College Matchday: No.10 Tampa at No.9 Lees-McRae

WHEN: Saturday, 7 p.m., Banner Elk, N.C.

NEED TO KNOW: The University of Tampa will try to return to the NCAA Division II Final Four for the second consecutive season as the Spartans travel to face Lees-McRae.

The Bobcats are led by Berin Boracic, who was named the Southeast Region Player of the Year on Tuesday after scoring 15 goals and adding eight assists this season. The Bobcats also saw defenders Luke Duffy and Dale Parker and goalkeeper Sean Paradise named to the Southeast first team, an indicator of the strength the Bobcats possess at the back.

Tampa’s Pascal Milien will be the key player charged with breaking down that defense for the Spartans. Milien has been spectacular this season, scoring 12 goals and adding seven assists, using his speed and skill to break down opposing defenses. He has been ably assisted by Lister Warren, who has added 11 goals, and Greg O’Connor, who has recorded seven assists. Also with seven assists is Dan Ingvarsson, who will likely play a critical role in trying to close down Boracic, and also in creating chances for the Spartans from set pieces.

Colleges: Spartans move into NCAA quarterfinals

The University of Tampa moved one win away from a return to the NCAA Division II Tournament Final Four as the No.10-ranked Spartans defeated host and No.5-ranked Rollins 2-1 in the second round of the tournament on Sunday afternoon.

The Spartans got first half goals from Dan Ingvarsson and Greg O’Connor put the Spartans ahead, but it took some excellent goalkeeping from Ryan Thompson, and a late goal to be denied on an offside call, for the Spartans to advance to the quarterfinals.

“It gets us one step closer and we have to continue to improve in a lot of areas,” Spartans coach Adrian Bush said. “We will enjoy this and it’s back to work for our players tomorrow. With our staff, there are no days off; our prep is immediate.”

The Spartans opened brightly, and Ingvarsson opened the scoring in the 26th minute as he curled a free kick from just outside the penalty area into the net for his fifth goal of the season. The Tars then went close to tying the game as the Tars leading scorer J.D. Greunewald was denied by Thompson before O’Connor latched onto a pass by Brian Fekete and fired a shot in from the left corner of the penalty area.

Trailing 2-0 at halftime, the Tars increased their intensity to start the second half, but it was matched for the most part by the Spartans as neither side was able to gain an upper hand. That changed midway through the half as an angled cross into the penalty area from Jacob Deloach was headed home by Bradley Welch to make it a one-goal game.

The Tars then appeared to have tied the game with nine minutes to play, but Dennis Chin had his goal denied by the assistant referee's raised flag, signalling an offside call. Four minutes later, Thompson kept the Spartans ahead as he punched clear a header by Thomas Biddenger, and Tampa was able to hold on for the final five minutes.

“We want to tip our hats to Rollins, their coaching staff, and program,” Bush said. “This is a program with class and an outstanding team. This was a great win on the road against a very good team.”

The Spartans will travel to face No.9-ranked Lees-McRae in the quarterfinals on Saturday after the Bobcats defeated No.24 Anderson University 3-2 in their second round contest.

College Matchday: No.10 Tampa at No.5 Rollins

WHEN: Sunday, 1 p.m., Cahall-Sandspur Field

NEED TO KNOW: Tampa will try to earn a little revenge on the only team to defeat it in the regular season as it tries to advance to the NCAA Division II Tournament South Region final against Rollins.

Rollins won the first meeting 3-2, the Tars jumping out to a 3-0 lead before the Spartans rally through goals by Dan Ingvarsson and Greg O’Connor fell short. The Tars subsequently lost twice, both to Barry, but earned their revenge for those defeats with a 1-0 win against the Buccaneers in Friday’s 1-0 overtime victory, Daniel Salazar scoring the only goal with just over three minutes to play before the game went to a shootout.

Tampa will look to make a far better start than they did in their first game against the Tars, as they were able to in their 3-1 win against Lynn on Friday. Pascal Milien gave the Spartans an eighth-minute lead against the Fighting Knights, and while Lynn tied the game 11 minutes later, Jordan Moses soon restored the lead before Chris O’Brien added a late insurance goal.

The winner of Sunday’s game will face the winner of Lees-McRae and Anderson (S.C.), who also play Sunday at 2 p.m.

Colleges: Anderson's strike stuns Spartans, gives Barry SSC title

TAMPA – Before his No.8-ranked University of Tampa side took to the field to face Barry in the Sunshine State Conference Tournament final, Spartans coach Adrian Bush said he thought that Buccaneers midfielder Mark Anderson was the best player not only in the conference, but in the entire South region.

