This past Friday night, the Elizabethtown Blue Jays men’s soccer team battled Franklin and Marshall’s Diplomats, currently the number seven team in the nation, at Ira R. Herr field in the annual Smith-Herr Boot Game. It was a hard-fought game; both teams battled until the final whistle blew. Janse Schermerhorn scored the first goal for Franklin and Marshall in the 17th minute, which would be enough to push the Diplomats past the Blue Jays for the victory.

The game proved to be everything it was hyped up to be, as both teams played hard and hustled until the final whistle, with a lot of excitement in between. The Blue Jays had many chances to score, but could not push one by the Diplomats goalie. Both teams put on a show for the fans and there was a lot of excitement down to the very end.

After the game, senior Kyle Fowler, who, despite the loss, still has high hopes for the season. “Moving forward after that game, I feel very confident and excited as to what the rest of the season will bring,” Fowler said. “We have had a rough start to the year with injuries to key guys, but if you have seen our play, you can see that we have depth.”

With conference play right around the corner, the Blue Jays are excited to move forward this season and get their first season in the new Landmark conference under their belt. A lot of positives can be taken away from the Franklin and Marshall game; the team looked strong with a crafty front line and a solid unit in the backfield. The team has a lot to look forward to as the season carries on.

Kyle Fowler also commented on the move to the Landmark conference stating, “I am eager to get conference play started in the Landmark. We always push ourselves so hard in the beginning of the season, facing the top nationally-ranked teams to see where we stand and to show that we can compete with the best of them. This being said, we are always rearing and striving for the first conference game to roll around. By this time, we have seen what we can do and made improvements to mistakes we made in the beginning as a new group. I think we are going to go far this year. I have no doubts about that.”

Overall, it appears the Blue Jays have a lot to be happy about with the way they have competed and battled thus far this year, especially after this thrilling game. Although the Boot was lost, and the Jays will not have an opportunity to reclaim the prize until next year, the positives are undeniable. The Blue Jays had about the same amount of chances as the Diplomats, and both defenses had the backfield locked down very well.

Coach Skip Roderick expressed his high hopes and positive outlook for the team saying, “We hung in there and fought as a team, and I am so proud of that. We had our chances and did not finish, but we showed that we can compete and fight with the number seven team in the country, and we’ve come a long way.”

It is clear that the Blue Jays are ready for the rest of the season and appear confident in their abilities. If they are able to play as well as they are capable of, it could be a great season for them in the Landmark this year.