Pre-Season scrimmage helps to evaluate men's soccer team

Yesterday morning, the scoreboard on the Powderhouse Ave. side of Kraft Field was turned off. No horns or whistles blared across the greater half of the downhill portion of campus, but still, the game was on.

Wearing blue practice T-shirts, members of the men's soccer team hit the field for their first interscholastic competition of the season. While the result of Monday morning's scrimmage against UMass-Boston had no bearing on the team's overall record, it did help evaluate the team's talent.

The squad currently has a 23-player roster with three goalies. By the season's beginning, that number should be cut down to 18 or 19 players and two goalies.

In this particular scrimmage, Tufts put on a good show in a 6-0 victory. The Jumbos were primarily led by freshman Ben Castellot, who scored three goals, all in the second half. The first came on a header after a free kick from senior Mike Blea. On the second, Castellot set himself up and powered the ball past the opposing goalie. His third goal came after junior Greg Scott slipped through UMass-Boston's defense to feed Castellot for the hat trick.

Castellot is one of four freshmen still on Tufts' roster -- a sign of the depth that the Jumbos possess this season. According to senior Alex Berg, the team was primarily 11 deep last season with just one or two players coming off the bench. This year, Berg says the team can play 18 people comfortably.

Instead of disregarding the plethora of talent on this year's team, head coach Ralph Ferrigno feels he has to find more roles for more players because of the Jumbos' depth.

"In the past, the starters knew they were going to start," Berg said. "Now no one's role is 100 percent guaranteed."

Preseason scrimmages are important in order to get the team together and pick out areas that need work. Associate head coach Andy Nelson says he is looking at individuals as opposed to the team at this juncture.

He believes everyone showed something positive in the scrimmage, and the team displayed improved organization on the field in the second half, when the Jumbos scored four of their six goals.

Ferrigno believes his team worked well together and, like Nelson, believes his team lacked organization at times.

A halftime speech that harped on the fact that the team must play together, combined with the players' adjustments to each other, made for a better second half. Although the line-ups were varied and not necessarily reflective of the starters, members playing together were the main focus of the scrimmage.

While the team did show high signs of promise, it can always improve on its respect for the game and respect for each other en route to building a stronger team.

Ferrigno noted that this year's team is older than many of his past squads. The soccer team boasts nine seniors on its roster. This, combined with young talent makes for high expectations of the coming season.