On October 5 and 6, the men’s and women’s soccer teams advanced to the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom Championship games with 3-1 wins over Lebanon Valley College and DeSales University, respectively. On October 9th, the men’s soccer team won over DeSales while the women’s team fell to Misericordia University in the MAC Freedom Championship game.
The men’s soccer team was quick to get an advance on Lebanon Valley’s one goal made in the first half, which was scored by senior Emerico Vespucci, sophomore Omar Martinez, and first-year Martin Fields. The first goal was delivered by Fields only 32 minutes in, tying up the game 1-1, until Vespucci landed his kick and doubled the Ducks lead. That score held for the rest of the first half and the majority of the second half until the final 10 minutes when Martinez scored the winning goal. This win advanced the three-time defending MAC Champions to their fourth championship, and it marked the Ducks making it to the conference tournament finals 19 out of 21 seasons.
The championship game was played four days later against DeSales, and the Ducks were quick to play an offensive game. With a goal from seniors Adam Berrocal, who was named MAC Freedom Tournament MVP, and Terry Thompson, the Ducks were able to bring home their fourth straight conference tournament championship. Berrocal scored the first goal in the 12th minute with an assist from junior Ben Goldberg. Only a couple of minutes later, DeSales evened out the score, but graduate student goalkeeper Guillermo Castaneda-Chang was able to keep it at that until Thompson gave the Ducks the lead in the 52nd minute. This 2-1 win made the Ducks conference champions.
The women’s soccer team dominated DeSales with a three-goal second period in the MAC Freedom Semifinals, with goals made by graduate student Elsa Bley and first-years Alina Friz and Sophia Murphy. With only nine shots being attempted in the first half, the Ducks outshot the Bulldogs, and the first half ended with a score of 0-0. Only 35 seconds into the second half, the Bulldogs scored, giving them the advantage. Two minutes later, Bley sent a shot in, tying up the game, but it was not until the 65th minute that Friz scored the second goal. The third goal was scored by Murphy with an assist from senior Olivia Castro, and for the final 20 minutes of the game, junior goalkeeper Kenny Donley was able to keep the ball out of the net. The 3-1 win sent the Ducks to the championship game, which they have successfully done every year since 2015.
The championship game was against Misericordia, where the Ducks fell to the Cougars. Despite attempted shots made by graduate students Gab Aloe and Nicole Angelini, juniors Sarah Wnorowski and Lauren Alley, and first-year Malia Chopra, Friz, Murphy, and Donley, the Ducks were unsuccessful in scoring a goal. The Ducks outshot the Cougars 14-9, but Misericordia was still able to score a goal in the second half, ending the game with a score of 1-0.
The men’s soccer team will be continuing onto the NCAA Tournament where they will be facing Muhlenberg College this Saturday at 1:30 p.m. in Amherst, MA.
