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| Anthony Petrarca '06 |
The Friars’ men’s soccer team kicked its way into the BIG EAST Tournament in an impressive reversal of fortune this fall.
Coming off a 2004 season in which it lost all 16 of its games, including nine one-goal defeats, PC went undefeated in its first nine games this fall. The Friars made it into the national rankings and finished the regular season with a 5-3-7 record.
Furthermore, their 3-3-4 conference record qualified them for a postseason tournament berth. They were scheduled to visit the University of Cincinnati in a first-round game on November 2, with the winner advancing to the BIG EAST quarterfinals on the weekend of November 5-6.
Highlights of the regular season included a 3-2 BIG EAST victory at then 25th-ranked Georgetown and a 0-0 conference tie with St. John’s, then ranked sixth nationally. PC’s other victories came against Maine (4-0), Sacred Heart (2-0), Syracuse (3-2), and Pittsburgh (1-0). The team’s three losses all were by one goal, including a 3-2 overtime setback at Connecticut, which was ranked No. 10 in the nation at the time.
The Friars, coached by Chaka Daley ’96, played in nine overtime games during the regular season for a school record.
Among the team leaders, goaltender Chris Konopka ’07 (Toms River, N.J.) has spearheaded the Friars’ strong defensive play in 2005. He recorded four shutouts and posted a goals-against average of 0.96 in regular-season play. Forwards Eoin Lynch ’06 (Yarmouth, Maine) and Tim Ritter ’09 (Weston, Mass.) and midfielder Ryan Maduro '08 (Bristol, R.I.) have paced the offense. Lynch posted team-leading totals of seven goals and 18 points during the regular season, while Ritter and Maduro were close behind with 15 and 14 points, respectively.