TOP NOTCH(O)
Bowdoin men’s soccer (4–0–1; 1–0–1 NESCAC) played to a 0–0 draw against Connecticut College (3–0–2; 1–0–2 NESCAC) on Sunday afternoon at Pickard Field. Alex Ainsworth ’26 made four saves for the Polar Bears, who were outshot by Conn.
Last Friday night found Bowdoin men’s soccer tied 0-0 with Bates ten minutes into the second half. In front of a crowd packed with equal parts Bowdoin and Bates fans, striker Felipe Rueda Duran ’26 threaded the ball between three Bates defenders and launched it forward, where it collided with the cleat of his fellow sophomore, Mateo Pacelli ’26, and then promptly made contact with the back of the net.
GOAL DIGGER
In the first nighttime home game in Bowdoin men’s soccer program history, the Polar Bears defeated the University of New England (UNE) 5–1. The win brings the sixth-ranked team to a 1–0–0 record to kick off its season.
Tyler Huck ’26 does not care all that much about the award he won last season.
The midfielder was named the 2022 NESCAC Men’s Soccer Rookie of the Year, a feat fully deserved on the back of a dream start to Huck’s Bowdoin career.
During March, Bowdoin students have the opportunity to take time away from their busy course loads and escape Brunswick’s lingering cold. Many choose to travel home and visit family, while others go on alternative spring break trips or travel across the globe.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
The men’s hockey team (4–0–0; 2–0–0 NESCAC) defeated Johnson & Wales University and UMass-Boston last weekend in its first games at Sidney J. Watson Arena. Against Johnson & Wales on Saturday, forward Andy Stoneman ’23 put Bowdoin on the board with fewer than four minutes remaining in the first period.
All eyes were on the third-seeded men’s soccer team (12–1–5; 6–1–3 NESCAC) last weekend as it hosted the first two rounds of the NCAA Division III Tournament at Pickard Field. Bowdoin defeated the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (11–5–6; USMMA) 3–1 on Saturday and then faced Vassar College (9–3–7) on Sunday.
NATIONAL TREASURE
The men’s soccer team picked up an NCAA at-large tournament bid on Monday and is set to host the First and Second Round Regional at Pickard Field this weekend. The Polar Bears (11–1–4; 6–1–3 NESCAC) will face off against the United States Merchant Marine Academy (11–4–6) tomorrow.
The men’s soccer team (11–1–4; 6–1–3 NESCAC) lost to Connecticut (Conn) College (7–5–4; 3–5–2 NESCAC) in a 3–1 in penalty kick shootout in the NESCAC quarterfinals. The match was 1–1 through 110 minutes of play. The Polar Bears entered the tournament as the first seed for the first time since 2010.
The men’s soccer team finished as the first seed in the NESCAC and will host Connecticut College (Conn.) in the NESCAC tournament quarterfinals this Saturday. It is the first time Bowdoin secured the first seed in the tournament since 2010.
Last Saturday, men’s soccer (10–1–2; 5–1–2 NESCAC) striker Ronaldo Cabral ’25 scored his sixth goal of the season against Hamilton College (8–1–4; 4–1–4 NESCAC) and sealed Bowdoin’s 4–0 win over the third ranked Continentals. The win, in addition to Wednesday’s win over Colby College (4–3–7; 1–3–5 NESCAC), propelled the Polar Bears to first place in the NESCAC.
BRUNSWICK—There wasn’t a cloud in the sky when men’s soccer cruised past Colby College (4-3-7; 1–3–5 NESCAC) on Wednesday at Pickard Men’s Soccer Field. The number 14 ranked Bowdoin team now boasts a record of 10-1-2 (5-1-2 NESCAC).
BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES
The sailing team finished first, second and tenth overall out of the 13 teams competing at the Hewitt Trophy on Harpswell Sound last weekend. Bowdoin also competed in the Open Atlantic Coast Dinghy Championship against 18 teams and finished third overall to qualify for the Atlantic Coast Championship at the U.S.
