Weekend Watch: Golden Opportunity
Opinion
| Arizona
| Arizona State
| Minnesota
by Jac Coyne | MCLA.us
LA CROSSE, Wis. – The Gophers have left the building.
Or at least the state, anyway.
For the first time this season and after eight victories, No. 14 Minnesota is departing the Greater Twin Cities metroplex.
SCHEDULE: FRIDAY | SATURDAY | SUNDAY
The Gophers are traveling to the southwest desert to try their hands against three SLC squads, including a pair of ranked outfits – No. 13 Arizona on Friday night and No. 12 Arizona State on Sunday.
Throw in San Diego State on Saturday and it’ll be a real test and an opportunity for the rest of the country to see one of the higher-scoring teams out there.
“It's been the same conversation all year,” said Minnesota coach Peter Gosen about the Gophers ability to put points on the board. “Stay the course. We do our jobs, and the outcomes we want will come.”
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Some may note that half of Minnesota’s victories have come against Division II teams, but astute MCLA observers would understand that those D-IIs are from the grueling UMLC, so wins over St. Thomas, Duluth and North Dakota State hold up as quality victories.
Despite the power of UMLC-II, this weekend will be a step up. Dominican was ranked when the Gophers hung 16 on them, but the Wildcats and Sun Devils will be content to get into a shootout.
“The common factor [with the opponents] is fast pace and they push transition,” Gosen said. “It'll be a lot of fun.”
Gosen is confident heading into the weekend because of numerous factors that are all quite popular with coaches.
He has depth at every position. Minnesota can run out three FOGOs who can grab possessions, including sophomore Jacob Hageman, who is running at a 63.3 percent.
The Gophers also have big, strong athletes that can create matchup problems all over the field. Senior middie Ian Obert, who has 13 goals and 14 assists, runs at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds while senior defender Alex Napgezek runs at the same height and 20 pounds heavier.
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“This group is athletic and has the size to back up the skill we have,” Gosen said. “To be successful at Minnesota, you need to be willing to work, do the little things right and know we want to push people around. Blue collar mentality is big to us.”
The bar has been set high in the Cities. A UMLC title and a bid to nationals is most certainly the expectation.
They’ll need to prove they can run with the other contenders this weekend, however.
“I think we have a unique group and we have a lot of guys that want to make this year special,” Gosen said. “Across the state, there is a lot of buzz around our squad and now we need to live up to the hype.”
GAMES I’M FOLLOWING
Northwest Nazarene at Utah State, 6 p.m. – Friday
The Nighthawks have proven they can score against some of the PNCLL squads, but now they’ll have to show they can do it against one of the most rugged defensive teams that has played the division’s best. If the Aggies give up double-digit goals, they lose, so NNU has its target.
Utah Valley at Colorado, 12 p.m. – Saturday
One of these teams is going to be 0-2 after this weekend and in serious trouble to make the RMLC tourney, never mind nationals. Gotta let it all hang out.
Boston College at Connecticut, 1 p.m. – Saturday
After traveling to Georgia, Texas and California, the trip to Storrs will be a hop, skip and a jump for the Eagles. Boston College can’t afford to give away any of its strength of schedule, however.
Auburn at Florida, 3 p.m. – Saturday
The Tigers are looking for the first ranked win of the season. Bagging the Gators in Gainesville would catch a lot of people’s attention.
Concordia-Irvine at USC, 3 p.m. – Saturday
The loss to Cal Poly at the beginning of the season still lingers for USC. If the Trojans down the Eagles, we’ll forget about that really quickly as USC would not only be in the SLC driver’s seat, but likely a Top 5 team.
Brigham Young at Colorado State, 4 p.m. – Saturday
The MCLA’s signature rivalry renews in Fort Collins. The Cougars were given a bit of a scare by Colorado while the Rams had a relatively comfy win against UVU. Can CSU survive the relentless depth that BYU brings?
Utah at Montana State, 7 p.m. – Saturday
The Utes have proven they can run with anyone – even BYU – while Montana State wants to put the RMLC to bed and start prepping for Round Rock. The Bobcats are definitely the favorite, but this one will be closer than you think.
Northeastern at Rhode Island, 2 p.m. – Sunday
Not much on the line in this inter-divisional New England clash, but I’ll get a better feel for how powerful URI is.
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