Men's Soccer Pounces into Playoffs

by Nathaniel Lowenthal

The Boston University Terriers Men’s soccer team (8-6-2 overall, 2-4 America East) will be returning to the America East Conference Tournament, which begins on November 7. This time, however, they will not be the favorites for the tournament, but the #6 seed.

On Wednesday, with a 2-1 victory over the University of Vermont Catamounts the Terriers secured the final spot in the America East Conference Tournament.

The Terriers relied on two goals from sophomore forward Stephen Knox (’12) to keep their season’s hopes alive. Knox redirected a pass from senior midfielder Samuel Appiah (’10) in the 32nd minute to put BU up 1-0. In the opening minute of the 2nd half, Knox took a rebound shot off of his own shot and buried it past Vermont goalkeeper Tom Critz.

With five minutes to go, UVM was able to make things interesting, as Yannick Lewis sent home a pass from teammate Marty Galvin. The Terrier defense was able to prevail in the remaining minutes, and give hope to what some believed was a “lost season.”

Senior goalkeeper Hrafn Davidsson (’10) made three saves for the Terriers, as did Critz for UVM. The Catamounts outshot the Terriers 11-9 overall. In the end, it was Knox’s two scores that ended up being the difference in the game.

The playoff picture is still not clear for the Terriers and the rest of America East, as the 2-5 seeds are still up for play. Therefore, the Terriers could face Binghamton, Hartford, Stony Brook, or UMBC. The only win against this group for BU came against Stony Brook at Nickerson Field.

Because they own the tournament’s lowest seed at #6, the Terriers will be without the friendly confines of Nickerson Field. The America East Conference Tournament will begin on November 7, but before that, the Terriers have one final game this season at Albany on Halloween. Maybe the Terriers will spook the Great Danes.

After that, it’s a brand new season.