Coach Dennis Currier will write updates throughout the season.

Dayton Flyers head men's soccer coach Dennis Currier continues his journal to keep Flyer alumni updated about the program they helped build.

2009 Season
Alumni Blog #4 - Oct. 29, 2009

It has been tougher to keep up with the blogs this year so I apologize for that. We have spent every minute on preparing for the upcoming games and 2010 recruiting due to all of our losses (11 seniors) after this season.

We finished the non-conference schedule by beating SIU-E 3-0 and Canisius 2-1 on the road. We played one of our best games of the year against SIU-E who had come into the match only allowing 3 goals against all season. The game against Canisius was played in very poor weather and we had to work very hard in the last 20 minutes to come from behind and win the match. It put our non-conference record at 5-3-1, just short of our overall goal. However, there is nothing tougher than digging yourself out of a hole when you begin the season at 0-3-1 so I was satisfied to win five straight matches.

Our conference started off with Rhode Island and UMASS with both teams coming off great seasons in 2008. Rhode Island was our first opponent in last year's A-10 Tournament Championship. The game was played in a down pour of rain and our boy's responded very well with two first half goals. We did not let up the second half either and were able to put the game out of reach with two more goals. It was a great way to get started.

On Sunday, we faced UMass who we played in the A-10 Tournament Championship last year in which we captured the title with a 1-0 victory over them. It was yet another exciting match and UMass was a tough team to break down defensively. With few chances on either side of the ball, it was obvious the game would go into overtime. Nearing the end of the second overtime, Alex Torda made a very good play on the left side and broke pressure. He unleashed a quick left footed shot that surprised their keeper and the ball found its way through his hands and into the back of the net. It was a great feeling and with the win, we were on top of the tables.

When we got to St. Bonaventure the next weekend, we woke up to about 5 inches of snow and the match had to be cancelled so we headed off to Pittsburgh to face Duquesne. It felt like we had been on the road for quite a long time with the cancellation and all the travel so you could tell the boy's were ready to take the field. It was great getting back to the field we captured last year's title as well. In the first 20 minutes, we had Duquesne down 2-0. In the second half, they received a very soft penalty kick but Picard came up big and saved the shot and sealed the win.

This past weekend, we headed to Richmond and George Washington riding an eight-game win streak. On Friday, we faced Richmond on a windy night. The first half we had the wind and dominated play but did not do well to finish. In the second half, the game turned to Richmond's favor and they kept us under pressure. We were hoping to get the game into overtime but under a minute left in the game, they put a ball through that found their forward in front of our net and he was able to deflect it in for the win. On Sunday, you could tell the boy's were disappointed and did not want that feeling again that they experienced Friday night. We came out flying against GW and were able to take the early lead. Unfortunately though, we allowed them to stay in the match as we could not convert the second goal and one of the rare times they broke pressure, they were able to tie it up. Our boy's reacted quickly though and came right back and scored the winning goal.

The big weekend is here now. This is the weekend that can determine some of the results of the A-10 Tournament qualifiers. It is a weekend for us that can define whether we are a good team or a great team. Charlotte comes in as one of the Top 10 teams in the nation and Saint Louis is a perennial powerhouse. Nerves and excitement are on an extreme high. It is a great opportunity for our team and there would be nothing better than getting two wins on senior weekend. This class of seniors is a special group that will never be forgotten.

Go Flyers!

Alumni Blog #3 - Sept. 29, 2009

Sorry for the delay in the blog. We have been very busy fixing defensive problems. We headed off to Denver to play two away games. Denver won the MPSF last year and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Our first half against Denver was spectacular and Isaac Kissi scored a terrific goal to take the lead. In the second half, we came out flat and allowed them to tie the game up. With 20 minutes to go, a Denver player two footed Kissi from behind. In a very strange occurrence, the referee issued Kissi a yellow card and then a red card. First off, the call should have gone against the Denver player. Second off, Kissi had no prior yellow cards so I assume the referee thought he had one yellow. In any case, we had to play a man short the rest of the game and in overtime. Denver eventually would capitalize in OT to win the game; very tough match to lose. The red card incident is still being reviewed by the national office but the result will not change so we must move on.

We did not react very well to the emotional loss on Sunday against Air Force and they really took it to us. Everyone on the team played poorly and we came out of Colorado with two losses and lacking any confidence that we gained from the draw against Oakland. We knew the first part of the season we would face difficult competition (2 NCAA Tournament Teams- Denver/Oakland and a Big East team favored to earn an NCAA Tournament bid in 2009- Cincinnati). However, we also felt we would be able to get a better start.

