Idaho soccer struggles continue leading into the start of Big Sky play.
Now on a five-game losing streak after a road trip to Riverside in southern California, the Vandals are looking to regroup before their final non-conference games.
“I think we are in that little period where we still know that we are a good team and capable of great things, it’s just not happening yet,” Idaho Head Coach Jeremy Clevenger said. “It could take one little thing, one little spark, one game to get going and that’s all we need.”
With this coming weekend being a bit different, with a road and away game in just three days. Here is what you need to know.
Injuries
Idaho took a heavy blow this last weekend, losing two key pieces to the attack and defense.
Senior forward Myah Merino and graduate student defender Kayleigh Frederick both suffered injuries this past weekend and appear to be out indefinitely, although there is no official report out on the state of their injuries.
With this, the recent trend of roster movements will be happening more than ever, as the team tries to find a new formula for success with two veteran captains now out of the lineup.
“Our goal is to regroup and get ready for conference (play), and at the end ofthe day, that’s what the non-conference is for, to get ready,” Clevenger said.
With the defensive line already in a rebuilding state and the offense still trying to find the back of the net with consistency, not having a goal in their last four games. This appears to only add to the problem on finding who will work best together on the field come conference play next week.
The clock is ticking on youth
The young players have been showing a bright light among the latest set of losses.
Freshmen Hoku Schatz, Berglind Baldursdóttir, Emmy Moore and redshirt freshman Avrie Fox, all-seeing heavy sets of minutes through the preseason, expect that load to increase with more young players.
And with conference play around the corner, more newcomers and players with limited in-game experience are going to be asked to step up when the team needs them most — which happens to be right now.
Oregon State
The Beavers, who come from the tough Pac-12 conference, are currently undefeated on the year.
This team has taken big strides from 2018 on the offensive end.With just one assist last season, the Beavers already have 17 through their first eight games.
The same goes for shots. The Beavers have taken 122 so far this year compared to having only having 131 all of 2018, led by first-year head coach Matt Kagan. Oregon State comes off a 5-0 win against Houston as well, making a team that is hot and vastly improved from a season ago a tough test for the Vandals on the road.
North Dakota
This weekend won’t get any easier, having to travel back for a Sunday home game against the Fighting Hawks.
North Dakota sits at 6-1-1 and has outscored teams 22-3 in eight games.
Led by senior goalkeeper Catherine Klein, the Fighting Hawks’ defense has allowed just three goals this season along with five shutouts.
Much like Oregon State, North Dakota is riding a hot streak just as they are about to play the Vandals. Junior defensive back Taylor Brust said the team follows a simple mission that they will need to execute in order to pick up wins this weekend.
“Score goals,” Brust said. “That’s just the focus right now. We just need to start putting goals in the back of the net,that’s what it comes down to really.”
Idaho will play Oregon State 4 p.m. Thursday in Corvallis, Oregon and North Dakota 1 p.m. Sunday in Moscow.
Zack Kellogg can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @kellogg _ zack.