Courtesy of Brian Beard

In the latest chapter of the Bowdoin-Colby rivalry, the Bowdoin men’s soccer team (3–0–0; 1–0–0 NESCAC) came out on top with a 2–1 victory over Colby (1–1–0; 0–1–0 NESCAC) last Saturday.

While the Polar Bears played on the road against the Mules, midfielder Jack Banks ’27 emphasized that the energy remained high, unfazed by the Colby crowd.

“The energy going into Saturday was great,” Banks said. “We had a really good preseason with scrimmages against Harvard, Tufts and a good first game against [the University of New England]. So I think all the energy was going in the right way, and nothing else really mattered.”

Eight minutes into the duel, Bowdoin was awarded their second corner kick. Capitalizing on this opportunity, a header from Banks found the back of the net after a tactical cross from Tyler Huck ’26.

“I felt the momentum was going in our direction,” Banks said. “[Huck] put in a really good ball, and they put a smaller guy on me, so I didn’t really have to do all too much. Just put my head on it and celebrate with the boys.”

After a foul by Colby, the Polar Bears found themselves in control with another set piece just ten minutes after the first goal. Huck fired the ball 30 yards out to find the foot of defender Lucas Nuernberg ’29, who would give the Polar Bears the 2–0 lead.

Banks commented on the strong presence and performances the first years bring to the team environment.

“[Nuernberg], along with the eight other first years, are all very energetic and really good soccer players, so they’re getting lots of good minutes,” Banks said. “They contribute to the team both on and off the field immensely.”

In the 39th minute, Colby was awarded a penalty kick and cut the lead in half by burying the shot into the bottom left corner. Despite conceding a goal, goalkeeper Alex Ainsworth ’26 emphasized keeping a positive attitude to close out the half.

“The NESCAC is a league where anything could happen,” Ainsworth said. “It’s always a battle, but we were always in control of the game, so all that mattered was taking a deep breath and reminding ourselves we were going to win the game.”

Going into the half, Bowdoin held a 2–1 edge over Colby. By the numbers, Bowdoin demonstrated dominance over Colby in the first half, recording more shots and fewer saves.

Neither team would score again as regulation time ended. Ainsworth commented on the team successfully closing out the duel.

“The boys did a really good job of bunkering in, absorbing pressure and making my life easy,” Ainsworth said. “We didn’t really give away too many chances.”

After Saturday’s win over Colby, the men’s team faced Husson University (0–3–1) the following Tuesday. With goals from Banks, Felipe Rueda Duran ’26, Mateo Pacelli ’26 and Masai Gordon ’28, the Polar Bears trampled Husson 4–0.

Ainsworth highlighted the team’s mindset and approach to the successful season so far.

“We’ve got such good momentum going and for a difficult sport with a lot of sacrifice sometimes, for it to be fun at the same time really means a lot for this team in keeping motivation high,” Ainsworth said.

Tomorrow at noon, the men’s soccer team will play defending NESCAC champions Connecticut College (1–1–1; 0–1–0 NESCAC) at home.