BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Coming off its second Patriot League Tournament berth in three years, Lehigh men's soccer kicked off preseason practice this week with a focus on team building. So far, so good for the Mountain Hawks, who have entered camp physically and mentally strong, and focused on the process of improvement.
 
"The most important goal in preseason is to build a sense of team," said Lehigh head coach Dean Koski. "For these freshmen, it's the first time they're interacting with the upperclassmen and we want to make sure they feel very much a part of what we're doing. The second aspect is really trying to identity who are going to be our key players and our starters, what's the best system and formation for us to be successful, and how adaptive the team is to perhaps playing different systems."

Lehigh's senior class is accustomed to winning. As freshmen, they were part of the Mountain Hawks' 2015 Patriot League Championship Team, then returned to the tournament (and earned a quarterfinal home game) last season. Having experienced success before, the Mountain Hawks know the work done all summer sets the stage for the entire season.

 
With Friday being just day three, by all accounts, they have put themselves in a strong position.
 
"The team has come in with a good mentality," said Koski. "Most of them are physically ready from what I've seen. But I think there's already a connectedness that is probably a byproduct of them all coming in three or four days early and getting to know one another. I've been really pleased with how they have responded to what we've asked of them so far; they're in a good place right now."
 
Senior Mark Forrest returns after standing among the nation's leaders in goals (15), assists (8) and points (38) last season to earn All-America honors by the United Soccer Coaches. He stood second nationally in points and third in goals. A member of the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List, as announced on Thursday, Forrest was also named the 2017 Patriot League's Offensive Player of the Year.
 
"For Mark, it's all about team," said Koski. "Mark is a talented player and will find ways to score goals. Great players score goals regardless of the situation. My guess is he'll continue to do that, but I don't want his teammates to step back and say 'just give it to Mark.' We're only as good as the sum of our parts, so we have to make sure everybody is pulling their weight."
 
The Mountain Hawks lost several important seniors from last year's team, but it's a new year and a new opportunity for returning players, along with incoming freshmen, to step up. Lehigh returns six of its top seven scorers from a season ago, along with Will Smith in goal who tallied a 1.26 goals against average and 0.732 save percentage in his first season as starter.
 
In the end, the Mountain Hawks know the end goal is its second Patriot League Championship in four years, but they're not thinking about that right now. If they embrace the process, the results will come.
 
"I wouldn't be in this business if it wasn't about having a championship as the most important thing that we pursue," said Koski. "But everything we do is a process, so we just want to make sure we stay focused on the process of getting better every day and working on building team. If we focus too much on Patriot League, championships, NCAA Tournament, or anything like that, then I think the process gets clouded. If we just stay focused on the process, good things come."
 
Lehigh opens its season at UConn on Friday, Aug. 24 at 7 p.m. before turning home three days later to host Drexel on Monday, Aug. 27 at 7 p.m.

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