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Red Storm Men's Soccer Preview Part One: Forwards And Attack
Forward Jara HabibPublished: July 20, 2006
Queens, N.Y.
The Red Storm men's soccer team enters the 2006 season as the nation's only program to reach 10 consecutive NCAA Tournament Rounds of 16. Under head coach Dr. Dave Masur, St. John's has played in the last 14 straight NCAA Tournaments, won 11 BIG EAST Tournament and regular season titles and been crowned national champions in the 1996 season.
As the team approaches summer workouts and the start of its 2006 exhibition schedule, RedStormSports.com will feature a four-part preview of the upcoming season. The first preview focuses on the Red Storm's group of forwards, with weekly segments focusing on the midfield, defense and goalkeeping to follow.
Previewing The Forwards
The Red Storm attack is once again taking the shape of a balanced and multi-dimensional unit. Combined with several versatile attacking midfielders, the St. John's offense figures to have a number of scoring options as well as the ability to generate scoring opportunities with a top-flight defense.
A core group of forwards is made up of some of the team's best athletes with an array of skills and strengths. Sophomore Jara Habib is athletic, strong and elusive, and sophomore Mike Mingione provides toughness and unpredictability in the attack. Touted freshman Ryan Soroka is a quick and powerful finisher, and junior Jeff Stepan is steady, well rounded and hard-working in his roles as a forward and midfielder.
"We like to think of ourselves as a very mobile team," head coach Dr. Dave Masur said. "We can be defending one minute and attacking the next. Our defense can help propel our attack, we just have to find some consistency up top with our scoring and finishing."
The veteran member of the group of forwards, Stepan has made great strides in the spring and become integrated into the Red Storm's attack with a strong performance during the team's recent trip to Vietnam. The 5-foot-11 Habib has logged minutes in eight career games, and his athleticism and creativity should make him a valuable asset in the attack and off set pieces in the opponent's end.
Newcomers Mingione and Soroka have been working out on campus throughout the winter and spring. Mingione played in 18 games and made 12 starts for UMass a season ago and racked up three goals and three assists for nine points in a solid freshman campaign. Soroka, a two-time high school All-American and a valuable part of the United States U-17 National Team, has shown explosiveness and sharpness as a forward and attacking midfielder.
Newcomers Adam Himeno and Alex Paszek provide 'added punch' to the attack, according to Masur as well as further flexibility in making personnel adjustments based on teams and matchups. Fellow freshman Andrew Foote gives the team depth and a dangerous target on set pieces and corner kicks.
2005 Review Notes
GOLDEN GOAL(S): Since the end of the 2002 season, the Red Storm has scored two goals or more on 23 different occasions. Including a 5-0-1 mark in 2005, St. John's is 21-1-1 in those games, and going back to a 3-2 loss to Ohio State on Oct. 28, 2001, the Red Storm is 31-2-1 in the last 34 games when scoring at least twice. Over the same time frame, St. John's is a perfect 23-0-0 when it scores at least three goals in a game.
SECOND HALF DOMINANCE: St. John's outscored teams by a huge 29-16 margin during the 2005 season, including a 7-6 advantage in the first half. But in the second halves of games, the Red Storm offense really got going, out-shooting opponents 160-105, outscoring them 21-10 and holding a 68-34 advantage in corner kicks over the final 45 minutes of games.
BEATING THE NATION'S BEST: St. John's owned a 4-1-2 overall record against nationally ranked teams last season and played a total of six teams that appeared in Soccer America's final national poll. Four Red Storm opponents – No. 1 Akron, No. 2 Connecticut, No. 4 Duke and No. 6 Maryland – were listed among the nation's top six teams, while three others - No. 18 North Carolina State, No. 19 South Florida and No. 22 San Diego State - were unranked when the teams met.
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