While the University of Indianapolis men’s soccer team has wrapped up its fall season, Head Coach Gabe Hall said there is still more to come for the team’s development. After making it to the NCAA Tournament and finishing with a 10-5-3 record, according to UIndy Athletics, the team is now focusing on learning how to develop as individuals and as a team, according to Hall.
“The spring’s where we get to develop and grow [and] I think that the fall is very much, how do you find success…,” Hall said. “[In] the spring, we get to talk about how do we develop individuals [and] how do we develop as a team from a team concept.”
According to UIndy Athletics, the team saw a turnaround with a positive stretch of matches that allowed for the team to progress to the NCAA Tournament. Hall said that this does not change the teams goals for the spring season and the team has not lost its view of itself.
“[Past success] never changed our goals and it never changed who we thought we were,” Hall said. “The goal’s the same: how do we develop and how do we move closer to winning a national championship?”
According to UIndy sophomore and defender Pierre Lurot, the bond between the players allows for the team to improve.
Hall said that the team’s main strength is the bond the players have and that it is something that he wants to see in the spring season.
“We’ve got a lot of guys that like each other and like to be around each other…,” Hall said. “The more a team is cohesive and gets along with each other, the better, because they’ll fight for each other.”
While the team’s strengths come from its bonding, Lurot and Hall both said that the team needs to work on being focused on the game for next season.
“We’ve got to be a little bit more practical at times…,” Hall said. “We’ve got to be a little bit more resilient or a little bit tougher when we don’t have the ball winning it back and willing to fight to win it back.”
The team is consistent in practicing out of season and hopes to get better each and every day, according to Lurot.
“I would say sometimes we are not focused on the game,” Lurot said. “We do [need] to try to do better every day.”
According to UIndy Athletics, three players were able to receive All-Midwest Region honors. Hall said he is proud of those players who gained these achievements because this reflects not only the players, but the team as a whole. Lurot also came away with defender of the year in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
“Know [that] those guys that didn’t receive honors and weren’t recognized, those guys that did receive them can’t do it without those [players],” Hall said. “If we don’t have success as a team, we don’t have success as individuals and vice versa.”
For the future of the team, Lurot said it is important for the team to go as far as it can compared to the fall season. He said that the preparation for the spring season includes working both in the gym and on the field. Hall said it is important to look for players who can not only reflect the strength of the team, but also the culture of the team.
“[It is important to] keep growing, keep building and keep looking to bring in guys that fit us as a team and as a culture…,” Hall said. “We’re targeting guys that we think can drive us to that next step. That can help us get closer to winning the national championship.”
