Men's Soccer Weekly Honors - Nov. 2
Rob Washburn
CAA MEN'S SOCCER WEEKLY REPORT - NOV. 2 (PDF format)
CAA MEN'S SOCCER PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Guillermo Delgado • Delaware
Jr., Forward, Tres Cantos, Spain/Jose Luis Sampedro
Delgado recorded a career-best five points on two goals and an assist to lead Delaware past James Madison, 4-0, last Wednesday. The junior forward recorded the game-winning goal in the 17th minute and then added the team’s final score in the 58th minute. He has a team-high 19 points (8g, 3a) this season and has 80 points over his three-year career. The victory was UD’s first over JMU in Newark since 2009.
CAA MEN'S SOCCER ROOKIE OF THE WEEK:
Francisco Rodrigues da Palma • Drexel
Fr., Forward, Lisbon, Portugal/Escola Secundaria Rainha Dona Amelia
da Palma scored the game-winning goal with 45 seconds left in regulation to lift Drexel past Northeastern, 1-0, last Saturday. The freshman forward found the net from eight yards away off a Bayley Winkel assist to end the Dragons’ eight-match skid. It was da Palma’s second goal of the season and his first game-winning goal.
CAA MEN'S SOCCER ROOKIE OF THE WEEK:
Matthew Jegier • Elon
Fr., Goalkeeper, Charlotte, N.C./Providence
Jegier posted his league-leading eighth shutout as Elon clinched a share of the CAA regular-season title after a 1-0 double-overtime victory over College of Charleston last Saturday. The freshman goalkeeper came up with three saves in the tight match and moved into a tie for fourth on the Phoenix’s single-season shutout list.
Around The League:
FIELD SET FOR CAA MEN’S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP: After a very competitive regular-season race, the six-team field is set for the 2015 CAA Men’s Soccer Championship. Quarterfinal action takes place at 7 p.m. on Saturday, November 7 as #3 Delaware hosts #6 UNCW and #4 College of Charleston entertains #5 James Madison. The winners will advance to the semifinals on Friday, November 13, which will be played at Hofstra Soccer Stadium in Hempstead, N.Y. for the first time. In the first semifinal match at 4:30 p.m., #2 Elon meets the Delaware/UNCW winner, followed by #1 Hofstra against the CofC/JMU winner at 7 p.m. The championship match is set for 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, November 15 and will be televised live by the American Sports Network. The semifinal matches can be seen live on CAA.TV.
CAA TEAMS RANKED IN NATIONAL POLLS: Elon is ranked in a pair of national polls released on Nov. 2. In this week’s College Soccer News Top 30 poll, Elon is ranked #20 and Hofstra is receiving votes. In the Top Drawer Soccer Top 25, the Phoenix are ranked #25. In last week’s NSCAA Top 25, Hofstra was ranked #17 and Elon was ranked #19 while Soccer America ranked Elon at #23 and Hofstra at #24. Both groups will release a new poll on Tuesday.
FOUR CAA PLAYERS NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT: Four CAA players were selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District men’s soccer teams. Delaware senior midfielder Ben Sampson was named to the District 2 team, while the District 3 squad included UNCW senior forward Colin Bonner, James Madison senior defender Daniel Roppert, and UNCW senior forward Nathaniel Goodwin.
SIX CAA TEAMS IN TOP 100 OF NCAA RPI: The CAA has six teams ranked among the top 100 of the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) through games of November 1. Elon leads all CAA teams at #20 and is followed by Hofstra (#48), UNCW (#54), College of Charleston (#83), Delaware (#90) and William & Mary (#91).
THREE CAA TEAMS AMONG TOP SEVEN IN REGION: Three CAA teams were ranked among the top seven in the NSCAA Midwest Region rankings on Oct. 27. Hofstra topped the group of conference squads at #1, followed by Elon at #4 and UNCW at #7. The Midwest Region includes schools from the CAA, Big Ten and Atlantic 10. A new poll will be released on Tuesday afternoon.
CAA TEAMS, PLAYERS AMONG NCAA STAT LEADERS: William & Mary ranks 17th in the nation in assists per game (1.94) and 28th in points per game (5.47), while Elon is 27th in goals per game (1.88) and 20th in shutout percentage (0.47). CofC ranks 29th in save percentage (.808), while Drexel is 9th in saves per game (5.56) and CofC is 16th (5.0). Individually, W&M’s Jackson Eskay ranks 20th in assists per game (0.47) and Delaware’s Guillermo Delgado ranks 12th in game-winning goals (4). Delaware keeper Todd Morton is 9th in save percentage (.846) and 22nd in GAA (0.718). Drexel’s Tyler Afflerback is 15th in saves per game (4.80) and CofC’s Kevin Shields is 20th in saves per game (4.69) and 36th in save percentage (.803).
