Irish return to field following hiatus
By BRYAN KRONK
Sports Writer
The Notre Dame men's soccer team hopes to shake off the cobwebs and return to its winning ways tonight as it takes on regional rival Cleveland State tonight at 7 p.m. at Alumni Field.
The Irish are coming off a 10-day hiatus from competition, as the two games the Irish were originally scheduled to play Friday and Sunday were called off due to the events of Sept. 11.
"Our time off [between games] shouldn't really affect us," Irish midfielder Filippo Chillemi said. "We've been training hard the entire time so we would be ready to play."
The Irish are also hoping to rebound from two losses against ranked opponents at the Furman Invitational in South Carolina on Sept. 7. The Irish almost pulled an upset against No. 5 Furman, but the Paladins squeaked out with a 3-2 overtime victory.
That loss was followed two days later with a 4-0 defeat against No.16-ranked Clemson.
Since that time, the Irish have followed a regular practice schedule, participating in an intersquad 90-minute simulated game in place of the two games that were called off.
"I thought after the Furman game that we were almost there," head coach Bobby Clark said, "but Clemson took us to school. They're a good team, and we've got to recognize when a team is putting pressure on us like Clemson did. These teams put us to the test, and we didn't pass the test. I think we can do better."
The key to an Irish victory, according to Chillemi, is to maintain focus, something that the Irish did not do in its loss to Clemson.
"I think in the first game [against Furman] we played very well, but we just got a little unlucky," Chillemi said. "In the Clemson game we just weren't focused, and I think that's what we need to work on heading into our next game is to come out and be more focused."
While some may dismiss the importance of this game, as the Irish have beaten the Vikings in both previous matchups, Clark isn't taking anything for granted.
"This is a key game," Clark said. "Our boys are just excited to be playing."
Chillemi echoed Clark's sentiments, added, "They [Cleveland State] are a good team, but we're confident that we can come out and play a good game."
All Sports Stories for Wednesday, September 19, 2001
