After reaching the NCAA Tournament and securing the University Athletic Association (UAA) championship in the 2024 season, the Emory University men’s soccer team is looking to defend their title this year.
The team began this season undefeated, achieving a 4-0 season record by winning the Sonny Carter Invitational and defeating North Carolina Wesleyan University (NCWU) 1-0 in the home opener on Sept. 5th.
Emory’s most dominate win against Wisconsin Lutheran College proves the Eagles are headed in the right direction — the Emory soccer team easily defeated the Warriors 6-0 on Sept. 7. Four different players were able to capitalize and find the net within less than seven minutes. Senior midfielder Josh Grand assisted on four of the six goals, setting Emory’s program record for most assists in a single game.
The game against NCWU started with the Eagles maintaining a 10-1 lead in total shots attempted during the first half. The Eagles made several attempts during the first 45 minutes, including a shot attempt from graduate student forward Ignacio Cubeddu in the first five minutes. However, it was Grand’s decisive penalty kick in the 53rd minute of the game that proved to be the only goal of the game.
The Eagles continued their efforts after Grand’s success, with a close attempt at a second goal from first-year midfielder Terence Noh in the 70th minute. With the help of junior goalkeeper Geoffrey Halpern, who blocked NCWU’s attempts through the rest of the game, the team was able to preserve its 1-0 lead.
Sophomore forward Jake Breitegan said Grand’s penalty kick positively shifted the tone of the game, but acknowledged that the team should capitalize on early opportunities to dominate the flow of the game in the future.
“One thing we could work on is putting these teams away early,” Breitegan said. “It would make our lives so much easier if we could just put these teams away, two or three goals [in the] first half, and then we can sit back, take a deep breath and relax in the second half.”
Co-captain and junior midfielder Logan Steren, who was named the first UAA Athlete of the Week by Emory Athletics this season, said that despite the strong start to the season, it is important for the team to stay focused so they can keep improving.
“You basically are working in the off season for eight months, hopefully to be able to play four months,” Steren said. “It's about pushing yourself every single day to try to be the best, not only for yourself but ultimately for the team and the university we represent.”
Graduate student Ignacio Cubeddu dribbles through traffic against Covenant College (Ga.) on Aug. 30.
Head coach Cory Greiner leads the Eagles and has been with the squad since 2013 before being promoted to head coach in 2017. Assisting Greiner are associate head coach Clayton Schmitt, goalkeeper coach Felipe Quintero and assistant coaches Jose Casique and Tyler Sherman. Senior defender Owen Clark said the coaching staff provides “great guidance” on and off the field.
“Our coaching staff is one of the best in the UAA,” Clark said. “These are just great guys, great leaders for us to learn from, on and off the field. They are the type of people where you can talk to them about anything.”
In addition to returning players, new members of the team are making their mark this season. Sternen mentioned that graduate students Danny Moya, Jack Burgess and Cubeddu, who all transferred to Emory this year, have proved to be strong additions this season so far. Although the roster has experienced some changes, Clark said the team’s chemistry remains strong because they have similar goals and outlook for the season.
“It's just a very great group of guys that really bond with each other,” Clark said. “We love what we do, and we all have a very similar mindset and passion that helps the success that we're having on the field.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, the Eagles will play their first UAA match against Brandeis University (Mass.) in early October and a UAA doubleheader where they will face The University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis (Mo.) later in that month.
Beyond conference play, the team has already set its sights on the NCAA tournament and will not settle for less. Despite their strong start to the season, the Eagles know they still have much to work toward and plan to give it their all through the end of the season.
“We know that we still have so much to prove,” Clark said. “That starts with the regular season, then we have the conference, obviously, then UAA, we look to win that, and then go from there into the national championship.”
