FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University men’s soccer junior standout Anthony Ugorji/Washington, D.C. has been named the Longwood Male Athlete of the Week. The attacker led the Lancers to a 2-0-0 record in a pair of Big South Conference matchups last week. He made the difference in both games, scoring the lone goal in a 1-0 victory at Radford on Oct. 9 less than a minute into play before finding the back of the net in overtime for the 2-1 decision at Gardner-Webb on Oct. 12. Freshman Ben Ferrell assisted on both of Ugorji’s game-winning goals. Ugorji currently leads the team with three goals this season, and is tied for first with Ferrell with six total points.
Question and Answer Session with Anthony Ugorji and Ashley Robbins
AR: Talk about being able to score both game-winning goals last week?
AU: The team was really mentally prepared for those games because it’s conference time. Especially for the Radford game because they are our rivals. Coach stressed how much it would mean for us to win that game and get a result. We made a conscious effort to go out there and give it our all. We got an early goal and then we had to defend for the rest of the game. Both games were a great team effort and we fought to the end.
AR: Have you been working on anything in practice to get better looks at the goal?
AU: The team has been doing a better job of playing our game and creating more chances for the forwards to score.
AR: Talk a little about freshman teammate Ben Ferrell because he set up both your game-winners last week.
AU: He works hard and he’s always looking to get better. Both of my goals came from his assists, which goes to show he’s learning the ropes as a freshman coming in. He has the natural talent, so it was just a matter of time before he got adjusted to the college game and now he’s rolling.
AR: How exciting is it to be unbeaten in conference right now?
AU: it’s a good feeling. It’s something to look at and show that we’ve worked very hard to keep a high standard. That can change, though, so we can’t let it go to our heads. We need to keep applying pressure on other teams to make sure we can get a good spot in the (conference) tournament.
AR: What are your individual and team goals for the rest of the season?
AU: I have a bunch of short-term goals. I want to do whatever I can to help the team win, whether that’s scoring, adding an assist or making runs, just whatever it takes. As a team, I think we have the same common goal. We want to win the Big South Championship and go to the NCAA Tournament. We just have to keep working and can’t look too far ahead. We need to take it game by game.
AR: Who do you consider to be a role model?
AU: My mom. She keeps me going every day. She’s very hard working. I have four other siblings and she worked so hard to raise us. Every time I think of her, it just drives me to push harder.
AR: What is an important piece of advice that you’ve gotten at some point in your career?
AU: Hard work doesn’t go unnoticed. If you’re working hard, but feel like you’re not getting a reward, you’ve got to keep at it and have faith in your work.
AR: What advice would you give to a student aspiring to play Division I?
AU: Stay humble and keep working. You can’t fault hard work. At the end of the day, if you’re playing a sport you love, don’t take anything for granted.
AR: If you could swap places with a teammate for a day, who would it be?
AU: Probably Carlos (Canas). I would like to see what it’s like to be in goal for a little bit. I know it’s a lot of pressure, but just for a day.
AR: Do you have any superstitions before games?
AU: I like to eat something sweet like Sour Patch Kids.
