The Berkeley College men's and women's cross country teams as well as the New Jersey men's soccer team competed at the 2016 USCAA National Championships in Virginia Beach, Virginia on Friday. All three teams were eager for the action to begin after arriving in Virginia on Wednesday evening, and all squads had an opportunity to showcase their talents yesterday at the Princess Anne Athletic Complex.
For the Knights' men's cross country team, Berkeley College finished 20th amongst 22 teams that scored in the 8K event. Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Runner of the Year Anthony Argueta was the first Knight to cross the finish line for his team, as he completed the course in 39th place with a time of 28:15. Alfred Andrade was the next Knight to finish, as he came in 109th place amongst all runners that scored with a time of 33:41. Aaron Griffith (121st – 36:52), Albert Jordan (132nd – 40:16), Stanley Jeantly (137th – 42:19) rounded out the scoring for the Knights.
Berkeley College's women's team came in 21st place amongst 22 scoring teams. Standout Mira Brodin was the first Knight to complete the women's 6K course, as she finished in 74th place overall with a time of 28:04. Pamela Andrade was the next Knight to finish, as she came in 104th place with a time of 31:45. The three another Berkeley College runners to count towards the team's final score included Kimberly Fulgenico-Matos (112th overall – 33:08), Amanda Ekornes (117th overall, 34:02), and Marilyn Contreras (123rd overall, 35:18). Following the two races, Head Coach Adam Rosen gave his thoughts on the efforts of his two teams.
"This was a great couple of days for the Berkeley College men's and women's cross country teams, and I feel this trip to Virginia Beach will always be a memorable experience for all the student-athletes that were here," Rosen said. "The runners were in good spirits the entire time, and there was plenty of team-bonding and encouragement throughout the week. The merging of the New York and New Jersey cross country teams prior to this season turned out to be a huge success in year number one of the transition, as the talent levels of our squads has increased, and we've become more competitive as a program. I feel that we are building the foundation and starting to establish a winning culture based on the season that we just had. I'm very proud of all of the hard work that the student-athletes put in his season, and their commitment from the summer up until now has been evident all season long. We are all excited about the future here."
Cleary University won the women's National Championship, placing three runners in the top seven and finishing with a total team score of 59 for the morning. Cleary University took the title by edging out Berea College who finish as the runner up with a score of 69. On the men's side, SUNY Delhi took home the National Championship, as all five of the runners that scored for the Broncos placed amongst the top 16 for the race. SUNY Delhi completed the 8K course as a team with a score of 46, edging Berea College (runner up – 2nd place – score of 60).
Berkeley College's New Jersey men's soccer team – which entered the 2016 USCAA National Men's Soccer Tournament as the No. 9 seed – took on No. 4 seeded Dean College on Friday afternoon. Dean College had lost to No. 5 seeded Florida National a day earlier, so the Bulldogs needed to defeat the Knights to stay alive in Pool D. The Knights went into the game with confidence following a 10-6 regular season.
After the teams played 21 minutes of scoreless soccer, Dean College erupted for four goals in a span of 14:43 to run away from the Knights. Justin Freitas accounted for the first Bulldog goal, collecting a pass from Matt Rodrigues before burying the ball into the net to give his team a 1-0 lead at the 21:49 mark. 5:48 later – Dean College increased its lead to 2-0 when Leandro Alves recorded a goal (Freitas picked up the assist on the goal) at 27:37. Edmar Vieira (from Samuel Fonseca at 28:44) and Murilo Zanette (unassisted at 36:32) scored the other goals during the session for the Bulldogs, as Dean College took a commanding 4-0 lead into the half.
The Bulldogs would add two more goals in the second half by Yuri Mascarenhas and Edmar Vieira to account for the 6-0 finals score. Following the finals core, Head Coach Bruno Ferreira shed some light on the defeat.
"I felt as though our guys came to Virginia Beach with plenty of optimism," Ferreira said. "They came prepared and played hard, but Dean College was just better than us today. They scored the first goal and gradually built their lead from there, and we weren't able to generate anything offensively. The positive is that we're still alive in this pool, and we have an opportunity to give it everything we have tomorrow against Florida National."
Berkeley College is still alive in Pool D, but the Knights will need a strong showing against Florida National on Saturday afternoon to win the pool and advance to Sunday's semifinals. The Knights and the Conquistadors will face off at 2:00pm on Saturday.
