GNAC MEN'S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL

WINTHROP, Mass. – The Quarterfinal Round of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Soccer Championship featured three home wins and one road upset as Saint Joseph's (Maine), Johnson & Wales, the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.), and Norwich all picked up victories on Saturday (Oct. 28). The four victors will next play in the GNAC Men's Soccer Semifinals on Tuesday, Oct. 31.

The top two seeds in the tournament, Saint Joseph's and JWU, both earned shutouts in their quarterfinal matches. The top-seeded Monks held off No. 8 seed Regis for a 3-0 result, while the No. 2 seed Wildcats pulled out a 2-0 win over No. 7 seed New England College. No. 3 seed USJ defeated No. 6 seed Dean, 3-1, while No. 5 seed Norwich pulled past No. 4 seed Albertus Magnus for the only road win of the day.

In Tuesday's semifinals, SJC will host Norwich, while JWU entertains USJ. Both matches are scheduled for 4 p.m. kickoffs.

The two semifinal winners will then advance to the GNAC Championship match on Saturday, Nov. 4. The winner of the GNAC Championship match will be named the 2023 GNAC Men's Soccer Champion and earn the conference's automatic qualifier into the 2023 NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championship.

#1 Saint Joseph's (Maine) 3, #8 Regis 0

Recap courtesy of the Saint Joseph's (Maine) Athletic Communications Department.

STANDISH, Maine – Top-seeded Saint Joseph's College defeated No. 8 seed Regis College, 3-0, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's soccer tournament quarterfinal held at the SJC Athletics Complex on Saturday afternoon.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Senior Will Wood opened the scoring with his first goal of the season off a Rion Dos Santos corner kick in the 14th minute. Wood corralled the feed in the top left corner of the box and drilled a low shot into the bottom right corner for his first tally since he scored in a 4-0 win over Albertus Magnus on Oct. 8, 2022.

The Monks doubled their lead less than four minutes later when junior Nate Sottak cleaned up a rebound in the goalmouth inside the box with a shot to the right side of the net for his fifth goal of the season.

Sophomore Joseph Perron capped the game scoring in the 71st minute when he beat Regis keeper Ethan Donahue with a shot to the right section of the goal.

The Pride had a chance to get back into the game late when senior Jeremiah Frias was awarded a penalty kick after the Monks committed a handball offense in the box in the 87th minute. SJC junior goalkeeper Liam Foley proved to be up to the challenge, however, as the first-year starter dove to his right to make a clean save on the PK bid.

TEAM STATS:

The Monks held the lead in shots (18-10), shots on goal (9-4), and corner kicks (6-2) in the victory.

THE KEEPERS:

Foley made four saves to notch his 10th shutout of the season while Donahue posted six stops in the losing effort for the Pride.

#2 Johnson & Wales 2, #7 New England College 0

Recap courtesy of the Johnson & Wales Athletic Communications Department.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Graduate student Alexander Pane and junior Conner Elliott scored first-half goals to propel the JWU-Providence men's soccer team to a 2-0 win over New England College Saturday afternoon in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) at the Scotts Miracle-Gro Athletic Complex.

Pane also collected an assist on Elliott's goal as the No. 2 seed Wildcats advanced to the GNAC Semifinals and will host No. 3 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) in a rematch of last season's championship on Tuesday afternoon. JWU outshot the Pilgrims 18-4 and held a 9-2 edge in corner kicks.

Elliott scored the GWG 11:38 into the match when he redirected a free kick from Pane. Sixteen minutes later, Pane bent a corner kick from the far right corner flag into the net to make it 2-0.

Graduate student Jacob Friedman made two saves to move to 12-2-4 on the season.

#3 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) 3, #6 Dean 1

Recap courtesy of the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) Athletic Communications Department.

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The third-seeded University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's soccer team eased past sixth-seeded Dean, 3-1, Saturday afternoon on the USJ Soccer Field in West Hartford, Conn., during the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Quarterfinals. With the result, the Blue Jays move to 13-1-3 on the year, while the Bulldogs conclude their 2023 campaign at 9-5-3.

