Though the men’s soccer team (3-3-3) gathered at Dorothea Dix fields for practice Tuesday, coach George Tarantini insisted his team had not gone crazy trying to earn him his 200th career win.
Instead, Tarantini said his team has been working hard to earn its first win in five games as it hosts High Point today at 4 p.m. at Method Road Stadium Soccer Stadium.
“This is a hard-working group,” Tarantini said. “We play with everybody, but sometimes the results aren’t there. But the season is not finished; we have the tournament coming up and five more ACC games. But first we have High Point, and we need to be prepared for that.”
Tarantini said the main thing he wants to see his team improve is its overall mental toughness despite physical fatigue.
“You can have a physical fatigue, but you cannot have a mental fatigue,” Tarantini said. “Mental fatigue is when you break down and you allow mistakes and lose concentration. It’s something the players, the coaches and everyone else is responsible for. It’s very easy to point fingers when that situation happens. We want to do a better job preparing.”
According to senior defender Hugh Cronin, the Pack is particularly anxious to get a win after a frustrating loss at No. 21 Boston College where the Eagles scored the winning goal with less than two minutes to play.
“It’s tough whenever you tie the game up with four minutes to go and find a way to give up the tie and lose a game like that,” Cronin said. “We just have to regroup and get ready for this one because it’s a game we’re supposed to win, and we have to make sure that we do it. It’s getting late in the season, and every win counts.”
Cronin said a struggle for the Wolfpack this year has been playing down to its competition and failing to get wins against less talented teams. Though the team tied No. 1 UCLA in an exhibition as well as No. 3 Virginia and No. 12 St. Louis this season, it also tied Longwood and lost to Villanova.
“All year long, every game has been a one-goal game,” Cronin said. “So when we play teams like Virginia, who was No. 3 or UCLA who was preseason No. 1, we’re in every game. But then, when we play teams like Longwood, or games we’re supposed to win, we’ve played down a level. That’s something we’ve been working on trying to fix, and hopefully that will change with this game.”
According to senior midfielder Ernesto Di Laudo, the Pack has been working on controlling the middle of the field to create better scoring opportunities and feels it has plenty of time to turn the season around.
“We have a lot to show and a lot to work on,” Di Laudo said. “I think we still have time to get together and fix our mistakes and come back with good results. Definitely this game is a chance to do that.”
Tarantini said he cares little about win No. 200, as long as his team gets the win.
“To be honest, I want to win no matter what,” Tarantini said. “It could be win 200 or win 75 — I want the team to do well and get rewarded for working hard.”
