Monmouth Men’s Soccer Team Captures Metro
Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship
BY TIM MORRIS
TheJournalNJ.com | JUNE 2021 41
In one half of a soccer game, the Monmouth University’s men’s team
turned its entire season around. The Hawks went from concluding
their season short of the conference tournament to landing a spot in
the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.
Trailing Niagara 3-1 at the half and needing a win to get into the
eight-team Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) tournament, the
Hawks scored two goals in the second half to tie the match and rode
Liam McGregor’s (Middletown North) overtime goal to a 4-3 win, clinching
the No. 6 seed for the MAAC playoffs.
“It was a character win,” said Hawk Head Coach Robert McCourt.
“That second half against Niagara, it started clicking. We had had so
many scoring chances but weren’t converting.”
That had been the story of Monmouth’s season. It’s why they were
1-2-1 entering the Niagara match and in need of a win to make the postseason.
The character comeback gave the Hawks momentum that would
win the MAAC championship.
The run began with a return trip to No. 3 Niagara and a 2-1 win
followed by a 2-0 triumph at No. 2 Rider, concluding with a 1-0 triumph
over No. 1 seed and regular season champion Quinnipiac.
“We deserved it,” McCourt said of the MAAC crown, the sixth his
team has won.
The MAAC title took the Hawks to Greensboro, North Carolina for
Green, 2-1, to advance to the second round for the third time under Mc-
Court. No. 2 Pitt ended the memorable run with a 6-1 victory.
In the end, all the travel and games packed together took its toll of
the Hawks.
abbreviated season 6-3-1. “Fatigue set in.”
while the Hawks’ George Akampeke was the conference Defensive Player
of the Year, and keeper Sean Murray the Co-Goalkeeper of the Year.
What Monmouth did this spring bodes well for the fall 2021 season.
Breaking in six new players and with no preseason, McCourt didn’t
know if his team would have time to click. One thing he did see was
“huge potential” for Hawks. Turns out they were ahead of schedule and
had the time to reveal that potential now.
The Hawks, like everyone else, also had to deal with the changes
and challenges the pandemic brought.
said McCourt. “They were willing to be disciplined.”
-
kowski and defender Declan McStravick (Mater Die Prep) were the heart
and soul of the team, according to their coach. They were responsible for
the Hawks’ winning culture. Perhaps it was the culture of this team that
stood out most for McCourt. It was a team that just didn’t talk the talk
about commitment but did all things it takes to win.
“We did it. We didn’t talk about it,” McCourt said.
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