The 2006 America East men’s soccer tournament kicks off this Saturday with two games. No. 5 Boston University visits No. 4 University at Albany and No. 3 University of New Hampshire hosts No. 6 Stony Brook University. The following is a team-by-team breakdown of the field of six.
Boston University
(9-4-4, 4-3-1)
Offense: Take away BU’s 5-0 demolition of the University of Maine last weekend and you have an offense that has struggled to score all season long. The Terriers have been a second-half team, as 16 of their 22 tallies have come after the break. Sophomore Petur Sigurdsson leads the team with six goals, while classmates Jin Oh and Neil Hlavaty aren’t far behind with five and four, respectively. Sophomore Dan Schultz leads the team with four assists.
Defense: The Terrier defense has allowed only 11 goals all season. That minuscule number is due in large part to the play of senior goalkeeper Zach Riffett, who fronts the nation’s 16th best GAA at 0.62. The agile Derek Puerta, as well as graduate student Mosche Shalchon, has done a phenomenal job in the back for BU all season long.
Against America East: Oddly enough, the only two losses by the tournament’s top two seeds were to BU. The Terriers have shown the ability to play in big games all season-it’s been the “meaningless” games where BU hasn’t been able to put the nail in the coffin.
X-Factor: Offense. If it shows up, the Terriers should be able to cruise. If not, look for nail-biting finishes to each of their tournament games.
Binghamton University (8-6-4, 6-1-1)
Offense: Binghamton won the conference with a +0 goal differential-17 goals scored and 17 against. Go figure. Obviously, the Bearcats don’t have a powerhouse offense, but they do have senior transfer student Peter Sgueglia (from the University at Albany), who leads the team in points with 12 (four goals, four assists). Nine other Bearcats recorded points for Binghamton this season, six of whom have scored two goals apiece.
Defense: This is where Binghamton hurts you. Redshirt freshman goaltender Jason Stenta has won America East Player of the Week twice this season and enters the postseason having recorded two straight shutouts. His microscopic 0.36 conference goals-against average is third-best in the nation for any goaltender who started more than four conference games.
Against BU: The Terriers dealt the Bearcats their only league loss this year, a 1-0 decision at Nickerson Field Sept. 29.
X-Factor: Expectations. This is Binghamton’s first-ever regular season conference title, so it’ll be interesting to see how the Bearcats deal with the pressure of being the top seed. They’re also 5-0-3 at home-which is a good thing, given that they clinched home-field advantage throughout.
University of Vermont
(8-5-4, 5-1-2)
Offense: Vermont held the top seed in the conference for practically the entire season, but a late loss and a tie against Binghamton in the Catamounts’ final game put them in the No. 2 slot. Vermont is second in the conference in total goals, with 25. The three-headed monster of Jordan Crasilneck, Tyler Hasman and T.J. Gore is the fastest trio in America East and combined for 15 goals and eight assists this season.
Defense: Goalkeeper Roger Scully has only allowed 12 goals in 15 games this season, but the Catamount defense is somewhat breakable. UVM defenders have allowed 183 shots on goal and have broken down at some key moments. Suring up the play of their backfield is the Catamounts’ key to advancing.
Against BU: Vermont lost its first league contest of the year to the Terriers, 2-1 in double overtime at Nickerson Field.
X-Factor: Mindset. After spending more than a month as the No. 1 seed, will UVM thrive or dive at the No. 2 spot?
University of New Hampshire
(11-4-3, 5-2-1)
Offense: It has been the Chris Banks show in Durham, N.H. this season for the Wildcats. The freshman forward from Westborough, Mass. has left the rest of the conference in his dust, scoring 12 goals, including three game-winners, in 18 games. What’s even more amazing is that Banks has only started nine of those 18 matches. The next-highest scorer on the Wildcats is sophomore forward Kyle Urso, who has three goals. Needless to say, Banks is the catalyst for the Wildcats and he can make or break their tourney run.
Defense: Opponents have scored only 11 times against the Wildcats this season, which ties them with BU for the least goals allowed in the conference. Senior Brian Levey does all of the netminding for UNH, and sports a GAA of 0.58, good for best in the conference.
Against BU: Chris Banks scored twice as the Wildcats took down the Terriers, 2-1, Oct. 4.
X-Factor: Home-field advantage-or lack thereof. UNH was really hoping it would be able to climb into one of the top two spots and clinch home field throughout. The Wildcats are 6-0-1 at Lewis/Bremner Field this season and have outscored opponents 14-4 on their home turf.
University at Albany
(7-8-2, 5-3-0)
Offense: Are you ready for this? The Great Danes have scored 15 goals all season. Their opponents: 26. Albany has been absolutely murdered in its non-conference schedule, fashioning a record of 2-5-2 and a goal differential of 19-4. Senior Yan Gbolo leads the Great Danes, who have been out-shot 238-153 this season, with four goals and two assists.
Defense: It depends if we’re talking about conference or out-of-conference play. In conference, the Great Danes have allowed only seven goals, and they’ve lost three of those games. If Albany’s defense remains in lockdown mode against league opponents, it could surprise a lot of teams. Six-foot-6 goalkeeper Steward Ceus leads all conference keepers with 94 saves.
Against BU: Beat the Terriers 1-0 in overtime, Oct. 14. The three points gained by Albany in this game gave them the No. 4 seed.
X-Factor: Ceus. Despite his height, the sophomore goalkeeper holds a GAA of 1.38-second worst among playoff goaltenders.
Stony Brook University
(6-11-1, 3-4-1)
Offense: Stony Brook is the only team in the tournament with a losing conference record. However, senior Adam Ciklic leads his team with five goals and an assist while freshman Oscar Leis, who scored against the Terriers, and junior Michael Palacio have eight points each.
Defense: SBU has allowed a respectable 18 goals this season despite the fact that it has been running a goaltender by committee. Redshirt junior E.J. Xikis (15 goals against, 30 saves) and junior Rich Skoblicki (three goals against, 31 saves) have both been solid for the Seawolves, and it’ll be interesting to see which one starts against the powerful UNH offense.
Against BU: The Seawolves defeated the Terriers, 1-0, at home Oct. 8.
X-Factor: Experience. The 2005 tournament champs have a slew of players from last years’ squad who know what it feels like to win it all. Don’t expect them to go quietly.