From the Bench... Nov. 7, 2003– Fullerton, Calif.
Coach Al Mistri:
"We have two conference games remaining and, after Wednesday's result
(Cal State Northridge beat UC Santa Barbara, 2-1), it's amazing that we
could finish in first place or in last place.
"I knew going into this season that the league would be extremely
difficult, but it has been more so than I thought. Anyone can truly beat
anyone on a given day.
"We had a good practice Thursday and are optimistic about the future.
We practiced with good spirit.. who would have thought this after our
loss at Irvine (on Oct. 22... 3-0-1 since then). We will give them Saturday
and Sunday off, then practice Monday and Tuesday to make final preparations
for our match at Santa Barbara on Wednesday. At this point, the mental
aspect is more important than the physical, although the time off may
allow some of our guys to heal. Marco (Rodriguez) may be ready Monday
and so might Omar (Bywaters). That would be a tremendous boost and would
help us maintain our positive attitude.
"We had a lot of people in unusual positions vs. Fresno State and
it's a tribute to the team how well we played.
"We are optimistic about the future and buoyed by the situation and
hope to finish off in the best possible way."