With the game scoreless with six minute to play, Anderson’s brilliant 25-yard volley not only backed Bush’s statement, but also gave the Buccaneers the championship.

Mark Kilpatrick added a second goal four minutes later to give the Buccaneers their first SSC Tournament title since 2002, and fourth overall, with a 2-0 victory at Pepin-Rood Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Anderson’s goal came like a bolt from the blue. An angled cross from the right side was headed away by Tampa’s Kyle Williams, but it came to Anderson, who fired his first-time left-footed volley low into the right corner of the net, Spartans goalkeeper Ryan Thompson frozen to his line as the fantastic strike flashed into the net.

“I anticipated it, it fell to my left foot, my weaker foot,” Anderson said. “Lucky enough, it went straight in.”

Anderson then assisted on Mark Kilpatrick’s counter-attack goal in the 87th minute, Zach Fraser’s shot getting blocked to give the Bucs a two-on-one the other way as the Spartans pushed forward for an equalizer. Kilpatrick picked up Anderson’s pass just inside his own half and took it to the edge of the penalty area before sliding his shot underneath an advancing Thompson to make it 2-0.

That it was still scoreless in the final 10 minutes laid at the feet of the Spartans, who could, and quite probably should, have been ahead by that point. Pascal Milien had a close-range header go off the firm Pepin-Rood surface over the crossbar, and then had a shot blocked after a great move begun by Greg O’Connor and continued by Lister Warren had put Milien in on the left in the first half.

The Spartans continued to carry the play to start the second half, Warren seeing his shot from the top of the penalty area well saved, and O’Connor beating two defenders as he cut into the penalty area from the right, only to fire his left-footed shot over the crossbar.

Milien then had an appeal for a penalty turned down after he had picked up the ball at midfield, sped past two defenders down the left side and was clattered into by a Barry defender in the penalty area. Referee Shane Moody saw it as a shoulder-to-shoulder challenge, though, allowing play to continue. Fraser then saw his shot from eight yards go over after a good cross by Brian Fekete on the left.

As the game went on, the Spartans frustration at a lack of a goal became more evident, and they were deeply unhappy after the final whistle blew.

“This is hard,” Milien said. “This is the worst moment for me playing soccer, when I played on my home field, and I see the other team celebrating on my home field, that’s hurting me. But at the end of the day, this is the game of soccer. We’ve got to put this behind us and then move forward.”

Those celebration were sweet for Buccaneers coach Steve McCrath, who said his young side had matured after falling 2-1 to the Spartans back in September. The Buccaneers have now won 10 of their last 11 games entering the NCAA Tournament, which begins next week.

“I think we matured after our game against Tampa the first time,” McCrath said. “From that point on, I think we were much better than a (SSC Tournament) four-seed, but the point is that this team, young as it is, is probably just as strong as anybody in the conference at the top. I think we could all be rated the No.1 team.”

Bush said he was disappointed to lose, but gave credit to the Buccaneers for their victory.

“I think to win championships, you have to come out with championship emotion,” Bush said. “In my opinion, they deserved to win the game based on (the fact that) they wanted to win more than our guys. I’m very, very disappointed in our guys, and now we get to find out what sort of character we’ve got.”

The Spartans were hoping a victory would allow them to be a host site for the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament. Now they will have to wait and see whether they have to travel, and if so where, for the opening weekend of the tournament when the bracket is announced on Monday evening.

Colleges: Warren leads No.9 Spartans rout of Lions

TAMPA – For 45 minutes, Saint Leo’s men’s soccer team was able to play with the No.9-ranked University of Tampa.

Then, in a 15 minute span to start the second half, the Spartans were incisive with their play, and decisive with their finishing.

Lister Warren recorded a hat trick as Tampa scored four times in the opening 16 minutes of the second half on its way to a 5-1 victory on Thursday night at Pepin-Rood Stadium that sealed a share of the Sunshine State Conference regular season title.

The rout took shape in the 49th minute, when Karl Swan won a challenge in midfield, the ball deflecting to Warren in the center circle. Warren looked up and saw Swan had continued to move forward, and he slotted a pass into the right channel to find the midfielder, and Swan finished low into the left corner of the net to put the Spartans up 2-0.

Warren scored his second goal of the night seven minutes later as a long cross from the left by Brian Fekete was headed down by Greg O’ Connor, and Warren lifted his volley over the advancing goalkeeper and into the net.

