With high hopes, soccer opens fall camp
8/2/2016 11:13:00 AM | Soccer
HUNTSVILLE – After graduating 10 seniors and producing as many wins, the Sam Houston State soccer program looks to replicate its high success rate from a season ago, opening fall camp on Wednesday.
Entering his ninth season, head coach Tom Brown's squad returns five starters and 12 letterwinners including 2015 Southland Conference Honorable Mention and All-Tournament honoree Allie Johnson, who highlights a seven-member senior class.
“They know what we want to do and they had a great run to the championship game,” Brown said of the returners. “We will count on their leadership and showing how we want to get things done. Ultimately, I think what the returners put into it and their dedication will determine the season we have.”
According to Brown, there are a few key goals entering the fall camp, at the forefront ensuring the players are physically ready for the season.
“We want to keep our players healthy,” Brown said. “They can't get better if they aren't able to get on the field. From there, it's building a familiarity amongst the players. They have been away from each other and there are a lot of newcomers. I think from that point, it's imprinting what our team shape and our framework is. The team is different so that framework will change. We have to make sure players understand their roles.”
The Bearkats seek to remain among the league's top defenses after finishing tied for first in goals allowed (19) and ranking second in goals against average (0.83).
“I think the defensive unit once it got settled in worked rather well together,” Brown said. “We'll have changes back there this year. It will be an important thing early on to get them familiar with each other to play as one rather than four. I think we've added some really good attacking personalities in both the midfield and up front.”
The team logged nine shutouts in 21 matches including blanking Southeastern Louisiana in the league's tournament championship match during regulation before falling in penalty kicks. The Bearkats, who entered as the third-seed, followed up a penalty-kick victory against host Central Arkansas in the opener with a 2-0 win against two-seed Houston Baptist in the semifinals.
“I think when they've been able to go out and be successful, it adds confidence,” Brown said. “We graduated some players that were pretty important in that run but we also return some players that contributed. The returners that have been to that level would like to get back to the championship game and make a run at winning the tournament.”
With a large outgoing senior class, this year's unit welcomes in 10 freshmen including three out-of-state players, who look to write their own chapter. Brown expects the class to play an immediate role.
“We expect some of those freshmen to come in and play minutes right away,” Brown said. “I think some of them will be called on to start and I think some other players will play important roles. We expect them to come in and make an impact fairly quickly.”
Sam Houston will play 19 total matches including six at Pritchett Field. After hosting Houston next Friday at 6:30 p.m. in exhibition play, the squad plays nine of its first 10 matches on the road beginning with the season opener, broadcast on the SEC Network Plus, at Alabama on Aug. 19.
The Kats welcome UTSA on Aug. 21 at 6:30 p.m. for the home opener before hitting the road for three matches in tournament play at the University of Texas. The team faces Detroit Mercy, College of Charleston and the host Longhorns, with all games airing on the Longhorn Network.
“We wanted a preseason schedule that had all different levels of competition in it,” Brown said. “I think that is important for this team. The newcomers need to be put under the gun in some games so we know what they can contribute in October as well as some games where it may not be as tough. I think having those different levels of competition will pay big dividends.”
To stay up-to-date with everything on the upcoming Sam Houston soccer season, and to directly support the program by giving to the Bearkat Champions Fund, visit GoBearkats.com.
