Thursday, April 17, 2008

The 2007 Season
There was a noticeable contrast between the first-half of the season Pioneers and the second-half of the season Pioneers in 2007. In their first ten matches of last season the Pioneers notched two wins and four draws that led to a .200 winning percentage. But from mid-June to the finish line, Western Mass lost only three games.

One of those losses came at the hands of the USL-2 Finalist Richmond Kickers. Another went to Crystal Palace Baltimore, who was nearly unbeatable in the second half of 2007. That being said, the Pioneers should harness that second-half-of-2007 momentum and make a solid run at their first playoff appearance since dropping a PK decision in the 2005 USL-2 Championship.

The 2008 Season
The Pioneers return three players who tallied double-digit point totals last season in Omar McFarlane (12), Federico Molinari (11) and their leading scorer Jeff Deren (16). Their biggest loss during the offseason was Kevin McMennamin, who contributed two goals in 500 minutes.

Additions to the roster include two New Hampshire Phantoms standouts from 2007 in USL-2 All-League Second Team defender James Greenslit and forward Neil Krause, who played in 17 matches and tallied one goal and one assist for the Phantoms.

Matt Glaeser, a 6’5” goalkeeper from the University of New Hampshire, will backstop the Pioneers following the departure of rookie goalkeeper Kevin Trapp, who returned to his hometown Charlotte Eagles earlier this year. Glaeser has some big shoes to fill as Trapp led USL-2 with 106 saves and was a three-time USL-2 Team of the Week selection in 2007.

Anchoring the backline will be center All-League defender Jay Willis. He will get help from Callum Bissett who spent last season with the University of Rhode Island. Jhonny Arteaga, who played in 12 games with the USL Premier Development League Albany Admiral’s last season, will help solidify the midfield.

The First Five
Two of the Pioneers first five will be against the Richmond Kickers, which means Western Mass will know early on if they will be a contender in 2008. The other three matches are up in the air. They have a home-and-away series with the first-year Real Maryland Monarchs (April 20th and May 3rd) and in week four the Pioneers get the reborn Pittsburgh Riverhounds at home. How well Western Mass does in that three-game stretch hinges on the rosters of those two untested squads. It will also decide whether or not the Pioneers have a successful beginning to their 2008 season.