UMD Soccer Eager to Build off Last Season’s Success
Missed 2022 Playoffs despite winning record
DULUTH, Minn.- The University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs soccer team has returned to the pitch ahead of their August 31 season opener.
Despite finishing with a winning record for the first time since 2017, UMD failed to reach the playoffs. Head Coach Greg Cane believes his team has the tools to make a postseason run this fall, but he also identified where they need to improve to make it happen.
“We need to be better at both ends of the field if we want to get into a playoff situation.” Says Cane, who’s led the Bulldogs since the soccer program’s conception in 1994. “Last year, probably a few too many goals given in important situations, so that needs to be addressed.” Coach Cane also pointed out some of the positives of last year’s team, who finished at 8-7-3 overall. “We did actually have better records than some of the teams that made the playoffs, so yeah, that’s a feel-good thing, and that’s a feel-good thing for our program. But I think that the motivation of doing better last year only will spill into this season.”
Sarah Stange, Lauren Hansen and Jackie Jares have been selected as the Bulldogs’ captains this season. Stange and Hansen are fifth-year seniors and returning captains from 2022 while senior Jares is a new addition to the leadership trio. Each captain expressed eagerness to get back on the practice field with a goal of correcting last year’s shortcomings.
“We finished last year on a sad note, which nobody wanted, so I think we’re all super eager to get back and kind of have redemption from last season.” says Stange.
“We have a young team, so we’re super excited to get them working in.” explained Hansen. “We have a lot of talent, a lot of them can play in a lot of different roles, which will be super helpful for us, and we’re really excited to get them working in.”
“I’ve been basically waiting for this day for the last three weeks, we’ve had a countdown, and we’re all just really excited to be here.” says Jares, who led the Bulldogs with 13 points in 2022. “I think we just, we need to play as a team. We’ve got a young team, we’ve got a lot of heart, and I think that’s going to translate on the field.”
The Bulldogs’ soccer season begins on the road August 31 against Northern Michigan, with their home opener set for September 8 against St. Cloud State.
