Fresh off spring break, the Vandal soccer team returned to the practice field and will hit the pitch at 12:30 p.m. Sunday for its second exhibition match of the spring against the Gonzaga Bulldogs on the SprinTurf.
Coach Pete Showler said he expects better weather than the mid-week snow storm that hit Moscow, and a little bit of the same play he saw in Idaho’s 2-0 defeat of Montana two weeks ago.
However, this game will have a bit of a twist — Gonzaga requested three 30-minute intervals instead of the normal two 45-minute halves. A change that Showler said will give him and his staff an extra opportunity for coaching.
“For us that gives us more coaching opportunity, during the two intervals — get some feedback and work on the small things,” he said.
Gonzaga defeated the Vandals during fall competition 3-0 in Spokane, a result Showler said should not add any more motivation for performance than the team already has.
“It’s a chance for them to go out and prove themselves,” he said. “But again the spring has so little bearing on the fall. We beat Gonzaga last spring and didn’t beat them in the fall.”
Idaho continues to experiment with players away from their usual positions as well as with different formations.
For example, against Montana, Idaho had defender Erica Hart up top in an attacking position, which paid off in two goals. Players who saw little playing time last year, such as Christina Boddie, also contributed to the action.
“We’ve got players who will play multiple positions, playing a variety of different formations,” Showler said. “But that’s the beauty of spring, we can try what we want to try.”
Despite the experimentation and increased playing time for players who usually play in reserve roles, the spring will still have little bearing on actual starting positions in the fall, Showler said. But spring is a great opportunity for players to continue to work on minor things and improve, he said.
“We had a chance to break down some film from the Montana game, so it will be interesting to see how they take that meeting and go out and see what we get this weekend,” Showler said.
Still, the spring season provides an in-season type week-to-week game preparation mentality for players.
“It keeps us on our toes, and keeps us ready for training over summer. It’s nice not to have a huge break, it keeps us in shape,” defender Nitalia Zuniga said.
After Gonzaga, the Vandals host Washington State and Central Washington April 1 for a double header that will last from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Idaho will then get two weeks off before it heads north to Coeur d’Alene for a match against North Idaho College.