The Vandal soccer team wrapped up its first spring season under new coach Derek Pittman on April 26, and he is already eagerly awaiting the kickoff of fall camp in August.
Parker Wilson | Argonaut
New Idaho soccer coach Derek Pittman works with his goalies during a spring practice.
“They’ve laid the groundwork,” he said. “They’ve bought in to what we are doing and we hope that propels us into the fall.”
Pittman hopes that the fall camp and non-conference schedule that includes matchups with opponents from the Pac-12, Mountain West and West Coast Conference prepares the team for the soccer program’s inaugural season in the Big Sky Conference.
The Vandals had a taste of Big Sky competition in the spring, as they defeated Montana in a 4-3 thriller on April 19.
The 2014 fall schedule officially will be released during the summer. Right now Idaho is just waiting on a few non-conference games to be finalized, Pittman said.
“We feel like we’ve got some really good road trips in the non-conference that will test us,” Pittman said.
The team already has a summer workout and training regimen in place for the summer, and Pittman thinks many of the players have shown their dedication to improving on the spring season. Many players plan on staying in Moscow over the summer to participate in a voluntary workout program.
The summer will give the young team a chance to work together without direct coaching supervision. With the young leaders already in place, it should give the Vandals an added edge as they will be welcoming eight incoming freshmen in the fall.
“Our goal is to make sure our incoming freshmen are implemented into our team identity,” Pittman said. “They adjust quickly to how we want to play — that’s going to be our main focus in the non-conference schedule.”
Although the spring season concluded a little more than two weeks ago, many of the players have continued to work toward getting better, both in the weight room and on the pitch. Pittman said he hopes the extra work will parlay into fall success.
Joshua Gamez can be reached at [email protected]