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Head coach Jeremy Fishbein said he placed a sign on his office door that states, “performance equals potential minus interference.”
With the men’s soccer team’s 7-2 season-opening win over Villanova Friday night, the No. 9 Lobos showed they can produce a positive number in that equation. The team, however, did not put a completely perfect game together in Fishbein’s eyes.
His primary concern: that the Lobos surrendered two goals to Villanova. Fishbein said at the weekly coaches’ press conferences Tuesday that the only way to ensure a team does not lose is to prevent an opponent from finding the net.
“That’s a coach talking, but we’ve got to be a real defensive-minded team, have a blue-collar mentality,” he said.
The first Villanova goal came from a miscue made by goalie Michael Lisch, Fishbein said, adding that he spoke with Lisch to make sure the senior learned from the mistake. Fishbein blamed the second Wildcat goal to playing fresh faces once UNM had firm control.
“Regardless of who’s on the field, we have a certain level of accountability we expect,” he said. “It was disappointing to give that one up as well.”
It certainly helps when the offense puts seven goals on the scoreboard, as UNM did against Villanova. The Lobos constantly pressured the Wildcats Friday, finishing with a 21-6 shot margin and taking nine more corner kicks.
UNM had two goals each from junior James Rogers, senior midfielder Michael Calderon and freshman forward Niko Hansen. Calderon added an assist, and his performance garnered a spot on College Soccer News’ National Team of the Week.
“We have a lot of guys who can do work,” Calderon said. “It’s not just one guy. It’s great. I feel we have a lot of guys who can score goals.”
The opener provided the first opportunity for UNM to place its strongest team on the field, Fishbein said, because he mixed lineups during the three preseason exhibition contests.
Considering it was one lopsided game out of 17 in the regular season, the coach said he’s not sure what to take from the Villanova game moving forward.
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The Lobos depart on their first road trip of the season this weekend, taking on Virginia Commonwealth and Georgetown. The Rams dropped out of the national coaches’ poll following a 4-0 loss to UAB.
The Hoyas, who opened the season ranked No. 3 in the nation, fell to No. 11 after a Week 1 split. Georgetown lost to California 2-0 and defeated Stanford 2-0.
The Villanova win moved UNM up two spots in this week’s poll. The Lobos opened the season at No. 11.
“Rankings really don’t mean anything,” Fishbein said. “It’s a popularity poll at this point.”
