to make it to the A10 tournament this season. If we keep pushing each other and working hard I can see us being a team that surprises other teams in conference play.”
Cerza said that this week will be a test for the team.
“We have been training hard and playing well in practice which should help us this weekend. I think if we work hard and work together we have a chance to come back with two wins,” Cerza said.
Vis just wants to see her team go out and expect good results.
The Eagles have been a streaky team this season, following each loss with a win and vice versa thus far. The Owls, meanwhile, have struggled to score goals recently, scoring none in their last three games.
The Bonnies have won two of their last three games, beating Niagara University and Youngstown State before falling to Cleveland State, putting them in eleventh place in the Atlantic 10.
The Bonnies take on the Owls tonight at 7 p.m. and the Eagles on Sunday at 1 p.m.
sawyerjp15@bonaventure.edu