ELON EARNS SHARE OF CAA REGULAR-SEASON TITLE: Elon earned a share of the CAA regular-season title following a thrilling 1-0 double-overtime victory against College of Charleston last Saturday. Senior defender Nathan Diehl scored the golden goal on a header in the 108th minute. It was the fourth goal of the season for Diehl, while senior James Brace recorded his team-leading fifth assist on the play. Freshman goalkeeper Matthew Jegier posted his league-leading eighth shutout of the season after making three saves. The eight shutouts is tied for fourth on Elon’s all-time list. The Phoenix’s 13 overall victories are tied for the most in school history at the D-I level.
JMU CLAIMS FINAL TOURNAMENT BERTH: James Madison, which captured the 2014 CAA Men’s Soccer Championship as a #6 seed, will have the chance to defend its crown after knocking off first-place Hofstra, 2-0, last Saturday to claim the final spot in the field. Senior forward Eric Schmidt scored the game-winning goal just 6:40 into the match when he posted his third goal of the year off a rebound of Daniel Roppert’s free kick. Junior Connor Coward provided insurance when he scored his team-leading fifth goal of the year in the 23rd minute. Junior goalkeeper Kyle Morton made seven saves to pick up the shutout. The 5th-seeded Dukes visit #4 CofC on Saturday.
BLUE HENS KEEP ROLLING: Delaware ran its unbeaten streak to six last week with convincing victories over James Madison (4-0) and William & Mary (3-1). The Blue Hens defeated JMU in Newark for the first time since 2009 as junior Guillermo Delgado recorded a career-best five points on two goals and an assist. Delgado is now tied for second in career goals (35) and third in points (80) at UD. Ben Sampson and Nick DiRienzo also scored goals vs. JMU. Junior Dani Laguna scored two goals, including the game-winner, as the Hens rallied from an early deficit at W&M. The third-seeded Blue Hens, who made the CAA Tournament for the fifth time in the last six years, face UNCW in quarterfinal action on Saturday.
CARLIN LIFTS COFC PAST UNCW: College of Charleston earned home-field advantage for the quarterfinals of the CAA Men’s Soccer Championship after posting a 1-0 victory at UNCW last Wednesday. Junior forward Hamilton Carlin scored the game-winning goal in the 82nd minute as he finished an assist from senior Adam Purvis. It was the third goal of the season for Carlin and his second game-winner. Junior goalkeeper Kevin Shields made five saves and posted his fourth shutout of the year at UNCW and stopped four shots at nationally ranked Elon before allowing a goal in the 108th minute. The 4th-seeded Cougars host #5 James Madison on Saturday.
DREXEL EDGES NORTHEASTERN ON SENIOR DAY: Drexel celebrated Senior Day in exciting fashion by edging Northeastern, 1-0, last Saturday to snap an eight-match losing streak. Freshman Francisco Rodrigues da Palma scored the game-winning goal with just 45 seconds left in regulation after receiving a centering pass from sophomore Bayley Winkel. Freshman goalkeeper Jacob Jordan stopped six shots to record the shutout and freshman Ishan Atit recorded a pair of defensive saves.
W&M KNOCKS OFF IN-STATE FOE VCU: William & Mary split a pair of matches last week, defeating in-state foe VCU, 2-0, before having its three-game winning streak snapped in a 3-1 loss to Delaware. Sophomore William Eskay tallied the game-winner at VCU as he scored off an assist from his brother, Jackson, in the 12th minute. Freshman Ryder Bell tacked on an insurance goal, his team-leading seventh of the year, in the 77th minute. Goalkeeper Mac Phillips made four saves to earn his third shutout. The Tribe took a 1-0 lead just 3:36 into the contest at Delaware as William Eskay teamed with Jackson once again for his seventh goal of the year.
TOUGH WEEK FOR HOFSTRA: Hofstra, which clinched the CAA regular-season title and the top seed for the CAA Men’s Soccer Championship on Oct. 24, was beaten in its final two regular-season matches last week. The Pride fell 3-0 to Stony Brook on Tuesday and 2-0 at James Madison on Saturday. Meshack Eshun-Addy and Joseph Holland each took four shots against SBU as the Pride out-shot the Seawolves 16-9, but fell at home for the first time all season. Hofstra had a 12-3 advantage in corners at JMU, but couldn’t overcome a pair of first-half scores by the Dukes.
ONE-GOAL SETBACKS FOR UNCW: UNCW dropped 1-0 decisions to College of Charleston and Florida Gulf Coast last week. The Seahawks’ past six contests have been decided by one goal or less. UNCW out-shot CofC 14-10 and had a 9-5 advantage in shots against FGCU. Goalkeeper Sean Melvin made six saves and gave up only one goal in 135 minutes of action last week. The sixth-seeded Seahawks travel to #3 Delaware on Saturday for the quarterfinals of the CAA Men’s Soccer Championship.
NARROW ROAD LOSSES FOR HUSKIES: Northeastern suffered a pair of narrow setbacks on the road last week, falling 1-0 at 5th-ranked North Carolina and 1-0 at CAA foe Drexel. Goalkeeper Jonathan Thuresson made five saves and kept UNC off the scoreboard for more than 80 minutes before giving up the game-winner. The Huskies out-shot Drexel 23-11, but saw the Dragons break a scoreless tie with 45 seconds left. Frantzdy Pierrot took a team-high six shots at DU.