The men’s soccer team (6–1–1; 2–1–1 NESCAC) is no longer undefeated after a 1-1 tie to Middlebury College (4–1–2; 1–1–2 NESCAC) and a 2–1 loss to Williams College (3–0–4; 2–0–2 NESCAC) last weekend. Prior to those two matches, the team was 5–0–0, scoring more than four goals in three of those matches.
On Saturday, men’s soccer defeated reigning national champions and top-ranked Connecticut College (Conn.) 1–0 after winning a rainy match on Monday 5–0 against the Maine Maritime Academy. The team is off to a promising start after going 5–0–0 (4–0–0 NESCAC) for the first time since 1976.
Midfielder Harry Cooper ’22, who’s having his best season yet, led the men’s soccer team with three goals in its 6-0 shutout victory on Tuesday, September 6. As a senior, he hopes to shape his team’s culture as one of enjoyment and high-quality play.
BRUNSWICK—Men’s soccer extended its undefeated run to three games after beating University of Southern Maine (2-1-2) 4-1 on Tuesday afternoon. Having conceded just two goals during their three matches and scoring 12, the Polar Bears are now 3-0-0 (1-0-0 NESCAC).
With its season opener coming up on Tuesday, Sept. 6 against the University of New England, the men’s soccer team has been working hard to prepare for what they hope will be a strong season. Members of the team are utilizing an intense preseason schedule to build their skills and take advantage of one of the most talented rosters in recent history.
For the first time since the NESCAC’s founding in 1971, the conference has given fall sports—such as football, soccer, volleyball and field hockey—the green light to hold team practices over the course of the spring.
“The NESCAC provided flexibility this year in light of schools returning from essentially a year away from traditional athletic activity, and permitting the non-traditional season … was one of the changes identified that could positively impact students returning to competitive athletics,” Ashmead White Director of Athletics Tim Ryan wrote in an email to the Orient.
BYRD SOARS TO THE TOP
Last Thursday, men’s soccer star Drake Byrd ’21 was named to the All-American Second Team and the All-NESCAC First Team for Division III men’s soccer. En route to his honors, he had a stellar senior campaign, recording five goals and seven assists during the 2021 season.
WINTER SPORTS FLURRY
The winter athletic season will be in full swing soon. Competitions begin November 13, headlined by the women’s basketball team facing Nazareth College in the University of New England (UNE) Tip-Off Tournament in Biddeford and the men’s basketball team taking on Thomas College at home.
History can be rewritten, as the men’s soccer team proved last weekend. On Saturday, the unranked Polar Bears defeated the second-ranked team in Division III, Amherst College, by a score of 1-0.
Led by a thrilling header from Charles Ward ’22, the Polar Bears beat Amherst in a men’s soccer competition for the first time in 13 years.
ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT PREPARES FOR INDOOR HOME COMPETITION
The College will be hosting its first indoor athletic events of the fall season this weekend as the volleyball team faces Wesleyan College today and Connecticut College tomorrow. The players will be allowed to use their discretion to decide whether they want to wear masks during the game or not, but most of them will likely err on the side of caution and keep the masks on.
MEN’S SOCCER KICKS OFF SEASON
In their first game of the season and the College’s first fall athletic competition, the men’s soccer team defeated the University of New England (UNE) by a score of 3-0. Drake Byrd ’21 netted two goals, and Minseo Bae ’22 added the third.
On May 3, Eva Dowd ’22 posted a one-question poll to her Instagram story: ‘If you’re a woman, would you be interested in a club soccer team at Bowdoin?’ The response was overwhelming—with over 60 interested students and a host of alumni expressing their support, Dowd felt empowered to try and kickstart a team.
Editor’s note 05/02/2021 at 10:28 a.m.: A previous version of this article stated that the NESCAC formed in 1999. This article has been updated to reflect the fact that this was when Bowdoin joined the NESCAC, not when the NESCAC formed.
An estimated 10,000 spectators flocked to Whittier Field one Saturday afternoon in the fall of 1960 to witness what the Boston Globe referred to as the game of the week between Bowdoin and the University of Maine.