Zach Fraser then created Warren’s hat trick in the 57th minute, stealing the ball in Saint Leo’s half before sending an excellent cross from the right side into the penalty area, finding an unmarked Warren for a free header into the left corner of the net.

O’Connor made it 5-0 three minutes later as he broke the Lions offside trap on a through ball by Pascal Milien, and made no mistake with his finish.

“We weren’t happy with a lot of the stuff that was going on in the first half, and give Saint Leo credit, I think they did a good job,” Spartans coach Adrian Bush said. “I think they really came out with emotion, and that’s what we talked about, and I’m very pleased with how we responded in the second half against a good team.”

Warren had opened the scoring in the 20th minute, finishing a move that saw Milien drive down the right flank before crossing into the penalty area to O’Connor. Warren created an overlap on the left side of the penalty area, and after receiving a pass from O’Connor finished strongly.

Warren paid tribute to his teammates for their creation of the chances he was afforded.

“It’s all about the team,” Warren said. “I scored the goals, but I give credit to the person who passed the ball in. It’s always a team game.”

Milien in particular was excellent, using his pace and skill to create opportunities for his teammates and himself. While he wasn’t able to find the back of the net, it wasn’t for lack of trying as he had 13 of the Spartans 30 shots, seven of which were on target.

“He was active, we really went after him, talked at half time with him about being more active,” Bush said. “He’s a game-changer. Pascal is one of the top players in the country, and I think he showed it tonight. I think it’s unfortunate he didn’t get a goal, but if you look at the production of what he did, it’s not just about scoring goals. He was one of the men of the match definitely tonight.”

Saint Leo pulled a consolation goal back late, a poor free kick by Tampa allowing Odyss Economides to find Jonathan Glenn for a 84th minute goal, but the goal was the only shot on goal the Lions managed in the second half as they were outshot 21-2 after the break by the Spartans.

Tampa had already received good news before the game began, as Rollins won the women’s SSC regular season title. As such, while the Rollins men were in line to host the SSC final four as the No.1 seed, SSC regulations don’t allow the men’s and women’s tournament to be held at the same location. That means the Spartans will host the SSC Men’s Tournament, where they will face the winner of Lynn and Nova Southeastern next Friday.

Warren said he was looking forward to try and win an SSC title on the Spartans’ home field.

“Home advantage is always a positive,” Warren said. “You have the crowd, you are familiar with the turf and everything. Let’s hope we come out the victors.”

Colleges: No.9 Spartans hit Sharks for six

Lister Warren scored twice in the first half, and Greg Sasser scored his first two goals of the season in the second as No.9 Tampa romped past Nova Southeastern 6-1 at the NSU Soccer Complex on Wednesday night.

Warren gave the Spartans the lead in the 15th minute before Greg O’Connor scored his second of the season two minutes later, driving home a shot from just outside the penalty area.

Warren added his second on the half-hour mark as the Spartans completely controlled the first half, allowing the Sharks only two shots on goal.

NSU did find the net just before the hour mark, Romain Onteniente heading home from Tim Taylor’s corner, but the Spartans regained their three-goal advantage when Pascal Milien scored in the 70th minute.

Sasser, brought on as a substitute for Warren, then scored twice in the final five minutes to complete the rout.

Tampa remains on the road this weekend as it travels to face Florida Tech at 4 p.m. on Saturday before closing the regular season with a pair of home games against Johnson and Wales and Saint Leo.

Colleges: No.9 Tars hand No.2 Spartans first defeat

A pair of late first half goals, and another early in the second, put a major dent in the University of Tampa’s Sunshine State Conference title hopes as No.9 Rollins remained undefeated with a 3-2 defeat of the No.2 Spartans at Cahall-Landspur Field on Friday night.

The loss was Tampa’s first of the season, and they would now need the Tars to slip up in one of their final two games against Barry or Florida Southern in order to try and claim a share of the title.

Tampa (10-1-1, 4-1-0 SSC) opened well, as both Lister Warren and Pascal Milien were denied goals by Rollins goalkeeper Aaron Rokeach within the first 10 minutes. While Tampa controlled the flow of the game, though, it didn’t prevent the Tars from finding opportunities, and they finally took advantage in the 40th minute as a long-range effort by Jacob DeLoach screamed into the right side of the net.

The Tars (14-0-1) doubled their advantage just three minutes later, as J.D. Gruenewald scored his team-high ninth goal of the season, his shot eluding Tampa goalkeeper Ryan Thompson before creeping over the goal line.

