STANDISH, ME – The 2011 season will certainly be an intriguing one for the Saint Joseph's College men's soccer program.
Head Coach Steve Babineau, about to begin his third season as the Monks' skipper, was not satisfied with the results last fall when the team went 6-11-2 overall and 3-5-1 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play. Although the team showed signs of promise at times and held a 6-5-2 record mid-way through the fall, the side stumbled down the stretch and lost six straight to end the season.
Saint Joseph's made the GNAC playoffs in 2010, but suffered an early exit from the conference tourney just one year after capturing the program's first GNAC Championship title.
As a result, Babineau and his staff hit the recruiting trail and the efforts yielded an impressive group of newcomers to help augment a returning corps that includes three starters: Mike Sanfilippo '12 (Walpole, Mass.), Teddy Palmer '13 (Scarborough, Maine) and All-Conference striker Jack LaFreniere '13 (Alton, N.H.).
Other top returners include Jesse West '12 (Enosburg Falls, Vt.) – a team tri-captain along with Sanfilippo and Palmer - Joe Murphy '13 (Poland, Maine), Zak Hollingshead '12 (Westerly, R.I.), Matt Barlion '13 (Auburn, Maine), Ross Suleski '14 (Amesbury, Mass.), Kenny Grade '14 (Hampton, N.H.) and Dan McIntyre '14 (Sparta, N.J.).
The group of fresh faces features several transfers with collegiate soccer experience. Sophomore forward Tyler Gates (Peru, Maine) played for GNAC-rival Johnson & Wales University last fall and paced the Wildcats with five goals as a freshman. Second-year forward Zach Johnson (Westbrook, Maine) appeared in 19 games for Lasell College – another conference foe – in 2009 and tallied two goals and three assists for the Lasers, and forward Alex Day '13 (Portland, Maine/Cheverus) played two seasons for Southern Maine Community College and was a key player for the Seawolves as the team advanced to the conference championship.
Top first-year players include midfielders Jose Ossers (Bradford, Mass.), Jason Wade (South Hampton, N.H.), Ali Hersi (Lewiston, Maine), Fabrice Iraduha (Portland, Maine) and Ryan Jordan (Standish, Maine). Jarrick Russo '15 (Westbrook, Maine), a 6'4 back, should help beef up the Monks' back line this season.
The development of the incoming group will certainly play an important role in the team's results this year as the Monks attempt to replace the contributions made by the departed senior class – a quintet of four-year players: Paul Robins, Joe Happnie – both All-GNAC players - Eamonn Harrigan, Brandon Noltkamper and Banak Thiwat.
A young and athletic team with 17 freshmen and sophomores, the Monks will be a fun team to watch as the club looks to play an exciting brand of soccer this fall. If the side comes together quickly and the growing pains often endured by a youthful team are minimal, Saint Joseph's could jump right back into the thick of the GNAC title hunt as early as this season.
