Sometimes, it's more important what a player learns about teammates off the field than on the field.

A preseason trip up north for Western Michigan University's men's soccer team has helped meld nine new players with the returners into a squad which has started off the season on fire.

Like, really on fire.

After dropping the season opener to Butler, WMU has run off five straight victories, four of them clean sheets, which will give the Broncos a lot of momentum heading into Friday's Mid-American Conference opener against defending league champion Northern Illinois, beginning at 5 p.m.

It's Alumni Weekend, too, and former Bronco players and their families will be seeing a team which has outscored its opponents 13-1 in that five-game streak.

It was a tough match against Northern Illinois last year as WMU lost, 3-0.

''In my 10 years here, there haven't been too many games on our home field where we have been played out of the park and last year against NIU we were,'' WMU head coach Chad Wiseman says. ''They were talented, a top 25 team who won the championship and had two players drafted into the MLS.

''I don't think our feelings and thoughts are gone from that game.''

Now, it's a new season, one which started with a loss to Butler and then continued on with victories over Michigan State, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Purdue Fort Wayne and the University of St. Thomas.

''The 5-1 start to the season is super important,'' senior Eric Conerty says. ''In previous years we have had slow starts and it kind-of gets in your head.

''Beating some big-name teams gives us confidence going into the MAC.''

The early success for WMU really all started at Boyne Mountain, according to Wiseman.

''We were at Boyne Mountain for five days and it was an excellent week for us,'' he says. ''We learned a lot about each other, not only on the field, but more importantly, off the field.

''We became closer and tighter. We have a situation where a bunch of guys weren't new to college soccer, but were new to Western Michigan soccer and I think up there helped bridge the gap.

''Those days up there were priceless.''

This is the first time Western Michigan has had a preseason trip like this and Conerty hopes it isn't the last.

''The trip made our group real close,'' he says. ''There are guys I've been playing with here for three years that I'm closer with now because of that trip.

''We did a lot of team-based activities, like paintball, soccer, tennis, team runs, went to the lake and training every morning. We were always together instead of just being together for practice for two hours a day.''

Players like seniors Charlie Sharp, Dylan Sing, Mike Melaragni and Conerty are known quantities for the Broncos, having been on the team for several years and have helped WMU start quickly. Sharp and Sing are tied for the team lead with eight points and Sharp was named the MAC player of the week last week after scoring a goal in the 3-0 win over Purdue Fort Wayne and getting a goal and two assists in the 4-0 win over the University of St. Thomas.

''It was important for us to bring in leaders, too, and in previous years, that's a place where we have struggled,'' Wiseman said. ''There are all different ways to lead, like ones with the captain's armband, those that lead off the field, those who lead by example and those who lead when the whistle blows and who don't where the armband.

''You look at Matt Lockwood who came from Dixie State who is playing right back and he brings a bunch of leadership. Hunter Morse (goaltender from Michigan State) organizes things from the rear so the defense cuts things out before they may get to him. Praise Maduekwe (University of San Diego) is our 12^th man and has two years of eligibility remaining.''

And then there is Jonathan Robinson, who might be the most unlikely player to score a goal, let alone the winning goal. The defender transferred from Marquette, ''and he comes in with a swagger which is welcomed,'' Wiseman says. ''He plays with that every day and the other players feed off that swagger and that's important.''

Robinson, who played two years at Marquette, had only scored one goal in his collegiate career. No. 2 was huge, though…the winner with one second left which beat Wisconsin, 2-1.

''I've coached probably 1,000 games in my career and I can't say I've ever seen anything like that finish,'' Wiseman says.

The mayhem started with about 25 seconds left when Morse booted the ball about 60-70 yards up field and a Wisconsin player knocked the ball out of bounds.

''The funny thing is I'm yelling for a long throw across the field and Matt (Lockwood) throws short to our captain Charlie Sharp and he does a back heel pass to Lockwood,'' the coach says. ''Now we have guys probing the far post, hoping for the ball.''

Lockwood put the ball on his weak foot and delivered the perfect cross into the box. The ball just cleared a Wisconsin player and Robinson knocked in a half-volley for the game-winner.

"JR wasn't really the person I thought would score, but talk about guys who want to seize the moment,'' Wiseman said. ''Those players are ready to perform and JR is definitely one of those guys.''

In fact, Robinson didn't think he would be the player to score the winner, either.

''I never thought the ball was coming to me,'' he says. ''I thought it was going to Dylan (who is 6-feet, 3-inches tall) and not to me (5-feet, 8-inches tall) and Dylan would get the glory, which was fine with me.

''When the ball came in, I was looking to head the ball, but it dropped, so I hit it with my right foot, which is my weak foot, and it went in.''

And Robinson just stood there in disbelief when the ball found the back of the net.

''I didn't know what to do when it went in,'' he says. ''No way it went in. I mean, I was gassed at that point and then the shot goes in.''

Robinson's effort earned him a spot on the College Soccer News National Team of the Week.

Those non-conference wins are nice…but now it starts for real with Northern Illinois.

''Everyone is so close and our team clicked right away up north,'' he says. ''We are focused on winning a championship.''