Nov. 23, 2010
By Dave Malaska
GoBEARCATS.com
Before the 2010 season started, the UC men's soccer team had two clear-cut goals: get back to the BIG EAST Championships and make their way back to the NCAA's.
They came within a whisker of completing both, after finishing second in the league's Red Division and advancing to the semifinals of the conference tournament.
The Bearcats (7-5-7 overall, 5-1-3 BIG EAST) returned to the positive side of .500 for the first time since their conference title year in 2006, barely missing a return to the NCAA Tournament. Unlike the high-powered offensive squad from the 2006 team, this year's edition of Bearcat men's soccer got it done with defense.
UC finished the year ranked ninth in the country in goals-against average, allowing just 12 goals in 18 matches, while racking up nine shutouts. Senior goalkeeper Matt Williams led the way, setting a new UC standard and finishing the year ranked No. 11 in the country in goals-against average and 13th in save percentage (.845). The Portland, Maine native earned All-BIG EAST third team honors after shooting into second place on the Bearcats' career shutout list (20).
Opening the season with their non-conference slate, it was quickly clear that defense would spell UC's fortunes in 2010. The Bearcats jumped out to a 2-0-2 start in the season's first weeks, allowing only a single goal in a 1-1 tie with Detroit. By the time they traveled to the Akron Tournament in late September, where the then No. 1-ranked Zips awaited, they had already built their reputation as a tough beat.
They proved it further, putting a scare into their top-ranked host. Akron scored early, while UC threatened a couple of times during the second half of the match. But while they couldn't score the first goal of the season allowed by the Zips, neither could Akron pull away. The Zips finished the season with only one loss.
Following the Akron game, UC opened conference play with another three-game unbeaten streak. After besting NCAA-bound Georgetown, 2-0, the Bearcats stepped back out of conference play to play to a scoreless tie against Xavier and lose, 2-0 to another NCAA participant, Michigan. But back in BIG EAST matches, they downed Rutgers and St. John's by matching 2-0 totals, to set up another marquee tilt, hosting No. 2 Louisville.
Despite battling to a 1-1 tie at the half, UC's defense faltered against the Cardinals, who went on to win the conference regular season title and win the BIG EAST Championship, 3-1.
UC didn't lose the rest of the season, until Providence eliminated them from the conference tourney. Along the way, the Bearcats downed Seton Hall, 2-1, then battled to three-straight ties against No. 19 USF, Villanova and DePaul. On Senior Night, UC bad farewell to its six seniors with a 4-0 win over Syracuse, then faced No. 9 UConn to open postseason play.
The game ultimately ended up being the highlight of the season.
After the regulation 90 minutes and two overtime periods, the Bearcats were tied with the Huskies, the nation's top-scoring offense, at 1-1, and advanced on penalty kicks when Williams stymied back-to-back UConn attempts while seniors Nick Weightman and Branden Stelmak dented the net for UC. Sophomore Roger Thompson netted UC's final attempt to push the Bearcats to the tournament's semifinals.
Unfortunately, the road ended there as Providence prevailed, 2-1.
A week later, the Bearcats awaited news of their NCAA prospects, but were disappointed to be left out.
Despite earning a two-seed in the BIG EAST, which placed seven teams in the national tournament and finished the year with five teams with top-25 RPI rankings, the Bearcats' .553 winning percentage wasn't enough to earn an at-large bid. In all, UC played five Top 25 teams, going 2-3-1 against them.
Despite missing out on the NCAA's, the Bearcats' campaign was a rousing success. Heading into the season, they were picked to finished seventh in the BIG EAST's Red Division.
Though UC will lose six seniors, including Williams and four of their top five offensive weapons -- Weightman (4G, 2A) and Mark Konitsch (2G, 4A) finished with 10 points apiece, while Tristan Watson (3G) and Stelmak (1G, 2A) added to UC's effort -- the cupboard is far from bare.
Junior Matt Bahner established himself as the Bearcats' offensive lynchpin, scoring seven of UC's 19 goals and assisting on another five, earning All-BIG EAST second team honors. And though UC will have to replace Williams in goal, the back line is filled with young talent that fueled the Bearcats' defensive strength.
In all, the resurgent Bearcats will still be young in 2011 -- next season's senior class will have only four members. The bulk of the squad will be juniors (11) and sophomores (7), hoping to continue to be the next squad to take the Bearcats back to the NCAAs.