For the third consecutive year, the Monmouth University men’s soccer team is headed to the NCAA Tournament.
Freshman midfielder Kalle Sotka (Helsinki, Finland/Makelanrinteen Sports) scored his second goal of the game in the 110th minute to propel the Hawks past Fairleigh Dickinson, 2-1, Sunday afternoon in the Northeast Conference Tournament Championship final. The game was played at Fairfield University’s Lessing Field in Fairfield, Conn.
With the win, the Hawks (14-5-1) advanced to the NCAATournament, where they learned their first-round opponent after publication deadline.
The last two years, the Hawks hosted a first-round game at home on the Great Lawn. In 2009 the Hawks advanced to the second round, beating Connecticut in a shootout. Last year the Hawks lost to Dartmouth College in the first round. The Knights fell to 11-5-3 with the loss .
Sotka was named the NEC Tournament Most Valuable Player, while Anthony Vazquez (Middletown North/ transfer from St. John’s University), R.J. Allen (Old Bridge/St. Joseph’s) and Derek Luke (Bridgewater-Raritan) were named to the All-Tournament Team.
“The effort and the energy put forth by the guys all weekend was incredible,” said Monmouth head coach Robert Mc- Court in a Monmouth press release. “I’m extremely proud of this group of young men, and we’re looking forward to tomorrow’s selection show and playing in the NCAAs.”
Sotka got the Hawks on the board first, collecting Luke’s near miss off the post before depositing it past FDU goalkeeper Jacob Lissek in the 27th minute. The Hawks dominated play in the first half, taking a 9-4 advantage in shots and a 4-0 edge in corner kicks. Jonathan Gonzalez evened the score for FDU in the 65th minute, corralling a loose ball in front of the net before firing past Alex Blackburn (Natick, Mass./Natick) from close range. Karlis Putans was credited with an assist.
Following nearly 20 minutes of scoreless play in overtime, Sotka struck for the second time, unleashing a low shot from 30 yards out that found the bottom right corner of the net past Lissek with just 20 seconds showing on the clock. The play was started by Joseph Schmid (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Valley/ Villanova), who created a quick restart after an FDU foul.
For the game, the Hawks outshot the Knights, 22-10, and took an 11-0 edge on corner kicks. Blackburn earned the win, making three saves, while Lissek took the tough-luck loss, making nine saves.
FDU concluded its season with an 11-5-3 mark. The Hawks continued their recent domination of their Garden State foes. Monmouth has now defeated FDU in seven straight matches and has gone unbeaten in nine straight against the Knights.
Monmouth survived a penalty kick shootout in the NEC semifinals on Nov. 11. The third-seeded Hawks connected on four of five penalty kicks to advance past second-seeded Central Connecticut University, 4-2.
The teams played to a 1-1 draw through regulation and two overtimes. Luke put the Hawks on the scoreboard first, scoring in the fifth minute assisted by Schmid. It was a shot from the top of the box (18 yards) that Schmid directed into the top corner.
CCU tied the match in the 70th minute on Ognen Stamenkovic’s goal.
In the penalty kick shootout that followed, Allen, Schmid, Luke and Vazquez scored for the Hawks.
Blackburn made a critical save for the Hawks where they were leading, 2-1.