The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Soccer team takes the #1 seed into Saturday's East Coast Conference Championship Tournament, hosting #4 University of the District of Columbia in the semifinals at Spartan Field in Sparkill, with kickoff scheduled for Noon.
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How They Got Here - The Spartans wrapped up the regular season with a record of 10-2-4, the program's highest win total since 2018. With their perfect 7-0-1 mark in conference action, STAC secured the the program's second regular season title and the #1 seed in the ECC Tournament, their second appearance in the last three seasons. Through the final week of the regular season, St. Thomas Aquinas was ranked #3 in the latest United Soccer Coaches East Region poll, which was released on Tuesday morning.
District of Columbia opened the 2023 season going 2-4-3 over its first nine games, but the Firebirds then posted a 3-2-3 record in their final eight matches to secure the #4 spot in the postseason. In their ECC Quarterfinal match with Roberts Wesleyan University, UDC trailed the Redhawks 2-0 just 10 minutes into the contest. However, three straight goals by Axel Gamez (2) and Eduardo Bugay propelled the Firebirds to a thrilling 3-2 come-from-behind victory to advance to the semifinal round of the tournament.
The Match-Up - In the lone meeting of the season to date, STAC took a 2-1 decision over UDC on September 27 (recap, boxscore, video) at Spartan Field in Sparkill. The high-paced, physical affair featured goals by Kevon Evans and Alejandro Zuniga for the Spartans, along with a pair of penalty kicks for the Firebirds, with one being saved by a diving Calle Olle Petter Gunnarsson in the first half off of the foot of Ignacio Pericet and one going to the back of the net in the second stanza, courtesy of Axel Gamez.
- 23rd Minute: A through ball up the middle of the field by Alejandro Zuniga, allowed Kevon Evans to gather the ball and side step his defender to fire a well-placed shot to the top left corner of the net, beating UDC keeper Sergio Becerra to make it 1-0 St. Thomas Aquinas.
- 42nd Minute: UDC would be awarded a penalty kick after STAC keeper Calle Olle Petter Gunnarsson interfered with a Firebirds player inside the box. Gunnarsson would go down for several minutes following the collision and receive a yellow card for the foul. Once he was back up and given clearance to continue by the athletic trainer, Calle would have to try and stop a PK attempt by Ignacio Pericet. Pericet would crank up a low shot toward the left post that would be stopped by a diving Gunnarsson to keep the game at 1-0.
- 75th Minute: A second penalty kick attempt for UDC, this time for a handball inside the box by a STAC defender, would be put to the back of the net by Axel Gamez to tie up the match at 1-1.
- 76th Minute: Moments later, the Spartans game winner would come via a 2-on-1 by Uhunoma Fredrick-Ilekhuoba and Yahir Hernandez. On the play instead of taking a shot on frame, Hernandez would send a soft touch back to a trailing Alejandro Zuniga who ripped a high shot past Becerra to make it 2-1, and sent the entire STAC roster rushing to the corner of the field near their bench in a joyous celebration.
Players to Watch - The Spartans were among the best defensive teams in the conference, led by standout goalkeeper Calle Olle Petter (10-0-4, 0.89 goals against average, .845 save percentage, 6 shutouts), while the balanced offensive attack is led by Kevon Evans' league-leading 12 goals and 32 points, along with Alejandro Zuniga's five goals, nine assists and 19 points. Axel Gamez's 11 goals (22 points) was the team-high for UDC, while Sergio Becerra (5-2-4, 1.28 goals against average, .775 save percentage) anchors the Firebirds in net.
What's Next? - Saturday's other semifinal sees #2 seeded Mercy University (9-3-5, 5-0-3) hosting #3 Queens College (9-7-2, 5-3-0) in another Noon start in Dobbs Ferry. The winners of those semi-finals will advance to the Tournament Championship game on Saturday, November 11, at the highest remaining seed with start time to be determined.
Live Video/Stats - The semifinal matchup between the Spartans and Firebirds will be broadcast LIVE via the ECC Network and the Spartan Sports Network, with Amine Kassoui bringing fans all of the action from Spartan Field. Real-time Statistics will also be available at STACAthletics.com.
TICKET INFORMATION
*ALL SPECTATORS MUST HAVE A TICKET TO GAIN ACCESS TO SPARTAN FIELD AND/OR SIT ALONG THE FENCE LINE ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE FIELD*
Presale
$8 - General Admission
$4 - Students with ID, Senior Citizens, Children Ages 5-12
Free - All STAC Students (Discount Code to be emailed to STAC Email Account)
Children under 5 free for all games
On Game Day
$10 - General Admission
$5 - Students with ID, Senior Citizens, Children Ages 5-12
Free - All STAC Students (Discount Code to be emailed to STAC Email Account)
Children under 5 free for all games
* Tickets must be purchased at the link above. Cash will not be accepted so walkup tickets at the venue must be purchased through the ECC website (QR code will be available at the gate).