WSOC : Wheddon wants focus on communication
The Syracuse women’s soccer team could not figure out why it was losing, but head coach Phil Wheddon had an idea – a lack of communication.
He picked two players to listen to the team during practice. After the session they did not have much to report – they simply hadn’t heard anything from teammates.
‘It wasn’t that we weren’t trying to communicate,’ said senior co-captain Sarah VanSickle, ‘we just didn’t realize that we weren’t communicating well.’
Van Sickle recalled that practice as a turning point for the team. Coming off the double overtime tie with Fordam, two weeks ago, followed by a loss to Niagara, Syracuse was determined to make a change. That change came in the form of a more vocal team in the Colgate game last Sunday; the result its second win of the season.
Wheddon attributed the win against the Raiders, Sunday, in part, to this renewed communication. He focused on maintaining this interaction all week in preparation for the start of Big East play tonight at 6 p.m. against St. John’s at the Syracuse Soccer Stadium.
The Orange will need to communicate this weekend when St. John’s (4-1-1) comes to the SU Soccer Stadium Friday and Binghamton (4-1-1) on Sunday.
‘In our previous games we weren’t working together,’ VanSickle said. ‘We were on our own pages. By people talking to each other on all aspects of the field from the forwards to the midfielders to the defense to the goalie, it helped us on defense to be compact and defend as a team. Then once we won that ball, we were talking more and trying to get on offense together, get structured and get a shot off.’
Wheddon noticed this silence on the field and knew a change needed to be made if the team was planning on achieving its long-term goal of reaching the Big East Tournament.
‘It’s something we’ve been working on all the time but it really clicked in practice a few days ago,’ Wheddon said. ‘I asked the players to listen to what was going on the field. Instead of me saying it and me recognizing it, the players recognized and saw it.’
The Orange will now look to build on the win against defensive-minded St. John’s. The Red Storm defense leads the conference in fewest goals allowed, average goals against and shutouts with four of its six games resulting in a 1-0 win.
A top-notch performance from sophomore forward Megan Bellingham, who is tied for the Big East lead in goals scored, will be key.
‘One thing we will focus on is playing off of our forwards,’ Wheddon said. ‘We’ve done a good job of including Megan and Amanda (Arcuri) in the game but when they have the ball, we have to give them support so we have more options. Especially at the wings, St. John’s tends to play a little more narrow. They’re a very well organized and compact team and to beat those kinds of teams sometimes you have to play around them.’
The good news for the Orange is that, while St. John’s possesses a strong defense, its offense is weak. The Red Storm ranks last in shots and goals scored, setting up what should be a close head-to-head match up.
‘St. John’s is one of those teams that is unpredictable,’ Wheddon said. ‘They’re one of those middle teams in the Big East where a game can go either way. They’re not a powerhouse but they’re not to be underestimated.’
Syracuse does not want to forget the importance of communication on the field this weekend. A vocal team may make the difference especially in the St. John’s match up where one goal may be the deciding factor.
‘Obviously a win is good for everyone’s morale,’ Wheddon said. ‘But it is one win in the grand scheme of things. We have to be more focused and more prepared for the Big East. In general those teams are fitter, stronger and faster so we’ll have to execute our game plan make faster decisions on the field and be quicker and support each other.’
