ODU, JMU Rise In National Polls: Old Dominion and James Madison are both ranked nationally this week in polls released on Monday. The Monarchs (7-1) moved up three spots to #7 in the College Soccer News Top 30 and six spots to #12 in the Soccer America Top 25, while the Dukes (7-1) are ranked #22 by Soccer America and #26 by College Soccer News. George Mason and Hofstra were among others receiving votes in the CSN poll. Other national rankings will be released on Tuesday.
National Honors For Morsink, Elcock: JMU senior midfielder Kurt Morsink was chosen as the National Player of the Week by College Soccer News on Monday and was joined on CSN’s 11-member National Team of the Week by ODU senior forward Edson Elcock. Morsink scored both game-winning goals in the Dukes’ victories over Georgia State and UNCW, while Elcock had three goals and an assist as the Monarchs beat Delaware and Drexel.
Five CAA Teams Ranked Regionally: Five CAA men’s soccer teams are among the top 10 squads ranked in the South Atlantic region by the NSCAA on Sept. 25. Old Dominion is ranked #3, followed by James Madison at #4, Towson at #6, George Mason at #7 and UNC Wilmington at #9.
BRINE CAA MEN’S SOCCER PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Edson Elcock, Old Dominion
Sr., F, Brooklyn, N.Y./Brooklyn Friends
Elcock scored three goals and added one assist to lead Old Dominion to conference wins over Delaware and Drexel. The senior forward tallied a second-half goal in the 2-0 triumph over the Hens and then recorded two goals and an assist as the Monarchs cruised past the Dragons 5-1. Elcock has a team-high six goals and 14 points for a nationally ranked ODU squad that has won seven straight.
DELAWARE (3-2-2 overall, 1-1 in CAA):
The Blue Hens split their games on a tough CAA road swing, rebounding from a 2-0 loss at Old Dominion to knock off William & Mary 2-0. It was Delaware’s first victory in nine tries against the Tribe and allowed them to surpass last year’s win total. Sophomore goalkeeper Taylor Thames made seven saves at W&M and recorded his third shutout of the year. Freshman forward Paul Danaher’s first career goal in the 52nd minute was the game-winner, and the Hens added an insurance tally from T.C. Young just under 15 minutes later. Junior Sobhan Tadjalli recorded the assists on both goals. Sophomore Jonathan Curry-Edwards made his first appearance of the season in goal at ODU and came up with 11 saves in the setback. Delaware hosts VCU and JMU this weekend.
DREXEL (4-4 overall, 0-2 in CAA):
The Dragons got off to a tough start in league play, falling 4-0 at William & Mary and 5-1 at Old Dominion over the weekend. Drexel out-shot the Tribe 16-11 and had an 8-2 edge in corners, but were unable to capitalize. Freshman Fabio Assumpcao got off a team-best five shots. The Dragons fell behind ODU 3-0 in the first 17 minutes before breaking through on a goal by senior Dominick Balsamo. The goal was Balsamo’s first this season and the 11th of his career. Sophomore keeper Cory Robertson made a career-high 11 saves before being replaced by junior transfer Derrec Morgan in the 67th minute. Drexel hosts JMU on Friday night and VCU on Sunday in a match televised by CN8 at noon.
GEORGE MASON (6-2 overall, 2-0 in CAA):
The Patriots are riding a five-match winning streak after edging Northeastern (1-0) and Hofstra (3-2) in their CAA openers. The streak is the longest for Mason since winning nine straight in 1998. Junior midfielder Adam Lobene scored the only goal of the game versus NU on a penalty kick at the 54:47 mark as Mason won its fifth 1-0 decision of the year. Against Hofstra, Lobene’s corner kick set up sophomore defender Michael Vallie’s game-winning goal with 2:20 left in regulation. Vallie also assisted on a goal by sophomore midfielder Chris Carroll that tied the Hofstra contest at 2-2 with less than 15 minutes to go. Senior midfielder Francis McCardle tallied the first Mason goal against the Pride. Freshman goalie Sean Kelley made two saves to earn his fifth shutout of the year against NU, but surrendered his first goal since Sept. 3 to Hofstra. Mason out-shot its opponents 36-13 in the two contests. The Patriots travel to UNCW and Georgia State in CAA action this weekend.
