Some would say that the Williams men's soccer team beat Middlebury 2-1 in the NESCAC Tournament championship game. Others would say that the Panthers beat themselves. The hard-fought contest ended tragically in overtime for the sixth-seeded Panthers when a defender, in an attempt to clear the ball from the box, inadvertently headed the ball into his own net.
Only a few weeks ago, Middlebury held a 2-3-2 conference record. But in a 3-1 win over Bates on Oct. 25, something must have clicked. The Panthers finished off their regular season schedule by defeating Williams and continued their surprising run well into the NESCAC Tournament. Middlebury beat third-seeded Amherst in the first round 2-1, even though Amherst had previously bested Middlebury in the regular season by a convincing 3-0 margin. In the semifinals, the Panthers avenged another regular season defeat by dealing Wesleyan its first loss of the season.
"When you start to win a couple, belief is infectious," Middlebury coach David Saward said. "I can never truly put my finger on what sparks it. It's funny, because the more I coach, the less I understand it."
"Middlebury had been on a roll," Williams coach Mike Russo added. "They beat us near the end of the season, and then they knocked off two very strong teams in the tournament."
The championship match was even up to the end. The Ephs struck first when freshman Matt Ratajczak scored off a corner kick in the 37th minute, a lead that nearly stood. But with time running out, Middlebury proved that it still had some magic left. Despite the presence of Williams' strong defense, which had only allowed 11 goals during the regular season, the Panthers did not give in.
"We have a very good back four, which is important because most of the teams in our league play through the air," Russo said. "Our back four are all over 6-foot-2. Our goalkeeper is very good in the air, and I think we neutralize that pretty well. The defense has come along over the course of the year to be very well organized."
"If you just float aerial balls to them, you are in trouble," Saward added. "They are going to just eat it up."
It looked as if the Ephs were going to hold on for a win until lightning struck in the 86th minute. Middlebury sophomore Robbie Redmond took advantage of a rare poor clearance by the Williams defense and ripped a low line drive from 25 yards out into the bottom left corner of the net, sending the game into overtime.
In the extra time, however, an unfazed Williams squad regained control of the contest and, a little over six minutes into overtime, a strong attack resulted in the game-winning goal.
"Soccer is a funny game," Russo said. "Own goals happen. In overtime, we came out and we took it to them for a little bit. One of our guys beat his man on the left side and played a cross in. [Senior] Pierre Meloty-Kapella, who is one of our very good strikers, volleyed it.
"I thought it was going in off his volley, but it hit the crossbar," he continued. "It came out to a Middlebury player. I'm sure if he could do it again he would have headed it to the side, but he tried to head it over the goal, and it went in. Those things happen, and that's why you get crosses in. If you put in a good cross, anything can happen."
Rather than be disappointed by the loss, Saward seemed to echo those sentiments.
"Soccer really is the greatest game in the world," he said. "On any day, anybody can beat anybody in any manner. Sometimes those types of things just happen."
As the Panthers' hopes of making the NCAA Tournament rested on securing the automatic bid that goes to the NESCAC champions, their season ended with Sunday afternoon's defeat. Williams, which most likely would have received an at-large bid had it lost, begins its quest for its first national championship since 1995 this Saturday.
"You talk about a tradition of winning; they are a team that has that tradition over a long period of time," said Saward. "They are warriors. They really don't give you anything. They don't make life simple. They work for 90 minutes, and they are all good players. Those are dangerous ingredients: good players and hard work."
