Peay's first season with men's soccer ends with 5-11-2 record

The University of Richmond men's soccer team finished its season 5-11-2, playing all year under the direction of two new coaches.

Head coach Clint Peay and assistant coach Todd Herman were new to the Richmond men's soccer program when the season began.

Before coming to Richmond, Peay was an assistant coach at George Mason University, Davidson College and Georgetown University; Herman also served as an assistant coach at Davidson.

"It was a much more enjoyable season under the new coaches," team captain and senior Fynn Glover said, adding that it had definitely been a transitional season as well.

Peay said this season gave him a chance to instill his philosophies into the team's training, and for the players to understand what was expected of them.

"It's a continual building process," he said.

Not all of the players were thrilled about having new coaches.

"You have to prove yourself again," senior Stephen Chareczko said, comparing it to starting over again as a freshman.

If players had questions, Chareczko said, the coaches would seem very distant and would barely offer any positive or negative criticism.

Senior Malcolm Joseph said class conflicts caused problems for players during the season.

"This year was not as well organized as the other years," Joseph said. "Class conflicts with practice occurred almost every day because the proper class times were not blocked off."

But in comparison with previous seasons, the team as a whole bonded well this year, Chareczko said.

Glover and Peay agreed that their favorite moment of the season was the team's 1-0 win against the University of Dayton.

"Beating Dayton and Xavier [University] in the same week was great," Glover said.

Dayton won every game this season except its game against Richmond, Peay said. The game proved that when the Spiders came prepared to play and put in a good effort, anything was possible, he said.

Chareczko and Joseph said their favorite moment had been when the team took first place at the Duquesne Invitational.

"It's the first time Richmond has brought back a trophy in a long time," Chareczko said.

But along with the season's great moments, most agreed that the worst moment was the team's 7-0 loss to The College of William & Mary.

"We had been playing well and we kind of let it get to our heads," Chareczko said, adding that the team had even been fighting on the field.

Glover agreed and said that William & Mary had been the lowlight of the season.

"Nobody came to play," he said. "Nobody came to win."

Peay said his goal was to have Richmond be one of the top six teams in the A-10 Conference.

Glover said the team had to change its mindset from a culture of playing to a culture of winning.

The program, Chareczko said, was not where it should be, even with the new coaches.

"I don't want the younger players to lose hope or feel intimidated," he said.

Peay said he was proud of how the team played this season, but that he wanted it to continue to improve.

Contact staff reporter Ryan Clark at ryan.clark@richmond.edu