It certainly has been an exciting fall season for Northeastern athletics. Volleyball clinched Northeastern’s first ever Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) regular season title and will be hosting the conference tournament this weekend. Men’s soccer made it to the conference championship before bowing out to George Mason. And women’s soccer made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament.
I found myself covering the women’s soccer beat for The News during the second half of the season when our beat reporter left. I have to be honest, I didn’t see their magical run coming. I remember the Oct. 19 game at Parsons field. The Huskies lost the game 2-1 to UNC Wilmington. It was their final home game of the year, meaning the team needed to win two of three games on the road to clinch a playoff berth. A daunting task, yes, but even more daunting when you consider the team hadn’t won a conference game on the road in years.
Despite the long odds, the team members stayed positive and believed they could win those two games.
“All year long we’ve only gone up. We’ve been proud of the work we’ve done so far. Coming into the game, it was a must-win, but that doesn’t mean its over, we just have to keep working really hard,” senior forward Jenna Lucchesi said after the UNCW game.
Inspiring words, yes, but perhaps even more inspiring when you go back just one year. Northeastern was crippled by injuries, including Lucchesi, who missed much of the year with a severe compound leg fracture. They finished last in the conference with four wins.
As a reporter, their amazing run was an incredible story to cover. How many reporters at The News have ever said they’ve covered an NCAA tournament team? In the past few years, not many.
Head coach Ed Matz is one of the friendliest and classiest coaches I’ve ever dealt with. While I don’t pretend to be an expert on soccer, I know that taking a sixth seeded team with the least scholarships in the CAA to the second round of the NCAA tournament is quite an accomplishment.
Like I said, it was an amazing season to cover from a reporting stand point. But this winter, I’m looking to what could be a group of special seasons. Men’s basketball and both hockey team are poised for exciting seasons. Men’s basketball was picked second in the CAA preseason poll. Men’s hockey is currently ranked sixth in the nation. While women’s hockey has stumbled recently, this program is making steps towards becoming relevant again. Also be sure to check out women’s basketball. The Huskies have a young team, but play an exciting kind of basketball. And swimming and diving is back after going undefeated last season. And don’t forget the two track teams. Track coach Sherman Hart is another friendly guy, and is great at doing more with less too.
So get out and go to a game. I know I will. It’s free, you know. And who knows, maybe I’ll be lucky enough to be part of a magical season, this time as a fan.
– Nate Owen is a senior journalism major and member of The News staff.
