09/26/2008
Weather or Not: Men's Soccer To Face Undefeated MIT on Saturday

WORCESTER, MASS. 9/25/08 - Weather or not, the Clark University men's soccer team is scheduled to kick-off against undefeated and regionally ranked MIT in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) battle on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. MIT is ranked 10th in New England by the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.

"It's a great opportunity for our program," says head coach David Kulik. "It's not very often that you play an opponent in the second half of your schedule who is still undefeated. That in itself makes it a huge game; not only as a conference and regionally ranked opponent, but as a team that's undefeated. Regardless of what the weather might be like, we're excited about the game."

The match-up should live up to its billing. Saturday's game will feature a Cougar squad (5-1-2) who has faced four regionally ranked opponents already this season, defeating Brandeis University (2-1/10th) and tying both Worcester State College (0-0), which is receiving votes in the regional poll, and Babson College (0-0/9th) last weekend. Their only loss came against Salem State College  ranked fifth in the latest NSCAA New England poll.

The contest will be a rematch of last year's conference tournament quarterfinal round when fourth-seeded Clark edged fifth-seeded MIT, 2-1, on a late goal by Marc Labbe. The two teams played to a double-overtime tie in Cambridge, Mass., during the regular season.

"We had a great conference game against them last year," Kulik says. "We are two evenly matched teams. And when that happens, the one element that can give a team an advantage is home field. As we prepare for this match, we always feel that when we play at home, we have the advantage."

The Engineers (8-0-1) come into this weekend's contest with a solid and balanced attack, outscoring their opponents, 32-6. While freshman Zachary Kabelec (8-5-21) and sophomore Christian Therkelsen (7-4-18) are two high scoring strikers, Clark will not stray from its game-plan.

"They are led by two high scoring players; they've added some depth in their midfield and defensive line, and they bring an experienced goalkeeper to the table," Kulik says. "They clearly have many pieces to the puzzle that can make a team a very good team."

"With that said, we are a quality team as well," the ninth-year coach added. "We typically don't like to make adjustments for what other teams have. We hope that our strengths are more apparent than the opposing team's strengths on game-day, and that we find a way, especially based on home energy, to get a win."

Clark's attack has a much different look than the team that played MIT last year. Sophomore transfer Baran Doenmez (7-1-15) is the team's top scorer, while senior Mike Trobagis (3-4-10) trails in second. Sophomore Kyle Klapp (0-2-2), who is expected back after missing the last game due to injury, and newcomers Adrian Blackadar (1-2-4) and Kenny Howard have been welcome additions to the midfield.

"We have a more balanced attack ourselves," Kulik says. "It's not a matter of opponents trying to take out one player on our team. We offer too many viable options to get into the final third."

While playing conditions are questionable for Saturday's contest, the game will go on. Both teams will not only compete with the weather, but will also make adjustments to play on Clarks turf surface. According to Kulik, the biggest challenge will be the weather.

"The larger impact on game day would be the rain, rather than the surface we play on," he says. "Ultimately, when you put two good teams against each other on any surface, it's really about who's going to have more quality on that day. It's about who steps up, regardless of the elements, and does what they have to do to get a result."

The Clark women (3-4) will play the third game on Saturday (5 p.m.) in its NEWMAC opener against Coast Guard Academy (3-3). Both teams enter tomorrows match after tough losses - Clark fell to Keene State (1-0) and Coast Guard lost to Conn. College (2-0) - on Wednesday.

According to Coach Joe Brady, the Cougars early season competition has prepared them for their NEWMAC slate. "Our first seven games have been against some of the better teams in New England and has prepared us well," he says. "We have had some quality results and gained some valuable experience. We are excited to start the second part of our season and begin the NEWMAC schedule."

Clark defeated Coast Guard, 3-0, last season.