On April 16th the Red Dragons will be taking on Div. 1 Binghamton University for a friendly match to get a glimpse of how the team is looking, in preparations for their upcoming season. Although the teams are in different divisions, last season the Red Dragons had an overall 13-1-5 record and the Bearcats had a 9-5-5.
If the Red Dragons step up during this friendly match, there could be high chances of a win. Although, one of Cortland’s top forwards, Simone Neivel, tore her ACL back in the Fall and is out for the Spring season. Without Neivel up top, graduate student Jayden Kelley and Junior Liz Allen, will step up to the plate.
Since Head Coach Heidi Axtell and Associate Head Coach Craig Thomas have been working on a few positive things this off season, the Red Dragons are going to come out very strong. Axtell and Thomas have made fitness become one of their top priorities in the Red Dragon’s practices this off season. While it may be unjoyful for the players, because of all the fitness they are implementing in practice, the team will have a lot of stamina and endurance throughout the match.
Because it is the Spring season, the Red Dragons lineup is not set in stone. While there are players from the Fall season that will be returning in the starting lineup, there will be players Axtell and Thomas will be experimenting with. All players should be getting their reps in in many different positions while the coaches test different systems to potentially use for the Fall.
There are many expectations for the Red Dragons this upcoming season due to how well they performed last season, with the unlucky loss in the SUNYAC Finals against Geneseo. Although this is a friendly match, if the Red Dragons can come out with a win, it is going to put them in a good standing for their 2023 season. Junior defender Isabella Casucci shares her thoughts on how the game is going to pan out.
“I think this is going to be a well-matched game considering Binghamton is a great team and we have really been pushing it this season,” Casucci said. “We have been taking our off season very seriously and working super hard every practice in preparation for our game. We have been doing a lot of fitness and scrimmaging as well as lifting to keep us in shape and in a good position to beat Binghamton.”
They must focus on working up the field using their center midfielders, by finding feet and distributing to the forwards, while also staying calm throughout the entire game, so they do not force passes and turn the ball over. Binghamton is going to be a tough opponent for the Red Dragons, but if they implement all the skills they have been working on in practice, it will be a very exciting and interesting match to watch.