GEORGIA STATE (1-7 overall, 1-1 in CAA):
The Panthers bounced back from a 2-1 setback at James Madison on Friday to post a 3-2 victory at VCU on Sunday for their first win of the season. Junior defender Aaron Shepherd was the star offensively against the Rams, giving State a quick 1-0 lead on a 45-yard free kick just 39 seconds into the match and then adding the eventual game-winner on a 25-yard free kick in the 75th minute. The goals were the first of the season for Shepherd, who has been the Panthers’ top defensive player since returning from an injury early in the year. Sophomore midfielder Joe DeVito also netted his first goal of the year at VCU. The Panthers tied JMU at 1-1 on senior Alberto Villarreal’s team-leading fourth goal, but the Dukes netted the game-winner on a free kick. State out-shot the Dukes 14-13. After being on the road for their past seven contests, the Panthers entertain Towson and George Mason this weekend.
HOFSTRA (3-3-2 overall, 0-1-1 in CAA):
The Pride picked up one point in a pair of CAA road games, tying Towson 1-1 before losing 3-2 at George Mason. Hofstra took a 1-0 advantage at TU as senior Michael Todd scored his team-leading fifth goal of the year off an assist from freshman midfielder Rob Youhill with 18:46 to go in regulation, but the Tigers got the equalizer nine minutes later. Todd’s goal was the 32nd of his career as he attempts to lead the Pride in scoring for a fourth straight year. Junior Chris Cox headed in his first goal of the season to draw Hofstra even with Mason and then the Pride moved ahead 2-1 as junior Constantinos Christoudias scored off a feed from Youhill. Hofstra was out-shot 21-5 in the contest, with goalie Tom Johansen making six saves. The Pride hosts William & Mary on Friday and #7 Old Dominion on Sunday in a rematch of last year’s CAA championship game. Hofstra is 8-2-1 in its last 11 contests against nationally ranked foes.
JAMES MADISON (7-1 overall, 2-0 in CAA):
The Dukes extended their winning streak to five with triumphs over Georgia State (2-1) and UNC Wilmington (1-0) to open CAA play. The winning streak is the JMU’s longest since opening the year with seven straight victories in 2004. Senior All-America midfielder Kurt Morsink continued his outstanding year, netting the game-winner on a free kick with 18:37 left in regulation versus GSU and then scoring the only goal of the game against UNCW on a penalty kick with 6:55 remaining in regulation. Morsink, who leads the CAA in goals (7), assists (6) and points (20), has tallied at least one point in 10 straight matches dating back to last season, which broke the school record held by assistant coach Patrick McSorley in 1995. Morsink moved up to seventh on the Dukes’ career points list with 89 (30g, 29a). Senior midfielder Mark Totten scored JMU’s first goal in the victory over Georgia State. Senior goalie Kevin Trapp made a pair of saves late in the match to record his third shutout of the year against UNCW. JMU has given up just two goals in its past five contests. After four straight home games, the Dukes travel to Drexel and Delaware this weekend.
UNC WILMINGTON (5-3-1 overall, 0-2 in CAA):
The Seahawks pushed their unbeaten streak to five with a 1-0 upset of fifth-ranked Duke last Tuesday, but dropped 1-0 decisions at VCU and James Madison to start CAA play. Senior goalie Brad Knighton made five saves at Duke to record his third straight shutout and finished the week with nine saves while facing 31 shots. Knighton, who leads the conference with a 0.66 GAA, became UNCW’s all-time leader in shutouts with 21. Sophomore Will Friesinger netted the game-winner in the 60th minute at Duke off an assist from freshman Cameron Turney. The Seahawks had been 4-0 in one-goal games this season before suffering the two league losses. UNCW was 5-1-1 in non-conference play this season, including 2-0-1 against squads in the 2005 College Cup. The Seahawks host George Mason and Towson this weekend.
