Blackbirds and Terriers Vie for NEC Men's Soccer Crown

Today in downtown Brooklyn, local rivals LIU and St. Francis meet in the 2015 Northeast Conference Men’s Soccer Tournament, with a berth in the 2015 NCAA Men’s Soccer Tournament on the line.

At 3 p.m. on LIU Field, top-seed LIU Brooklyn (11-5-2; 7-0 NEC; 6th in the most recent NSCAA NCAA Division I Men’s Northeast Poll) will face fourth-seeded and two-time defending NEC champion St. Francis Brooklyn (10-3-4; 3-2-2 NEC; 7th in the NSCAA poll) in NEC semifinal action. The two schools — separated by twelve city blocks — have one of the closest rivalries in NCAA D1 athletics.

The other NEC semifinal features second-seed Saint Francis, PA (10-5-3; 5-2 NEC; 9th in the NSCAA poll) against third-seeded Robert Morris (10-7-1; 4-2-1 NEC) at 12 p.m. The Red Flash and the Colonials are also bitter rivals; the two universities are located within 100 miles of each other in Western Pennsylvania.

The main storyline of this year’s NEC tournament is the remarkable turnaround by LIU. Winners of nine straight, the Blackbirds doubled their win total from last year behind stellar play by goalie Logan Keys. The red-shirt junior is undefeated this season (10-0-1) yielding a meager .36 goals a game. Combined with eight freshmen, including leading scorer Rasmus Hansen (7 goals), LIU head coach TJ Kostecky’s squad reached double digits in wins for the first time since 2002.

The Blackbirds, seeking a fifth NEC title and hosting their conference tournament for the first time, went undefeated in regular season conference play for only the second time in program history (the 1985 squad went 6-0-0).

One knowledgeable observer believes that LIU’s success will continue this weekend. Former head coach Arnie Ramirez, who helmed the Blackbirds the last time they faced the Terriers in NEC tournament play, is confident going into today’s match.

“I understood that there were a lot of freshmen who had potential,” Ramirez said about LIU, which started the season 2-5-2. “Even though they don’t have a true center forward, they have excellent midfield play and their goal keeper [Keys] is superb.”

Ramirez reminisced about LIU’s 2-0 win over top seed St. Francis in 1997, derailing a Terrier team that had also captured consecutive NEC championships.

“I have great memories [of that game] because we were ranked fourth, so we had to play St. Francis in the first game and we beat [them]” on the way to a NEC title.

Last week’s 1-0 victory over their cross-Flatbush rival capped LIU’s undefeated NEC campaign while securing the Carlo-Arnie Cup, given annually to the winner of the Battle of Brooklyn. By virtue of their recent success — the Blackbirds have outscored opponents 17-3 during their win streak - the host team should have all the momentum going into Friday’s rematch.

But underestimating the Terriers is a dangerous proposition; in the past two NEC tourneys St. Francis — seeded fourth (2013) and third (2014) — captured NEC titles in overtime. Striker Andy Cormack, who delivered a golden goal both years, will look to assist the Terriers’ quest for a third straight NEC title, this time from the sidelines as an assistant coach.

In an interview with Bryan Fonseca for SFC Today, Terrier head coach Tom Giovatto, now in his ninth year in Brooklyn Heights, remains confident despite the Blackbirds’ success.

“We have a tremendous amount of respect for LIU and what they’ve done this year, it’s been incredible,” Giovatto said.

The consensus pick to win the NEC in this year’s preseason coaches poll, the Terriers are a focused bunch that knows how to finish.

“We don’t really care who it is, we just want to advance to the finals,” Giovatto said. “It doesn’t really matter who we play, we know we have to beat everybody and we’re just going to get prepared as well as we can for Friday and try to take down LIU.”

Despite the Terriers’ experience, a young Blackbird squad has made a believer of Arnie Ramirez.

“This year, if they play their game, LIU should win the whole thing.”

NOTES:
The NEC Men’s Soccer Tournament takes place Friday, Nov. 13 through Sunday, Nov. 15 on the LIU Brooklyn campus (Ashland Place between DeKalb Avenue and Willoughby Street). 1st semifinal is at noon: Saint Francis U. (#2) vs. Robert Morris (#3). Top-seed LIU Brooklyn will face fourth-seed St. Francis Brooklyn at 3:00 p.m. The winners advance to Sunday’s final at noon.

Ticket Prices: $8 for adults, $4 from senior citizens and children between the ages of 11-18. Children under the age of 11 and NEC students with an institutional I.D. will be admitted free.

The NEC Tournament champion automatically qualifies for the 2015 NCAA Men’s Tournament.

PHOTO CAPTION: St. Francis Brooklyn in enemy territory; warming up on LIU Brooklyn’s field