Michigan Team Stands between Hawks , Trip to National Championship Tournament
The College of Southern Maryland men’s soccer team will play for the North Central District Championship Saturday, Nov. 5 at the college’s La Plata Campus. As the Region XX champions, the CSM Hawks will play the Region XII champion Schoolcraft College Ocelots from Livonia, Mich., at 1 p.m. The winner of that contest will advance to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Tournament. The Ocelots, (22-0) are ranked No. 1 in the nation.
“Saturday’s game means more than all the games before it,” said CSM Men’s Soccer Coach Derek Dyson. “It is the chance for this team to further engrave their mark on the history of CSM. This will be the biggest game of their careers so far, and as a first-year head coach, for me as well.”
CSM’s men’s soccer team won the Region XX Men’s Soccer Championship on Sunday, Oct. 30, defeating Harford Community College 3-2.
“Having just won a regional title, I have to say that it has been rewarding to work with these young men. I have seen many of them mature as players and, more importantly, as people,” said Dyson. The success did not come without adversity, said Dyson of the challenges the team faced when players were injured. “Thanks to the efforts of trainers Nick Williams and Sarah Tipsword, we have been able to treat the injuries and continue to be successful.” Tipsword is CSM’s assistant director of athletics and Williams is athletics coordinator.
For the first time, due to this year’s soccer field renovation, the Hawks will have a home field advantage. Dedicated during an on-field ceremony Sept.16, the La Plata Campus soccer field is a professional-quality, state-of-the-art playing surface that is now considered among the top soccer fields in the conference.
“[CSM President] Dr. Brad Gottfried and Michelle Ruble (CSM director of Student Life and Athletics) have done well to provide a new pitch for us to play on and we owe them some return on investment,” Dyson said.
The NJCAA National Tournament will be hosted by Paradise Valley Community College in Arizona from November 17–20, 2011.
For information, visit http://www.csmd.edu/Athletics.