NORTHEASTERN (2-7-1 overall, 0-2 in CAA):
The Huskies came up on the short end of three one-goal road matches last week, losing to Holy Cross (3-2), George Mason (1-0) and Towson (3-2). Northeastern has dropped seven of its last eight after a 2-0 start. Junior forward Ahmed Talaat nearly led a big comeback at Towson, assisting on a goal by freshman Matthew Laning in the 73rd minute before scoring one of his own just 1:11 later that cut the margin to 3-2. Talaat leads the Huskies with two goals and five points. NU erased one-goal deficits twice before losing at Holy Cross. Greg Kilkenny and Nicholas Patrikis each scored a goal for the Huskies. Goalie Joe Monthey made four saves and Mason and gave up the only goal on a penalty kick. NU is at home against Old Dominion and William & Mary this weekend.
OLD DOMINION (7-1 overall, 2-0 in CAA):
The Monarchs continued to roll last week, defeating Delaware (2-0) and Drexel (5-1) to increase their winning streak to seven since a season-opening loss to Maryland. ODU scored once in each half against UD, getting a goal from senior Zachary Kinney in the 31st minute and another from senior Edson Elcock in the 52nd minute. Elcock also tallied two goals and an assist in the win over Drexel to take over the team lead in goals (6) and points (14). Senior Ross Mackenzie scored twice in the first 17 minutes versus the Dragons, while Kinney tacked on his fourth goal of the year. Goalie Evan Newton made a pair of saves against the Hens to post his fifth consecutive shutout before giving up his first goal since Sept. 1 against Drexel. Newton has a 0.74 GAA for the season. ODU hits the road this weekend to face Northeastern and Hofstra.
TOWSON (5-1-2 overall, 1-0-1 in CAA):
The Tigers remained unbeaten (3-0-2) at home this season after rallying for a 1-1 tie against Hofstra and beating Northeastern 3-2. Towson got excellent play from its goalkeepers in both matches as junior Billy Chiles made a career-high 16 saves against the Pride and senior Greg Flaherty stopped 15 shots against the Huskies. The 16 saves by Chiles were the second-most in school history, trailing only Gerry Johnson’s 20 in 1974. Junior midfielder Pat Healey scored the game-tying goal against Hofstra with 9:50 left in regulation. It was the sixth time in the past eight meetings between TU and HU that the game has gone into overtime. Healey also scored just 59 seconds into the win over Northeastern to increase his team lead in goals (4) and points (10). Sophomore Mosca Cisneros recorded the first two-goal game of his career to give Towson a 3-0 lead on the Huskies. The Tigers travel to Georgia State and UNC Wilmington this weekend.
VCU (3-6 overall, 1-1 in CAA):
The Rams went 1-2 last week, beating UNC Wilmington 1-0 in their CAA opener but falling to #8 North Carolina (3-1) and league foe Georgia State (3-2). Sophomore Owusu Sekyere scored the game-winner against the Seahawks in the 71st minute as he converted a corner kick from Thomas Weingartner. Sophomore goalie Andrew Dykstra made six saves to record his second shutout of the year as VCU improved to 5-0-1 in its past six CAA openers. The Rams were unable to overcome a two-goal deficit versus GSU despite a 21-9 edge in shots. Juniors Pat Viray and Matthijs Maruanaya scored for VCU in the contest. Maruanaya, who leads the team with six points, also assisted on a goal by David Rosenbaum at UNC that tied the game at 1-1 with 32 minutes left. The Rams visit Delaware and Drexel this weekend. VCU is a combined 9-0 all-time against the squads.
WILLIAM & MARY (5-5 overall, 1-1 in CAA):
The Tribe split a pair of CAA home games last week, topping Drexel 4-0 but losing to Delaware 2-0. The victory over the Dragons gave W&M its first four-match win streak since 2002 and its first triumph in a CAA opener in four seasons. Sophomore forward Andrew Hoxie scored W&M’s first two goals in the win to increase his team-leading goals total to six. Senior Pat Scherder also found the net for the fourth time this season and Ryan Overdevest had his first goal. Junior midfielder Doug Ernst had a pair of assists and is tied for the CAA lead with six assists on the season. Senior goalie Kris Rake made six saves and moved into fifth place on W&M’s career shutouts list with 13. The Tribe was held scoreless against UD after having tallied 16 goals in its previous four matches. W&M travels to Hofstra and Northeastern this weekend.
Courtesy: CAA
