Light Blue soccer to compete in Mayor’s Cup XXXV

In a bid to lift the Mayor’s Cup XXXV, Columbia will face instate rivals Hartwick and Syracuse this weekend. The Lions will attempt to avenge last weekend’s pair of defeats to Sacred Heart (2-1) and Boston University (2-0), despite the absence of Light Blue freshman defender David Westlake, who fractured his tibia and fibula in a clash with Lions goalkeeper Alexander Aurrichio.
On a positive note, the Light Blue created a whole host of chances, and will be looking to convert its chances into goals this weekend.
“The score-line was not in our favor, but it was a solid performance in both games,” head coach Kevin Anderson said. “We out-shot our opponents and created plenty of chances. We limited the number of chances they created, which was good as well. But there is plenty of growth still to come from this team.”
Freshmen Henning Sauerbier and David Najem have started their Columbia careers brightly, and will be hoping to improve as they play with the more experienced members of the squad moving forward.
“They’ve come in when needed and done what’s been asked of them, which is what I expect from everyone on this team,” Anderson said. “They’re both good players, and are going to improve over the course of the season.”
Upperclassmen Francois Anderson, Nick Scott, Nick Ayers, and Bayo Adafin have looked menacing going forward, and will be looking to provide the clinical touch that the Lions have lacked. The backline last weekend looked solid for the most part, with senior Hayden Johns, juniors Jesse Vella and Ronnie Shaban, and sophomore Brendan O’Hearn protecting Aurrichio. Junior co-captain Mike Mazzullo pulled the strings in midfield and will be looking to build on a strong showing. The game against Sacred Heart was the first time these four composed the defense in a competitive situation, and their understanding of each other’s positioning is certainly going to improve as the season progresses.
“Better execution of our game plan is going to be vital. And we’re going to take it one game at a time starting with Hartwick,” Anderson said.
The older generation of Columbia fans will have fond memories of the Columbia-Hartwick clash where the Lions downed the Hawks 2-1 in 1983 and beat them in the national Round of 16, when Columbia was ranked No. 4 in the nation. The teams last met in 2005 when the Hawks emerged victorious by a 2-0 score line. Hartwick’s campaign has opened with back-to-back defeats as it was beaten 5-1 by Iona College before going down 3-2 to Cornell thanks to a dramatic three-goal comeback by the Big Red in a span of just under four minutes.
Syracuse’s season has gotten off to a bad start as well. It is also hoping to bounce back from consecutive defeats in its opening pair of games. It was on the receiving end of a resounding 5-1 thrashing by Siena, but produced a spirited display against reigning Atlantic Conference champions Adelphi before eventually going down 1-0 in the second period of overtime. Columbia has not met Syracuse in recent seasons.
The Lions game against Hartwick is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 10 at 7:30 p.m., and they take on Syracuse on Sunday, Sept. 12 at noon.