BIG BRAINS
Both the men’s and women’s soccer teams were awarded College Team Academic Awards by the United Soccer Coaches Colleges Services Program this past week for their academic achievements during the 2019-2020 academic year. Every rostered member of both teams maintained a GPA of 3.0 or better on a 4.0 scale for the entirety of the academic year.
The Bowdoin Hall of Honor, founded in 2002, biannually inducts classes of five to six outstanding members of Bowdoin’s athletic community. Candidates are usually nominated by other alumni, and the finalists are chosen by a committee of seven former Bowdoin athletes.
In a normal year, the Bowdoin men’s soccer team would be in the midst of a busy season. They’d be practicing constantly and traveling for games almost every other day. But in a unique fall, one where the season is cancelled and practices are limited, the team is using a variety of tactics to stay in shape and bond as a team.
It is no coincidence that many of my earliest memories involve the game I fell in love with as a child. At three years old, I was watching my dad coach youth soccer. By the age of four, I was kicking a ball around with no other motive other than the pure, unbridled joy of it.
The technological era of sports is fully upon us. For years, pro sports teams have had access to tools providing them with advanced metrics and film breakdowns. However, these computational and quantitative tools are no longer exclusively used by professional teams.
This Saturday, the men’s soccer team will face its longtime Achilles’ heel, Amherst. Bowdoin has not beaten Amherst since 2014, when the Polar Bears beat the Mammoths in penalty kicks in the NESCAC championship. Before this, Bowdoin’s last win against Amherst was in 2010.
Last Saturday morning, the members of the Bowdoin men’s (9-5-2, 5-3-2 NESCAC) and women’s (7-7-2, 3-6-1 NESCAC) soccer teams donned their jerseys and laced up their cleats for what was likely both teams’ final game of the season.
After a rocky start to the season, the men’s soccer team (9-3-2, 5-2-2 NESCAC) has hit its stride and is currently entering the postseason with the momentum of a 7-1-2 record in its last 10 matches.
A liberal arts education is tailored to fit each student’s unique interests and career path, but as Jake Stenquist ’19 realized, there was neither a major nor minor at Bowdoin that would fully prepare him for his experience in the Marines’ Officer Candidate School (OCS).
Men’s JV soccer may know the basketball team’s schedule as well as the players do. Tim Gilbride, the men’s basketball head coach for 34 years, doubles as the head coach for JV soccer.
The team ended its undefeated season just before Fall Break.
All eyes were on the men’s soccer team (2-2-0) on Tuesday as it took the field in a non-conference game against Husson University (1-4-1) that ended in a 2-1 win for the Polar Bears. Over opening weekend, the team lost two games to Amherst (2-0-0) and St.
On Monday, the Bowdoin men’s soccer team (10-4-3, NESCAC 6-2-2) received the news that it was one of five NESCAC schools to earn an at-large bid to advance to the NCAA DIII tournament. After a 1-0 defeat by Middlebury in double overtime at the NESCAC semifinals, men’s soccer is looking forward to redemption at the tournament, as they go into their first game against Rutgers-Newark (20-2) this Saturday.
With three complete shutout games within the last week and a half, Stevie Van Siclen ’18, goalkeeper of the Bowdoin men’s soccer team (10-3-2, NESCAC 6-2-2), elevated his total number of career shutouts to 25—an all time high for career shutouts at Bowdoin. Van Siclen currently has a three-game shutout streak after games against Colby, Connecticut College and, most recently, Tufts. While Van Siclen’s immense skill and leadership on the field has only grown throughout his four years on the team, this year his presence has proved especially instrumental in guiding and unifying the team as the Polar Bears head into the playoffs.
The Bowdoin men’s soccer team (6-2, NESCAC 3-1) had a successful weekend, earning back-to-back wins against Middlebury (5-2, NESCAC 2-2) and the University of Southern Maine (4-5).
In Saturday’s game against Middlebury, Moctar Niang ’19 scored two header goals.
After a disappointing 2-1 loss to Amherst in the semifinals last season, men’s soccer is off to a strong start after beating UNE 2-0 on Thursday. The team hopes to carry the momentum to the first NESCAC match, where it will again face Amherst.