If NIU soccer coach Willy Roy learned anything from his team’s 0-1-1 showing this weekend, it had to be that Midwesterners don’t catch any breaks in the East.

In Roy’s first trip to the East since taking over the head coaching job in 1987, his Huskies had the unamiable task of facing the No. 9 team in the nation, Hartwick College, in the first round of the National Soccer Hall of Fame/Mayor’s Cup XVI-Royal Toyota Classic.

And if that wasn’t enough, the Huskies had to play the University of South Florida in the consolation match—a team that was expected to be in the championship.

“Florida shouldn’t have lost,” Roy said after State University of New York-Oneonta upset USF 1-0 in other first round action. “Technically, they are a much better team.”

With the help of a “no-call” by the referee, that Saturday season-opening contest for the Huskies resulted in a 1-0 Hartwick triumph.

“Overall, I thought the officials did a real nice job,” Roy said. “But, they had one blatant non-call that might’ve changed the game.”

On the play, a Hartwick defender apparently stopped the ball with his hand as the Huskies crept in for a score. The Warrior ceased play, but the referee advised otherwise.

“The referee told the kid to play on,” Roy said. “Which proved to me that something had to have been wrong.”

The Huskies did manage to keep Hartwick off the board in the first half, but with just under 15 minutes into the second, a Warrior snuck underneath the NIU defense for an easy seven-yard blast.

“They’re a good team,” Roy admitted after the setback. “But, we lacked a little on game fitness. There were three or four opportunities when we didn’t get our shots off. But we expect to eliminate those problems with our second match.”

Roy’s Huskies didn’t exceed expectations in the second round match against the University of South Florida, but NIU didn’t let the coach down either.

Against a tough South Florida squad, the Huskies managed a 1-1 overtime tie that salvaged a little pride for the NIU team. The lone NIU tally coming off the foot of a Karsten Roy penalty shot, assisted by a John Lechner run that was cut short by a Warrior.

“We have a long way to go,” Roy said. “But it’s nice to play two highly respected soccer teams and get decent results.”

Once again, if the Huskies could’ve gotten a break on Jay Conrad’s head ball that barely sailed over the top of the goal or Frankie Sparacino’s shot that bounced off the post, the results might’ve been different. But, such is the life of a soccer team.

“Considering it was our first two games of the season,” Roy said, “it was really a good start—not great—but decent.”