BIDDEFORD — Forget that business about “it ain’t broke”, etc.
There are times when fixing what’s already working just fine is the best course of action.
At least Doug Biggs, the UNE women’s soccer coach thinks so.
Tuesday, Biggs applied a series of tweaks to his team’s strategy and the Nor’easters responded with an impressive 8-0 pasting of Regis College in a TCCC clash.
UNE rolled its record to 5-1 (3-0 TCCC), but it was its last previous start, a 3-2 loss to Gordon College, that convinced Biggs that some tinkering was in order.
Not because the Nor’easters were facing the winless (0-5-1, 0-2-0) Pride, but because a rugged string of conference foes, beginning Saturday with Endicott, awaits them.
“We’ve changed our shape,on defense and the attack,” said Biggs, who is in his 19th season at the helm in Biddeford Pool. “It’s a work in progress. It’s not where you (as a player) might want to be, but where it’s better as a team to have you. They can’t run where they feel like running. They have to be a little more disciplined.”
All those adjustments paid off, as junior striker Kristin Meza notched her first career hat trick, with additional scoring contributions coming from five other sources, including her younger sister Monica.
Oh, and the Nor’easters outshot their visitors by a whopping 42-0 margin, making the existance of Regis freshman goalie Ashley Hibbard (16 saves) a living nightmare.
“Defensively,” said Biggs, “we didn’t get to work on (this) a lot. But they’ve been introduced to it. And now it’s simpler.”
UNE scored four times in the first half in a 14-minute span, beginning with Katie Caron’s 25-yard blast in the 25th minute.
In short order, Ali Trafton, Kristin Meza and Laura Blaisdell all rippled the net, indicating that wherever it was Biggs was trying to take them, the Nor’easters were only too willing to go.
“As they start to open this up a little bit,” Biggs said, “I think they’re going to see that greater opportunities are created by this shape. They see it. Now they’ve got to buy into it. And they are.”
— Contact Dan Hickling at dhickling@journaltribune.com.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less