Men's Soccer NAC Semifinal Preview; Thomas vs. Maine Maritime
Waterville, ME- #1 Thomas College (13-2-2 overall, 8-0-1 NAC) will host #4 Maine Maritime Academy (10-7 overall, 7-3 NAC) in the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) men's soccer semifinal at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, October 31, at The Black Field on the campus of Thomas College.
How they got here:
Last Saturday In the NAC quarterfinal, Thomas defeated #8 Green Mountain College 4-0 in the NAC quarterfinals. The Terriers tallied two goals in each half, with all four goals coming from a different player. Kenny Cano (Lowell, Mass.) and Dakota Duplissie (Hampden, Maine) netted the Terriers goals in the first half, while Khamisi Lightbourne (Sandy's, Bermuda) and Zachary Ward (Wakefield, R.I.) finished off the scoring in the second. Thomas outshot Green Mountain 20-7 in the matchup.
In their opening round playoff matchup, Maine Maritime Academy ended Castleton State's season with a 2-1 victory in Castine. The Mariners were led by junior forward, Nicholas George (Bangor, Maine), who recorded a goal and an assist in the NAC quarterfinal game. George scored the first goal of the game at 13:56, and found Abdullah Alkhayyat (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia) for the final goal at 58:32. Castleton outshot Maine Maritime 20-13, but couldn't take advantage of the opportunities.
The last time they met:
Last month, Thomas held on for a 1-0 win over Maine Maritime on October 17 in Waterville. Khamisi Lightbourne found the back of the net for the lone goal of the game in the 34th minute. The Terriers and Mariners had their chances offensively, each tallying shots in the double digits.
What they have done lately?
In their last six conference matchups, Thomas has never trailed. During that span, they only let up a total of three goals. The Terriers have scored two or more goals in all but one of those games. Interestingly, Maine Maritime was the only team to hold Thomas to one goal.
Maine Maritime has won seven of their last ten games dating back to September 29th, with five of those victories coming against conference opponents. Over that stretch, they let up a total of seven goals, and only once have allowed more than one goal.
Historically speaking:
Dating back to 2008, Thomas is 4-1-1 against Maine Maritime Academy. The Terriers have outscored the Mariners 10-4 in those contests. The last time Thomas lost to the Mariners was in last year's NAC quarterfinal matchup, in which Maine Maritime defeated Thomas 1-0 in double overtime.
Coaches Corner:
Head Coach Christopher Parsons, now in his second season at Thomas, has guided the Terriers to the postseason in both of his first two seasons. Last week's win over Green Mountain College gave Parsons his first playoff victory as the Terriers head coach. Prior to taking over at Thomas, Parsons spent three seasons as the head coach at the University of Maine at Farmington.
Head Coach Travers Evans is in his sixth season at the helm for the Mariners. Evans has led the Mariners to the NAC playoffs in each of the last three seasons. Prior to his arrival, Maine Maritime had only 2 winning seasons in the decade. Before he took over at Maine Maritime Academy, Evans spent 11 seasons as the Head Coach for the University of Maine men's soccer team.
Who to watch:
For Thomas, Michael Hand (Essex, England, UK) finished the regular season leading the team in goals and points, with 10 and 21 respectively, good for top 5 in the NAC in both categories, but has been out as of late with a groin injury, and it is yet to be determined if he will see time. Freshman Joshua Phelps(Maroochydor, Australia) has had a great rookie season for the Terriers, notching four goals, five assists, and 13 points. Phelps five assists are second on the team behind Dakota Duplissie, who has six on the year.
Thomas goalkeeper Mikkail Crockwell (St. David's, Bermuda) has been impressive all year. He leads the NAC with a .886 save percentage and is second in the conference with a .65 goals against average. Crockwell has only given up 10 goals on the year, which is also second in the NAC. Last game, his dominance continued. He made three saves and blanked Green Mountain College in the Terriers quarterfinal matchup.
For Maine Maritime Academy, Junior Nicholas George has ten goals, five assists, and 25 points on the year. He leads the team in all three categories. His 25 points are second in the NAC, and his 10 goals are tied for third in the conference. Abdullah Alkhayyat has also been a major contributor for the Mariners, who is second to George in every category. On the season, he has six goals, four assists, and 16 points.
