The UConn Huskies men's soccer team is an intercollegiate

varsity sports In most English-speaking countries, varsity is an abbreviation of the word ''university''. In the United States and Canada, the term is mostly used in relation to sports teams. Varsity in the United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, varsity team ...

team of the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from H ...

. The team is a member of the

Big East Conference The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...

of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA).

History

Connecticut soccer existed prior to 1969, but was not considered a major sport and did not even have a real stadium. However, in 1969,

Joe Morrone Joseph John Morrone, Jr (October 20, 1935 – September 16, 2015) was an American head men's collegiate soccer coach. He is the father of former soccer midfielder Joseph "Joe" M. Morrone He coached soccer at the University of Connecticut from ...

was hired as head coach, and made significant changes that would make the Huskies a premiere program. He started by building Connecticut Soccer Stadium, which now bears his name as Joseph J. Morrone Stadium. Eventually, in Morrone's words, the team became "the Notre Dame of college soccer". Morrone would ultimately coach the team until he retired in 1994. In 1981, the Huskies won their first NCAA-sanctioned College Cup, defeating Alabama A&M 2–1 in overtime at Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California. The Huskies also won a title in 1948, although that was before the NCAA. The Huskies, under coach Ray Reid, would win their second title in 2000, beating Creighton 2–0 in

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

. However, in the latter part of the 2000s decade, the Huskies struggled in the NCAA Tournament, losing their openers on penalty kicks in both 2009 and 2010. The Huskies would advance to the 2011 Quarterfinals, but PKs would once again prove to be their undoing, losing to

at home in a shootout. UConn's student section is known as the Goal Patrol, and , it is the largest in America with 540 members. The Goal Patrol is known for being very rowdy, and has made Morrone Stadium one of the toughest places to play. In 2011, College Soccer News ranked the rivalry between UConn and St. John's as the sixth best college soccer rivalry in America.College Soccer News Lists St. John's - UConn rivalry as sixth best
RedStormSports.com, May 10, 2011, retrieved September 4, 2011 Two Uconn players have been selected first overall by the MLS SuperDraft in consecutive years,

Andre Blake Andre Jason Blake (born 21 November 1990) is a Jamaican professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer and the Jamaica national team. College soccer Blake spent three years playing college ...

in 2014 and MLS Rookie of the Year Award winner

Cyle Larin Cyle Christopher Larin (; born April 17, 1995) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Belgian First Division A team Club Brugge and the Canada national team. After playing college soccer for the UConn Huskies, Lar ...

in 2015. While other players such as

Sergio Campbell Sergio Akeen Campbell (born 16 January 1992) is a Jamaican international footballer who plays as a defender for Stumptown Athletic in the National Independent Soccer Association. Career Youth and club Campbell began his career playing school ...

(2015), Carlos Alvarez (2nd overall 2013),

Andrew Jean-Baptiste Andrew Jean-Baptiste (born 16 June 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Canadian club Valour FC. Born in the United States, he represents the Haiti national team. Club career Early career Jean-Baptiste attended Br ...

Tony Cascio Tony Cascio (born March 28, 1990) is an American soccer player. Career College and Amateur Tony begin his soccer career playing for Hamilton High School in his home town of Chandler, Arizona. Cascio played college soccer at the University o ...

in 2012 and Hermann Trophy winner

O'Brian White O'Brian White (born 14 December 1985, in Ocho Rios) is a Jamaican former footballer who played as a forward. Career Youth and college White grew up in Jamaica before moving to Scarborough, Ontario in 2002 to live with his mother. He began ...

in 2009 have been other recent MLS SuperDraft selections.

Stadium

UConn plays its home games at

Morrone Stadium Morrone Stadium, officially known as Ray Reid Field at Joseph J. Morrone Stadium is the on-campus soccer stadium at University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut. The 5,100-seat stadium was built in 1969. and has undergone many renovations ...

, a 5,100-capacity

soccer-specific stadium Soccer-specific stadium is a term used mainly in the United States and Canada to refer to a sports stadium either purpose-built or fundamentally redesigned for soccer and whose primary function is to host soccer matches, as opposed to a multi- ...

History

Stadium

Head coaches

References

External links