Categories 2006 Issue 1, UpFrontPosted on

Men’s Soccer Takes NESCAC Title

NESCAC Coach of the Year John Crooke reports: The New England Regional meet was the major highlight for both men’s and women’s teams in 2005. The women placed 7th in the toughest region in the country and the men placed 2nd to qualify as a team to the National Championships. The men ended up placing 14th at nationals. The men placed four runners on the All New England regional team and Owen Kiely was the New England Champion. Owen Kiely and Ellen Davis both attained All-America status by virtue of their finish at the National Championships. Cross country is a simple sport. It’s not running, it is racing. I am always telling my team that time doesn’t matter, place does. Cross country is a team sport. Most people think of it as an individual sport. A team is made up of seven runners. The first five runners score for the team. Each runner gets points based on his or her finish. If you place 5th, your team gets five points and if you place 27th, your team gets 27 points. You add up the points for your first five runners. The team with the lowest point total wins. Almost all of my athletes run all three seasons. The athletes need to train year round to be successful at the national level. NESCAC Cross Country on the women’s side it is without question the toughest conference in the country. The national team champion and runner up have come from the NESCAC the past five seasons. This fall was the first time in six years that the national champion was not a NESCAC school. Last fall our women’s team placed 5th in the NESCAC, 5th in the New England region and 14th in the country. The men’s side is very strong too but it is not the strongest in the country. I would say it is in the top three or four of the toughest conferences in the country.NESCAC Coach of the Year Geoffrey Wheeler reports:

 

Wesleyan captured its first ever New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Championship in any sport when the men’s soccer team defeated Amherst and Williams in the same weekend. As the No. 7 seed in the tournament, we upset No. 2 Bowdoin in the first round before going on to defeat No. 1 Williams in the semi-finals and then No. 4 Amherst in the finals. The victory over Williams marked the first triumph over the Williams Ephs since 1992.

 

With the championship came an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament, another first for the program. The men’s team defeated Muhlenberg in a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory before falling to No. 1 seed and defending national champs Messiah 2-1 in overtime in the second round. 

 

Accompanying the success came some appropriate post-season honors, including NESCAC Rookie of the Year for Matt Nevin ’09, who finished the campaign with nine goals and five assists.  Earning 2nd Team All-NESCAC honors was Jared Ashe ’07, who made the move from forward to defender early in the year.

 

When we play, we try to focus all our energy on our work rate, our attitude and our reaction to adversity. There’s not much we can do about the referee, the weather, the field or even the other team so we focus on what we can control. When we travel, we look sharp in coats and ties. We leave a clean locker room after a game, a clean bench.

 

I was hired as the men’s coach in the spring of 1999. And what an honor to succeed Terry Jackson, not only a legend in Wesleyan soccer lore but also an icon in the soccer community at large. In fact, when I was a senior in high school, I visited Wesleyan and met with Coach Jackson. I remember how friendly and warm he was as we toured Wesleyan. Never did I think I would have the opportunity to return not as a student but as a coach.