KEY MOMENTS 

• The Blue Jays looked to gain the edge earlier in the match, firing off shots on goal, but Dean goalkeeper Alberto Gonzalez Del Rio kept USJ off the board inside the opening 20 minutes.
• USJ senior netminder Jose Miguel Garcia Martin was equally impressive, making a pair of stops to keep the game scoreless entering the 25th minute.
• The Blue Jays were finally able to find the breakthrough at the 25:09 mark as freshman midfielder Matthew Dima stood over a free-kick right on the edge of the top of the box, curling his shot into the bottom left corner, establishing a 1-0 USJ lead.
• The game quieted down following the goal as USJ entered the halftime break leading, 1-0.
• USJ continued to push for a second goal, finding the back of the net again at the 66:23 mark. Graduate student defender Nolan Clack whipped in a perfect cross from a corner kick onto the head of sophomore defender Nicholas Simpson, who guided the ball into the back of the net, increasing the USJ edge to 2-0.
• The Blue Jays put the game to rest at the 74:36 mark as graduate student midfielder Michael Torres picked out a perfect pass to Clack on the left flank, who quickly fired a low driven cross onto the sliding foot of senior midfielder Henry McGarrah V, sending the ball into the net and increasing the edge to 3-0.
• Dean found a late consolation goal as Jude Munson picked out a pass to Juliano Silva, who fired his shot into the net, cutting the gap to 3-1.
• The goal would be too little too late though, as USJ held on for the 3-1 victory.

NOTES 

• Dima scored his seventh goal of the year, while Simpson netted his third and McGarrah V scored his ninth.
• Garcia Martin tallied six saves to pick up the victory.
• The Bulldogs and Blue Jays were deadlocked in shots, 15-15.
• With the result, the Blue Jays extend its winning streak over the Bulldogs to four games, increase its advantage in the all-time series to 4-0-0.

#5 Norwich 3, #4 Albertus Magnus 2

Recap courtesy of the Norwich Athletic Communications Department.

NEW HAVEN, Conn.- In the final game of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Quarterfinal slate on Saturday night, the fifth seeded Norwich Men’s Soccer team took on the fourth seeded Falcons of Albertus Magnus. Of all the road teams to compete in GNAC playoff action to this point, the Cadets were the first road team to take home a victory by a score of 3-2.

Things started off quickly for the Cadets. In the sixth minute, after working the ball around the attacking midfield, a cross from Kyle Dunn found the head of a diving Nathan Statires which found the lower left corner of the goal. The lead did not last though, as Roger Baldwin sent a ball from outside the box to tie the score. Later in the half, Norwich regained the lead. In the 31st minute, a clearing attempt by an Albertus defender found its way to the right foot of Diego Fuentes at the top of the box, which he promptly sent inside the right post, giving the Cadets a 2-1 halftime lead.

Out of the intermission, the Falcons started pressing for the tie. In the 68th minute, Johan Stagnaro would send a free kick off some well-played theatrics into the goal for the equalizer. The game remained tied until the 85th minute. Cullen Swett sent a ball from the deep midfield to Jami Lashua in the middle of the box. Lashua, juked out the two Falcon defenders, as well as the goalkeeper sending a right foot boot to the bottom left corner to break the deadlock. The Cadet defense held the line in the final minutes clinching the 3-2 win and a berth in the GNAC Semifinal. 

“It’s always tough to go on the road, especially to a place like Albertus,” Head Coach Staige Davis said. “The guys showed great toughness to continue to push for goals after Albertus came back twice to tie the game. I’m proud of their effort.

2023 GNAC Men's Soccer Tournament Schedule

Play-In – Thursday, Oct. 26
(Hosted by higher seeds)

#7 New England College def. #10 Lasell, 3-0 | BOX
#8 Regis def. #9 Emmanuel, 2-1 | BOX

Quarterfinals – Saturday, Oct. 28
(Hosted by higher seeds)

#1 Saint Joseph's (Maine) def. #8 Regis, 3-0 | BOX
#2 Johnson & Wales def. #7 New England College, 2-0 | BOX
#3 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) def. #6 Dean, 3-1 | BOX
#5 Norwich def. #4 Albertus Magnus, 3-2 | BOX

Semifinals – Tuesday, Oct. 31
(Hosted by higher seeds)

#5 Norwich at #1 Saint Joseph's (Maine), 4 p.m.
#3 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) at #2 Johnson & Wales, 4 p.m.

Championship – Saturday, Nov. 4

Semifinal winners, TBD

ABOUT THE GREAT NORTHEAST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 16 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.

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