Traveling internationally and gaining chemistry as a team, varsity soccer hopes this experience can transfer to an Inter-Ac title.

On August 19th, Malvern’s varsity soccer team set off for a nine day trip to Italy, playing teams from both Italy and Switzerland.

The team stayed in Como, located in northern Italy, near the southern border of Switzerland. The city of Como sits on the southern tip of Lake Como.

Malvern’s game schedule began against a team from Switzerland. After 90 minutes, the Friars came away with a sizable win, 6-0.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I really got to bond with the boys. Whether it was giving pep talks at the games, or interacting on the bus and at meals, it was a great experience.”

-Coach Andrew Kummerer[/perfectpullquote]

Although Malvern came away with a dominant win in the first game, captain Jake Hodlofski and coach Andrew Kummerer both described the games as “[getting] progressively more difficult as the trip went on.”

The second game on Malvern’s schedule was against a solid club team from Italy. The final score was a 1-1 draw, but Hodlofski says this game was his favorite to play in. “We were down the whole game and kept fighting until we tied it, it was awesome,” he said.

Hodlofski is the goalie and one of two captains for the varsity squad. He was named Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week for the second week in September.  Kummerer said that Hodlofski is vital to the success of the team.

“Jake is the vocal anchor of our strong defense this year,” Kummerer said.

The third and final game that Malvern played was against another strong Italian club team, in which the Friars ended up being defeated 4-2.

Since the trip took place during the team’s preseason, Kummerer said the adjustments came to the team as they played.

“I thought the progression as a team was very good,” he said. “The first couple games, for both us and the teams we played, were just trying to get a feel for positions and strategies.”

Along with having the opportunity to play soccer against amazing European teams, the team was also able to explore the surrounding area of Italy where they were staying.

“We were able to travel a lot to cities like Venice, which we were free to walk around in,” Hodlofski said. “We also took a boat through Lake Como and walked through the town, which was cool.”

The team also visited the professional soccer stadium of Juventus, and they got the chance to attend an actual Inter Milan match.

Looking forward, Malvern soccer hopes that this experience can transfer to success in the Inter-Ac and better chemistry as a team.

“I really got to bond with the boys,” Kummerer said. “Whether it was giving pep talks at the games, or interacting on the bus and at meals, it was a great experience.”

The players also felt that the trip had a beneficial impact on the team.

“The Italy trip will have great impacts for the team. It allowed us to bond into a team of brothers, all wanting to perform and win. For many of us this is the closest team we’ve ever been apart of,” junior Will Reckmeyer said.

Reckmeyer also commented on the team’s goals.

“This year, we want to win the Inter-Ac and States,” he said. “Everyone on the team believes we can do it due to our talent and depth. It’s just a matter of outworking every other team.”