Occidental Finding Early Pitfalls in Soccer

If ever there was an omen that the Occidental College soccer team was going to get off on the wrong foot this season, Tiger Coach Lowell Thomas experienced it two weeks ago.

It was dusk when Thomas, in his third season at Occidental, carried a load of team laundry out of the school’s athletic complex and descended a darkened stairwell on his way to his car.

Thomas reached the bottom of the steps--or so he thought--when he stumbled on the final one and crashed to the pavement in pain, the sound of tearing ankle ligaments echoing off the concrete walls.

Thomas now hobbles the sidelines in a cast, an accessory he’ll be sporting for at least four more weeks.

“My (right) foot is permanently locked into the perfect passing position,” Thomas says, looking on the bright side. “I can pass the ball with great accuracy.”

If only the same could be said for Occidental’s players.

The Tigers entered this week 0-4-1, their only pardon from defeat coming in a 2-2 double-overtime tie with Chapman. Occidental has been outscored 22-4.

“We had hoped to start the season with a big bang, but it hasn’t happened yet,” Thomas said. “I’m not saying the season is going to be over before we even begin, but right now we’re off to the worst start I’ve ever had. We’re all scratching our heads trying to figure out what’s wrong.

“Our practices are going very well, we’re going through the kinds of progression we thought we would, but things are not happening in the game situation. Our defense is incredibly porous and our offense is just beginning to make some attacks with any validity.”

Thomas dismisses the notion that Occidental, with 14 underclassmen on its 23-player roster, is a victim of overscheduling.

“I had attempted to give us some substantial teams to play against to give us a good run going into conference,” Thomas says, “but I hoped we would be able to give them a better ballgame.”

Division III Occidental is playing some difficult competition in preparation for next Wednesday’s match against Caltech--the Tigers’ Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener.

Last weekend, the Tigers traveled to the Rockies where they lost, 8-0, to Colorado College--which is rated 10th in NCAA Division III and fourth in the West Region--and, 5-2, to the Division II University of Southern Colorado.

“The weather was beautiful, the weather was wonderful and the food was excellent,” Thomas says of the road trip. “But let’s just say we stunk up the entire state.”

This week, the Tigers were scheduled to play a very strong Master’s College team on Wednesday before embarking on a trip to Utah this weekend to play Division I Brigham Young and Westminster College, a perennial power in the National Assn. of Intercollegiate Athletics.

“I’m hoping that the experiences we’ve had the last three weeks will give us enough knowledge so that we can seriously compete,” Thomas said of the SCIAC schedule.

Steve Giacoma, a freshman midfielder from Glendale, and Rick Mekemson, a freshman defender from Camarillo, have played well along with senior forward/midfielder Dirk Hogan and senior defender/forward Glen Olsen. Even senior goalkeeper Lewis Tierney has played well, Thomas said.

“The frustration comes from knowing we have good people,” Thomas said. “I know this team can win. The players just have to start believing it.”