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Men's Soccer Looks To Keep Momentum Going As Perry Welcomes Back 12 Letterwinners For 21st Campaign

Men's Soccer Looks To Keep Momentum Going As Perry Welcomes Back 12 Letterwinners For 21st Campaign

After posting its highest single season victory total in eight years last fall, the Massachusetts Maritime men’s soccer team is looking to keep that positive momentum going in 2013, as Head Coach Greg Perry welcomes back 12 letterwinners and six starters from a squad that missed earning a post-season berth by just one contest.

 

Leadership has always been a staple of the Buccaneer program during Perry’s 21 years at the helm, and this season will be no exception, as he has tabbed seniors Asa Mills (Westport, Mass./Bishop Stang), Daniel Riley (Hanover, Mass./Hanover) and Stephen Machaby (Rockland, Mass./Rockland) as co-captains for the coming year.  Perry, the dean of Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference mentors, describes the trio as “incredibly committed to the fundamental goals of our program and the mission of the Academy.  They set the tone and provide the example of what our student-athletes should strive to achieve in competition, in the classroom and in the Regiment, and their appointment as captains is a direct reflection of their hard work.”

 

Here’s a look at how things are shaping up for the 2013 edition of Buccaneer men’s soccer:

 

FORWARD.  Perry has the task of replacing his top three scorers from a year ago, and he will look senior Jake Soifert (Rehoboth, Mass./Dighton-Rehoboth), who appeared in 15 contests with one start in 2012, and junior Stuart Kinsman (Granville, Mass./Southwick-Tolland), who made 13 caps with a start, to provide experience up front.  Freshmen Mitchell Thompson (Middleboro, Mass./Middleboro), Killian Simpson (Nahant, Mass./Swampscott) and Konnor Scarponi (Brunswick, Maine/Brunswick) will also be looking to contribute at the forward spot during their rookie campaigns for Massachusetts Maritime. 

 

MIDFIELD.  Junior Rob Robbs (Braintree, Mass./Braintree) leads the way in the middle for the Buccaneers after earning second-team all-MASCAC accolades last fall, as he netted a marker and helper while starting all 17 contests, while sophomore Connor McInnis (Duxbury, Mass./Tabor Academy) moves to the midfield after netting a pair of goals and two assists for six points in 17 contests as a rookie last fall.  Fellow sophomores Ryan Culp (Centreville, Md./Kent Island) and Taylor Sjoberg (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield), who each netted a goal in a combined 23 contests, also lend experience in the middle for Perry, who lost three starters in that spot to graduation, while the freshman trio of Thomas McCarthy (Tybee Island, Ga./Benedictine Military), Griffin Hunt (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South) and Robert McCluskey (Attleboro, Mass./Attleboro) will also be vying for time in the midfield.

 

BACK.  A solid backfield that allowed just 1.17 goals per match last season returns for Massachusetts Maritime, led by first team all-MASCAC performer Mills (who added a goal on offense) and fellow captains Riley and Machaby, as the trio combined for start in all 17 contests in 2012 for the Buccaneers.  The return of sophomore Nick Parker (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South) from an injury that limited him to just eight appearances as a rookie will bolster the defensive corps, while the additional return of junior Dillon Jones (Sagamore Beach, Mass./Bourne) and sophomore Dylan Buckborough (Swansea, Mass./Case) provides valuable experience.  Sophomore Brendan O’Neil (Scituate, Mass./Scituate), along with freshmen Matthew McDonough (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) and Scott Matoian (Mashpee, Mass./Mashpee), will look to contribute on defense as well for the Buccaneers.

 

GOAL.  The loss of second team all-MASCAC netminder Brett Young to graduation creates a void in the cage for Perry, as Young played all but 236 minutes of action as Massachusetts Maritime’s last line of defense a year ago.  That void will be filled by freshmen Joe Cohen (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South) and Thomas Funkhauser (Purcellville, Va./Loudon Valley), who look to split time in the Buccaneer cage as rookies this fall.

 

SCHEDULE.  Massachusetts Maritime is set to take on a 17-match schedule this season that includes seven dates with MASCAC foes as well as a non-league slate that features perennial New England powers Brandeis and WPI as well as longtime rival Coast Guard.

 

The Buccaneers begin the new year on Wednesday, September 4th when Massachusetts Maritime heads to Leicester, Mass. to take on Becker in a non-league clash that begins at 6:00 p.m. EDT.