Men's Sectional Previews: Northeast

By D3soccer.com contributor

Third Round - Saturday

Quarterfinals - Sunday

Sectional Final, 1:00 pm ET

How they reached the Sweet 16

2017 Statistical Overview

Messiah Season Review

Despite always lofty expectations and an undefeated (19-0-3) regular season, Messiah saw their 2016 campaign come to a close at the hands of eventual national runner-up Calvin in the third round of the NCAA tournament—an arguably premature exit for what is one of the most storied programs in Division III men’s soccer. But the ten-time national champions return to the Sweet 16 in 2017 as the favorites in the Northeast Sectional after another dominant season. Boasting one of the top defensive units in the country (with a 0.45 goals against average, good for 7th in the nation) and a deep, versatile roster, Messiah lost just one game in the 2017 regular season (away to Haverford) and won 17 total games, including a streak of 16 consecutive victories comprised of wins over Montclair State, Dickinson, Rowan, Johns Hopkins and Lycoming. A slip-up in the MAC Commonwealth Tournament saw Messiah fall to Lycoming in the final, but an at-large Pool C berth was never really in doubt as the committee rewarded the Falcons with a bid to their 28th NCAA tournament.

This past weekend, Messiah made the trek up to Buffalo, N.Y., to take on Castleton in the first round of the tournament. Despite the best efforts of Spartans’ goalkeeper Aaron Parker, who made 13 saves in the game, the Falcons prevailed by a score of 1-0—the program’s sixteenth 1-0 win in the NCAA Tournament. On Sunday, Messiah earned the same result against a strong Hobart side, though the game was a much less one-sided. After a scoreless eighty-nine minutes of wild, back-and-forth soccer (in which the two teams largely matched each other in terms of intensity and quality of play), junior Samuel Ruiz Plaza picked up a missed clearance at the top of the 18 and smacked a one-timed strike into the back of the net, giving Messiah the lead with just 40 seconds remaining. A last-second effort by Hobart’s Hunter Critchlow was saved by junior goalkeeper Connor Bell, ending an instant classic and cementing Messiah’s spot in the third round.

Stevens Season Review

After failing to qualify for the NCAA tournament in 2016 and ending a streak of 13 consecutive appearances that stretched all the way back to 2003, the Stevens Institute of Technology entered this season with aspirations to reclaim the Empire 8 title. A successful 2017 campaign saw the Ducks do just that, as they rattled off 11 wins (including an impressive victory at Franklin and Marshall in October) en route to a conference championship. Analyzing Steven’s schedule reveals an up-and-down year—their longest winning streak of the regular season was just three games—but what is clear is that second-year head coach Dale Jordan prioritized bolstering the Duck’s strength of schedule in 2017. Stevens made trips to play Haverford, Franklin and Marshall, and Rutgers-Newark while hosting Oneonta State, Vassar, and Springfield College.

Jordan’s commitment to playing top competition throughout the regular season has paid dividends so far for the Ducks, as they now ride a four-game winning streak into their first Sweet 16 since 2012. Despite being slightly outshot by NESCAC foe Middlebury in what was a very chippy match (the teams combined for 32 fouls), freshman Kevin Brito converted a penalty kick in the 89th minute to secure the win for Stevens. The following day, Stevens overcame a one-goal deficit in the second half against Cortland State to prevail, 2-1, and book their ticket to Pennsylvania for a matchup against Messiah.

Rochester Season Review

After falling in the first round of last year’s NCAA tournament to Eastern, 2-0, the University of Rochester finished the 2017 campaign at 11-3-3, good for third-place in the highly competitive UAA. The Yellowjackets started strong, jumping out to a 3-0-3 record through the first quarter of the season before suffering their first setback of the year to Buffalo State (1-0). Rochester then picked up four consecutive wins before falling to the University of Chicago at home by a score of 4-1. But a strong defense (0.80 goals against average) and timely goals from senior Geoffrey Rouin helped Rochester pick up several key wins down the stretch, including a 1-0 win at home against Brandeis. Ultimately, a 7-2-1 record in their final ten games was enough to cement an at-large bid.

Rochester drew NESCAC upstart Connecticut College in their first round game, and it took some late game dramatics for the Yellowjackets to rally from a one-goal deficit to beat the Camels in overtime, 2-1. A great individual effort from sophomore Christian Baltier (who dribbled around several Camel defenders along the endline) helped to setup fellow sophomore Josh Cooley for the finish, advancing Rochester to the second round against sixth-ranked Oneonta Sate. With 6:06 left in regulation and the score tied at 1-1, a free kick for Rochester was cleared by the Oneonta defense, but the ensuing second-effort cross was headed in by senior Alex Di Perna. Minutes later, a Rochester defender was whistled for a handball inside the box, but Oneonta’s Corey Santangelo was stuffed by Redd Grown, who somehow sprawled to his right to deflect the penalty kick into the post. A Yellowjacket defender cleared the ball downfield, sealing the upset and earning Rochester a place in the Sweet 16.

Amherst Season Review

For a team that won the 2015 National Championship and has made eight consecutive Sweet 16 appearances, Amherst has uncharacteristically flown under the radar for much of this season. The usually dominant Mammoths (who won last year’s NESCAC title and finished their 2016 season with a record of 17-1-2) sputtered to a 1-1-1 start before righting the ship with a pair of crucial victories over Tufts (1-0) and Rutgers-Newark (2-1) in back-to-back days. Amherst finished the regular season with a record 11-2-2, good for second-place in the NESCAC (behind Tufts), but squandered a 2-0 second-half lead to Hamilton in the first round of the NESCAC tournament, ending their conference title defense far earlier than they would have liked. But Amherst’s strength of schedule (which was vastly improved in comparison to previous seasons) and a few signature wins against Top 25 competition was enough to earn the Mammoth’s an at-large bid.

