Thanks to a golden goal off the foot of Marlboro High School graduate Dave Nigro, the Monmouth University men’s soccer team is back in the NCAA Tournament.
The Hawks defeated Fairfield University, 2-1, in double overtime to win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship on Nov. 16 on the Quinnipiac Soccer Field in Connecticut.
Nigro scored his golden goal in the 104th minute of the conference championship match.
With the win, Monmouth (11-3-6) advances to its fifth NCAA Tournament in the last nine years under head coach Robert Mc- Court. Fairfield ends its season at 8-5-7.
On Nov. 17, the Hawks learned that they will play at Xavier University (Ohio) from the Big East (13-5-2) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 20. The winner will play No. 5-seed Indiana University in the next round.
Emmanuel Senyah Agyemang (Kumasi, Ghana/KNUST University) was named the MAAC Championship Most Valuable Player, while Nigro, Matt Jeffery (Freehold Township) and Derek Luke (Bridgewater Raritan) were also named to the All-MAAC Tournament Team.
“It’s absolutely special,” McCourt said in a university press release. “We talked all year about sticking with the game plan and getting through these tough moments and with all the injuries we had, especially today. We’d like to dedicate this one to Jelani [Williams], who broke his leg in [the] semifinal.
“We’ve had a lot of adversity this year, and the team chemistry has been fantastic,” he continued. “We’ve talked all year about how we feel we’re the best team in the league, we feel we’re an NCAA Tournament team and, no matter who has to step in and get the job done for us, they will. And sometimes it was a little tough. We had a few ties in the league that maybe could’ve gone our way, but didn’t go our way. But the guys just stuck with the game plan, so I’m really proud of them.”
After a scoreless first half, Fairfield struck first in the 72nd minute. Jordan Ayris unleashed a rocket into the right upper corner from 25 yards out to stake the Stags to a 1-0 lead. A red card against Fairfield’s Angus Hastings in the 81st minute gave Monmouth a penalty kick that Agyemang kicked low inside the right post for the equalizer.
Playing up a man, the Hawks dominated the overtime, holding Fairfield without a shot in the first overtime.
The Hawks threatened in the 103rd minute with a corner but couldn’t get a shot off. But in the 104th minute, Fairfield goalie Matt Turner punched away David Acuna Camacho’s (Heredia, Costa Rica) cross into the box. Nigro was waiting for the ball just inside the top of the 18-yard box. He played it off his chest down to the pitch and hit a left-footed strike off one bounce inside the right post for the golden goal.
For the game, Monmouth outshot Fairfield, 18-7, including a 10- 4 edge in shots on goal. Monmouth also took an 8-0 advantage in corner kicks. Monmouth goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky (DePaul Catholic) made three saves in the win. Turner made eight saves in defeat.
Jeffery Defensive Player of the Year
Hawks senior back Jeffery was named the MAAC Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive year. He was one of six Hawks named All-MAAC.
Senior midfielder Dom Sarle (Huntington, N.Y./Bradenton Prep) joined Jeffery on the first team, while senior back Agyemang, junior back Luke, sophomore forward Nigro and sophomore goalkeeper Klenofsky earned All-MAAC Second Team honors.
“I’m really happy with the recognition that our team got,” Mc- Court said. “I thought it was well deserved. The team as a whole works really hard, and we’ve got some talented players. So I’m really happy that they got the deserved recognition tonight.”
In addition, five Hawks were named to the MAAC All-Academic Team. Luke and Sarle were joined by seniors Bryant Avalos (Monsignor Donovan) and Tim Ballard (Middletown North) and junior John Egan (Smithtown, N.Y./Hauppauge). To be eligible for the MAAC All-Academic Team, student-athletes must complete two semesters at their institution and hold a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale.