WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. (Nov. 5, 2006) – The third-seeded Saint Francis men’s soccer team pressured and had several scoring chances, but couldn’t find the back of the net, and Monmouth’s Damon Wilson scored on a perfect shot at 82 minutes, 1 second to hand the Red Flash a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat on Sunday in a highly entertaining Northeast Conference Championship match, held on Monmouth’s Great Lawn.
Saint Francis, which was making its first appearance in the Northeast Conference Championship match, finished the best season in program history with a 10-7-3 overall record. The squad tied school marks for wins in a season (10) and Northeast Conference wins (6), and set a program standard for points in a conference season (20) in finishing the league schedule with a 6-1-2 record. During the season, the Red Flash had a school-record nine-match unbeaten streak, and wrapped up the year with an 9-2-3 record in the final 14 matches.
The Hawks, who are ranked 16th in the nation, improved to 14-3-3 on the season, and will find out who their next opponent is on Monday after winning the Northeast Conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Wilson received a pass from Tom Gray on the game-winning goal. Wilson made a move on a defender and fired a left-footed laser into the very top right corner of the net, past a diving Brad Williams (San Lorenzo, Calif. / Arroyo).
“It was going to take a special goal today,” said Saint Francis head coach B.J. Craig. “And Monmouth was able to get it from Damon Wilson.”
Williams stopped five shots in the match. He finished his first season as a starter with a 7-5-3 record, including a school record-tying seven shutouts. His 0.76 goals against average broke the school mark of 0.78, set by Bobby Pipech last season. Red Flash goalkeepers have now set new school standards in goals against average the past three seasons.
Juniors Bryce Luetzen (Denver, Colo. / Denver Lutheran), junior Jeremy Tice (Littleton, Colo. / Chatfield) and sophomore Aaron Clapham (Christchurch, New Zealand / Aranui) were named to the NEC All-Tournament team for their efforts.
Clapham had Saint Francis’ best chance of the game just 11 minutes into the contest when he picked a pass out of midair with his back to the goal. He spun and released a one-timer from 26 yards that was targeted for the upper left corner. However, Monmouth goalkeeper Daniel Schenkel made a terrific diving save to keep the game scoreless with 33:57 remaining in the first half.
Schenkel finished the contest with six saves, and registered his 13th shutout of the year.
Less than three minutes later, Tice had another opportunity from just outside the 18-yard box, but fired just high of the net.
The Hawks closed the half with the last two good chances. Gray was in on a breakaway with 13:57 left, but fired wide of the net. Then Chris Riordan headed a ball just wide of an open net off a corner kick with 8:16 remaining.
The pace of the match picked up in the second half with both teams getting good looks at the net. While Monmouth outshot the Red Flash 11-9 in the match, Saint Francis had the edge (7-5) in the second half.
Clapham created another opportunity in the 52nd minute of the contest. He had the ball with two defenders flanking him in the top left corner of the 18-yard box. He made an outstanding move to beat both defenders to get an open look at the net. However, his shot from 16 yards out went into the chest of Schenkel. In the middle of more Red Flash offensive pressure, Clapham had another shot blocked inside the box just two minutes later.
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