It was refreshing to come back to Dayton and play at home and we had a very exciting match against Bowling Green and finally got a 4-3 victory after we started to exchange goals. Defensively, we still had several issues but our offense was relentless. On Sunday, we faced in-city rivals Wright State. We knew the game would be competitive since there are so many bragging rights involved. WSU played a low pressure system against us for the second straight year making it difficult to penetrate in the early going but we had the majority of possession. We finally got the goal we needed and then the rain started to pick up in the second half. After several near misses to put the game away, WSU tied the match up on a corner kick. This changed the scope of the game as it became a back and forth game with more space to work with. It was going to come down to will then. In overtime, we started to press forward and received an indirect kick outside the 18. Sonny Renner confidently accepted the kick and then he hit a laser into the upper 90 to win the match. It is always a good feeling to win in overtime. Even with the win though, we felt we still had not played consistently over 90 minutes.

Leading up to the Friday match against SIUE, we spent a great deal of time working with our block of 8 and our recovery positions on the defensive transition side of the ball. We set several goals prior to the game as well with our main emphasis on earning a shut-out. Offensively, we were ambitious as well asking the team to score three goals against a team that had only allowed three goals all season. Even with a late start time and poor weather, we came out to a wonderful crowd at Baujan and you could certainly feel the energy. We took control of the match from the start of the whistle. We controlled the aerial battles and won the majority of the 50/50 challenges throughout the first half. SIUE maintains possession very well but our block of 8 did very well once they attempted to penetrate forward. Upon winning the ball, we were very sharp on the transition getting the ball wide and then across the field. Going into halftime at 1-0, we emphasized to the team that it was critical to remain consistent, preserve the shutout and score early in the 2nd half to put the game away. The team responded and we found ourselves up 2-0 early in the second half and our confidence continued to increase. We found the third goal with about 15 minutes to play and then all focus shifted to getting the shutout. When the final whistle blew, we had accomplished every goal we set for the game. By far, it was our best performance of the season.

Although I am not convinced that we are fully there, this is a good step in the right direction. This game showed everyone what we are capable of. We must now meet that consistency and balance in the rest of our games. We finish off our non-conference schedule this week against Alabama A&M and Canisius. A&M has tremendous individual talent and Canisius is always tough to play away especially on a Sunday afternoon which we have not proven to be at our best. It is critical we find ways to win both of these games so we can enter conference play with a respectable 5-3-1 record.

It was great seeing Ian Mulligan and Brennan Randquist out in Denver. Both were able to make the Denver game.

Go Flyers!

Alumni Blog #2 - Sept. 4, 2009

Well, we certainly did not want to start off the season with a loss but UC deserved the match. We talked about the target on our backs all pre-season but sometimes that is not enough. I believe it is clear now that teams will come here with much more intensity. UC did just that. They controlled the aerial battles all game which I felt was the biggest difference. We did not do well on second balls either. Offensively, I felt we had a very strong performance but you can only expect so much when you are chasing the game the entire match.

Jeff Popella and Isaac Kissi really gave us a spark offensively. The UC keeper came up huge for them to preserve either the one- or two-goal lead they maintained. We rang the post at least three times in the match so I was content that we were creating chances and that was one area of concern in the pre-season matches.

Defense was our biggest issue. However, our defense has been the backbone of our team the past three years and I am confident they will regain their form soon enough. Our shaping was solid but individual mistakes really let us down. I am also a big believer in creating your own luck and UC did a great job keeping our back four under constant pressure whether it was in the run of play, transitional play and even through distribution from their goalkeeper. They deserved the match.

We have had three days to regroup. Losses have always been tough to handle for me especially in front of such a great crowd. I have to keep telling myself that our start last year was nothing of significance and there will be some critical games in front of us that could change the scope of our season. Last year, it was the Coastal Carolina game on the road. It was a critical win that sparked the team. As my father always says, it is not how you start, it is how you finish.

Our toughest stretch is now. We head to Oakland to play a 2008 NCAA Tournament team, then off to Colorado to play another NCAA Tournament team (Denver) and then play Air Force away. All three opponents will offer plenty of adversity for us and we will be looking for the team to respond.

Great news for Chris Rolfe - he earned his opportunity in Europe with Aalborg! Congrats to him for this big accomplishment!

Go Flyers!