MEN'S SOCCER: GNAC Tournament Quarterfinal Summary

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Courtesy of Norwich Athletics Communications

NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Norwich University men's soccer team will be moving on to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament semifinals after playing Emmanuel to a 3-3 draw, advancing on penalty kicks, 5-4.

The Cadets were led offensively by Amerle Nemeye (Burlington, Vt.) with two goals on four shots on goal, and Joseph Thongsythavong (Salem, Mass.) added a goal and three shots on net. Mamadi Jiana (Chicopee, Mass.) had an assist.

In the 26^th minute the Cadets were the first on the scoreboard when Nemeye found a ball coming in off a corner kick and was able to convert giving Norwich a 1-0 lead that would be brought into halftime.

In the 56^th minute of the match Emmanuel would get on the scoreboard with Alec Erskine finding Kyle King, who was able to get past Robert Wagenseller (Poway, Calif.). Just under six minutes later, Kyle King scored giving the Saints the lead. Just 40 seconds later Emmanuel scored with Joey Soucy scored completing a stretch of three goals in 6:25 seconds.

Norwich was able to come back after a penalty by Emmanuel inside the box led to a penalty kick opportunity that Nemeye converted in the 65^th minute.

The Cadets completed the comeback in the 80^th minute of the match when Jiana found Thongsythavong with a pass, that Thongsythavong put into the back of the net.  The final 10 minutes of the match were scoreless forcing the Cadets to go into overtime.

After finishing both overtime periods still knotted up at three.  The Cadets converted on 5 of their six penalty kick attempts and, Wagenseller made two saves to allow the Cadets to advance to the next round.

Norwich (13-2-1, 10-1-0 GNAC) will face off against Johnson & Wales (R.I.) on Tuesday, Nov. 2 at 4PM on Sabine Field at Haynes Family Stadium.

Courtesy of USJ Athletics Communications

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The fifth-seeded University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's soccer team got the better of its bitter rivals this time around, dominating the fourth-seeded Falcons of Albertus Magnus College (AMC) in their own backyard, 4-0, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Quarterfinal match Saturday afternoon at Celentano Field. With the upset victory, the Blue Jays advance to the GNAC Semifinals for the second straight season. It is also the second straight quarterfinal win over AMC in as many seasons. 

A quartet of Blue Jays found the back of the cage on a slippery and soaked Saturday afternoon on the pitch. Junior midfielders Juan Torres(Hartford, Conn.) and Mergim Kutllovci (Thomaston, Conn.), along with junior forward Benjamin Marchetti (Higganum, Conn.) all scored for USJ. Senior forward DeAnte Anderson (Bloomfield, Conn.) put the exclamation point on this one with his 21st goal of 2021; a missile sent into the net in the 84th minute.

Sophomore goalie Jose Miguel Garcia Martin (Madrid, Spain) picked up the win in his postseason debut for the visitors. He had six saves in 90 minutes of shutout soccer, and is now 6-3-1 on the year. The stats tell a different story in this one, with shots (13-12 USJ) and corner kicks (6-5 USJ) neck and neck; the Blue Jays just found a way to cash in on their opportunities, and maintained the momentum in the process.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: #5 Saint Joseph 4, #4 Albertus Magnus 0
Records: USJ 12-4-1, AMC 10-5-1
Location: Celentano Field | New Haven, Conn.
Notes: GNAC Quarterfinals

COACH QUOTE [Paul Wright] "I am really proud of the effort from the whole squad, and the mentality of this team. We went down there in a tough environment and were able to get a great result. It's a local rivalry, so emotions can run high. We've had history in the playoffs in the past, there's tension there, so that just adds a little bit to the game, and I thought we handled it pretty well. Even though the conditions were tough, we executed our gameplan very well, and finished off our opportunities that we created. I am excited about the challenge, whoever we play this postseason. I believe in our team. We believe in ourselves. We are ready for it." 

UP NEXT
The Blue Jays are headed to the GNAC Semifinals for the second straight season. The fifth-seeded Blue Jays will travel to Standish, Maine to take on top-seeded Saint Joseph's College of Maine, winners of three of the last four GNAC Men's Soccer Championships. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 2. The Monks beat the Blue Jays, 2-0, on September 10 earlier this season in West Hartford in both team's conference openers.

Courtesy of SJC Athletics Communications

STANDISH, Maine – Top-seeded Saint Joseph's College (14-1-2) blanked #8 Colby-Sawyer College, 3-0, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Soccer Tournament Quarterfinal at the SJC Athletics Complex on Saturday night.

PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS:
With the victory, Saint Joseph's advances to the GNAC semifinal round and will host #5 University of Saint Joseph (12-4-1) on Tuesday evening at 5:00 PM. The Blue Jays defeated #4 Albertus Magnus College by a 4-0 score in other quarterfinal action earlier today. For Colby-Sawyer, the loss signals the end of the 2021 campaign.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
Playing in driving rain for most of the contest, the Monks scored what proved to be the game-winning goal just 1:46 into play, as graduate students Noah Elmore (Berlin, Vt.) and Colin Grant (Harvard, Mass.) connected to lift the hosts to an early edge. Grant found a seam down the right side of the field and delivered a right-to-left cross in the box to Elmore, who finished with a sliding kick into the net with a Colby-Sawyer defender on his back.

St. Joe's struck again eight minutes later when freshman Gus Ford (Falmouth, Maine) chipped a header up and over the reach of Chargers keeper Lucas Boetsch (Rockport, Maine). Senior Jackson Fotter (Gorham, Maine) was credited with an assist on the play.

The 2-0 cushion remained until the 82:19 mark when sophomore Icaro Vieira (Westborough, Mass.) netted his second goal of the season off a double assist from Elmore and senior Kuma Onyejose (East Greenwich, R.I.). Elmore carried the ball down the right side and dealt a crossing pass near the right post, where Onyejose flicked the ball to Vieira for a slick header tally.

TEAM STATS:
Saint Joseph's held considerable advantages in shots (36-3), shots on goal (17-1) and corner kicks (7-1) in the triumph.

THE KEEPERS:
SJC netminder David Walbridge (Hampden, Mass.) made one save in the shutout performance while Boetsch kept his team within striking distance for the better part of the game by making 14 saves, including several of highlight-reel quality.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
Saint Joseph's is now 6-0-1 all-time versus Colby-Sawyer College, which joined the Great Northeast Athletic Conference in the fall of 2018. In five meetings as conference foes, the Monks have outscored the Chargers by a collective 12-0 margin.

Courtesy of Norwich Athletics Communications