Hosting a first/second round pod that included three other New England sides (Endicott, Springfield and Salem St.), Amherst squared off on Saturday against MASCAC Conference champion Salem State. With the score knotted at 1-1 and just two minutes left to play in regulation, junior Fikayo Ajayi scored his second goal of the day, curling one into the net directly off of a corner kick. Ajayi’s late strike was enough to seal it for the Mammoths, who played a man-up for most of the second half after Salem State’s senior captain Alex Carvajal was sent off in the 54th minute. Amherst prevailed in another nail-biter on Sunday, this time advancing 2-0 on penalty kicks following a 1-1 tie with Springfield College. Senior goalkeeper Lee Owen came off the bench for the Mammoths during the shootout and came up with a huge save to help propel Amherst back into the Sweet 16.

Head Coaches

Seniors' 4-year Record (through Nov. 13)

Players to Watch

Messiah: #16 F Kirby Robbins (Sr.) – 13g, 6a | #5 F Colby Thomas (Sr.) – 8g, 9a | #6 M Samuel Ruiz Plaza (Jr.) – 3g, 1a | #4 D Shay Quintin (So.) | #15 D Dakota Rosenberg (Sr.)

Stevens: #10 F Daniel Aversano (Jr.) – 5g, 1a | #21 M Andrew Masur (Jr.) – 3g, 5a | #17 M Kevin Brito (Fy.) – 3g, 4a | #23 D Patrick Boylan (Sr.) | #22 D Tommy Dorsay (Sr.)

Rochester: #21 F Geoffrey Rouin (Sr.) – 12g, 2a | #22 M Alex Di Perna (Sr.) – 5g, 5a | #4 M Bryce Ikeda (Jr.) – 5g, 3a | #32 M Zach Lawlor (So.) | #5 D Lucas Loecher (Jr.)

Amherst: #6 M Fikayo Ajayi (Jr.) – 5g, 1a | #16 F Sebastian Derby (Fy.) – 5a, 2a | #9 F Weller Hlinomaz (Sr.) – 4g, 2a | #27 D Cutler Coleman (So.) – 3g, 1a

Tournament Re-Matches

None of these teams have met during the regular season or in the NCAA tournament during the previous five years, so no encounters that would have even the slightest bearing on this weekend's games. However, it is interesting to note that this sectional contains three of the four teams that made up the 2008 Final Four: Messiah, Stevens and Amherst (and the Falcons had to get by Rochester in the second round that year). After a pair of comfortable semfinal wins including Stevens' 4-1 dispatching of Amherst, the 1-1 deadlocked double-overtime final between Messiah and Stevens was decided via a penalty kick shootout, that last time the men's final has gone to a shootout. Despite Stevens boasting an All-American goalkeeper, it was Messiah's back-up 'keeper coming off the bench for the shootout who stole the show with three saves in three kicks to help Messiah to its sixth national title in Coach Dave Brandt's final game guiding the Falcons.

Other tournament matches involving these teams includes an undefeated Stevens beating visiting Rochester 5-2 in the 2006 second round, Stevens edging host Amherst 2-1 in the 2011 Sweet 16, and three Messiah wins over Rochester in consecutive years: a 6-0 Sweet 16 romp at Messiah in 2007, a tight 1-0 second round victory in Rochester the following year en route to the aforementioned Final Four, and a 2-1 Elite 8 escape back at Messiah in 2009.

Why they will advance to the Final Four

Messiah: No program is more experienced in November than Messiah, and the Falcons are poised to reach their first Final Four since 2013 after another dominant season. Steven’s defense holds Messiah at bay for a half, but the Falcons offense explodes for three goals in the final thirty minutes to setup a meeting with either Rochester or Amherst. Both sides boast strong defensive units, but neither has faced an offense with the same level of firepower that is possessed by Messiah. The Falcons fly to Greensboro and back into the Final Four

Stevens: Consistency pays off, and Stevens has consistently been in the mix come November for 13 of the past 14 years. Coach Dale Jordan relishes the role of the underdog—Stevens has already ended the storied career of Middlebury head coach David Saward in the first round—and the Ducks will come out flying on Saturday with nothing to lose. Stevens scores early and holds off Messiah for eighty-plus minutes to break the Falcons’ hearts and book a date with Amherst or Rochester in the Elite 8. From there, Steven’s Cinderella story continues as they advance via penalty shootout to the Final Four.

Rochester: The Yellowjackets have quietly made great strides to improve upon what was already a solid campaign in 2016 and are ready to break through. A third-place finish in one of the best conferences in the country is no small feat, and their wins in the opening weekend of NCAA play should bolster their belief. Rochester takes down yet another NESCAC foe in Amherst and relies on late game heroics from senior Geoffrey Rouin to buzz their way into the Final Four.

Amherst: Amherst played arguably the toughest schedule of the four teams in the sectional, and enters this weekend battle-tested and ready to make another run at the Final Four. In their four years together at Amherst, this class of seniors has won a NESCAC championship (2016) and a National Championship (2015). Their only “losses” in the NCAA tournament came in penalty kick shootouts, and the Mammoth’s defense is incredibly tough to break down. Amherst overcomes a red-hot Rochester in the third round, as both teams create numerous chances off of long throw-ins before Fikayo Ajayi breaks the deadlock with ten minutes remaining. Amherst then faces off against Messiah in a matchup of two perennial powerhouses, advancing past the Falcons in overtime to book their ticket to Greensboro.

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