Soccer teams’ success split

By David Thackham  

thackhamd@thejohnsonian.com

Midfielder Matt Stinson and defender Jordan Osborn battle for possession in the match versus Marshall University. Photo by Stephanie Eaton • eatons@thejohnsonian.comWomen’s team triumphs in regular season; men’s finishes below par

Winthrop women’s soccer coach Spencer Smith likes to lighten things up for his players the day before a big game. For example, after a small training session of one-on-one dribbling, the side that scores the least amount of goals must stand on the goal line facing the net, bend over and be a target for the winning side to shoot at. 

The side has put on a phenomenal run of six straight wins in their latter half of the season to put themselves in first place of the Big South conference and set up an easy path through the playoffs.

“The locker room is buzzing,” forward Tricia Vensel said. “We like to win and we want to keep going with that. We have many seniors who want to get a (championship) ring.” 

The first half of the season put Winthrop up against a demanding non-conference schedule, which swept the Eagles off their feet. Despite keeping the score close (six losses were by just one goal), the women found themselves 0-7-1 by the end of September, rooted to the bottom of the table.

“It was a mental thing,” Vensel said. “We were going 0-7 into conference, but we were always able to keep mentally strong, to keep working hard in practice for one another.”

To finally get back into the win column, it all started with Gardner Webb.

Realizing his team could work better in a different shape, Smith shuffled his midfield and changed the formation from a 4-4-2 to a 4-3-3, adding a striker and more balance to the top of the attack.

The men’s soccer team was picked to finish second by conference coaches. However, the team has struggled to overcome the youth and inexperience on the roster. The team has lost four of their last five games. The Eagles will play in Big South Conference Tournament which begins Nov. 11 in High Point, N.C. The Eagles won last years tournament and advanced to the NCAA Soccer Tournament. “It took a little while to get used to [the new formation],” leading goalscorer Courtney Durbin said, “but when we did, we sure liked it.”

Winthrop scored nine goals during their hot streak of five straight wins.  

The Eagles had a goal difference of -11 coming into the Gardner Webb matchup, but goalkeepers Kelsey Weavil and Sarah Schippers have now recorded five straight shutouts between themselves.

“It was definitely hard to get scored on,” Weavil said, “but we hang in there and work on our mistakes that happen because of the goals so we’re able to fix them and prevent them, and that feels great.”

The story of the women’s soccer team is one of redemption, to bounce back from last year’s woes of finishing last in conference play to potentially picking up the top spot for 2010.

But for the men’s side, the tale is much different.

Winthrop’s women’s soccer team ended their season winning five of their last six games. The Eagles earned the number one seed in the Big South Conference Tournament being held Adam Skonicki is familiar with success. After all, it runs in the family. His brother, Matt, who graduated last year, is a Winthrop soccer legend, aiding the Eagles to two Big South championships and achieving the tournament MVP in his junior year. 

But this year, the sophomore forward and his team have been more likely to end up on opposite side of the spectrum, currently struggling in sixth place out of nine teams.

“It’s disappointing because the one thing I hate the most is losing. It takes the fun out of [the game] when you’re not winning,” Skonicki said. 

Unlike the women, the men have been unable to win two matches in a row this season.

Skonicki accredits the inconsistency to youth.

“We’re a young team,” the forward said. “Not all the experience is there, so [while] we all want to go out there and win, we still don’t know exactly what we’re doing and what lineup we need. It’s an adjusting year.”

For this season, however, Winthrop must adjust quickly. The Big South tournament starts on Nov. 11 in High Point, N.C., the home of the conference champions, who clinched their top seed berth last Thursday with a 2-1 victory over Coastal Carolina. Unfortunately, the Eagles have been far from effective as visitors, with a 1-5-1 record on away turf.

But for a team that has struggled so much during the regular season, there is nothing to do but look to the future.

“We’ve got to stay working hard,” Skonicki said. “We’re here now and we have to put the season behind us. To get the results in the tournament, we have to go into it well and we’ll be looking at ourselves as champions again.”

Whether this season turns out to be a banner year, it will be fascinating to see the rise of Winthrop men’s soccer throughout the next four years, especially with the proven talent of freshmen Matt Stinson and Tinotenda Chibharo already making an impact.

“I know this team is going to get better and better,” Skonicki said. “It’ll be exciting to see a win streak again because once we get on that, it’ll last for a while.”

Maybe it will all start with Gardner Webb. This past Thursday against the Bulldogs, Winthrop got back in the win column with a gritty 2-1 win at home, boosting them up from the bottom spot.

“We were lucky to get [the win],” coach Richard Posipanko said, “but we’ll take it.”