Tampa tried to regroup, but Rollins maintained its pressure to start the second half, Thompson making three saves to start the half. The Tars scored again in the 55th minute, though, as DeLoach’s corner found Jack Clifford for a header into the net.

The Spartans responded quickly, as Dan Ingvarsson scored his third goal in two games in the 57th minute. As he had against Eckerd on Tuesday, Ingvarsson bent a free kick into the net from just outside the penalty area.

Tampa continued to try to mount a comeback, and got a second goal through Greg O’Connor to set up a frantic final four minutes. The Spartans were unable to create another opportunity to tie the game, however, sending the capacity crowd into celebration.

Colleges: Milien leads Spartans to comeback win

Pascal Milien scored twice, both assisted by Greg O’Connor to lead the No.3 Tampa Spartans to a come-from-behind 2-1 victory against Palm Beach Atlantic in West Palm Beach on Tuesday evening.

After a scoreless first half, the Sailfish (5-4-1) took the lead in the 67th minute, Johnathan Clark scoring his team-leading sixth goal of the season. The Spartans hit back quickly, Milien scoring after being put in by O’Connor.

Milien then gave the Spartans (7-0-1) victory in the 84th minute with his seventh goal of the season, O’Connor again feeding the Tampa standout before a clinical finish.

The Spartan now face Webber International on Wednesday before closing out a run of three games in four days on Friday as they return home to face Florida Southern.

Colleges; Griffin, Milien lead Spartans rally past No.1 Lynn

Pascal Milien scored the game-winning goal after teammate Ryan Griffin had forced overtime with just over two minutes to play in regulation as No.4 Tampa came back to defeat No.1 Lynn 2-1 at Pepin-Rood Stadium on Saturday in the latest installment of what has been an enthralling rivalry.

Lynn forward Paolo Vaz was shown a straight red card for a dangerous challenge on Spartans center back Dan Ingvarsson in the 38th minute. The Fighting Knights (10-1-0, 2-1-0 Sunshine State Conference) persisted despite being down a man, and took the lead in the 79th minute when Scott Gordon drove a free kick into the top left corner of the Spartans’ net.

Falling behind saw the Spartans (6-0-1, 2-0-0 SSC) play with even greater urgency, and they were rewarded in the 87th minute after a long ball by Ingvarsson into the penalty area found Griffin, who fired home.

The goal was a fitting reward for Griffin’s work in the center of midfield for the Spartans.

“I hope people are taking notice of what he does game in and game out,” Spartans coach Adrian Bush said. “He’s not the guy with all the flash, but he’s a rock in the middle along with Karl Swan.”

Milien then gave the Spartans victory, beating Lynn goalkeeper Alessandro Dalvatore to a through ball by Greg O’Connor to fire home the winner, and send the Spartans bench into celebration.

Bush said while defeating Lynn was a big achievement for his squad, he expected to see the Fighting Knights again later in the season. The Spartans and Fighting Knights have played in the regular season, Sunshine State Conference Tournament and NCAA Division II Tournament for the past two seasons.

“It’s a big win for the program” Bush said. “I’m happy for the university, for our fans, and for our players, but we understand that this does not make out season. We’re now getting ready for Palm Beach Atlantic on Tuesday.”

College Matchday: Barry at No.5 Tampa

WHEN: Saturday, 7 p.m., Pepin-Rood Stadium

NEED TO KNOW: No.5 Tampa opens its Sunshine State Conference schedule as it hosts Barry, a side it has historically held the upper-hand over. The Spartans are 14-7-2 all-time against the Buccaneers, including a 3-2 double-overtime victory in Miami last season.

The Spartans are expected to give a first start to New Zealander newcomer Greg O’Connor, who has impressed since he joined the squad at the beginning of this season. Coming off a 1-1 draw against then No.22 West Florida, Tampa (4-0-1) is looking to extend its undefeated start to the season.

Barry enters coming off a 3-1 win against Nova Southeastern, but it has been an up-and-down season so far for the Buccaneers (4-3-1), who haven’t yet been able to put together two consecutive victories. Mark Anderson leads the Bucs with seven goals in six games, including what proved to be the game-winner against Nova on Tuesday.

Colleges: Spartans O'Connor ready for first start

TAMPA – It’s a long way from Wellington, New Zealand to Tampa.

A little over 8,000 miles, in fact.

After coming that distance to play for the University of Tampa men’s soccer team, forward Greg O’Connor has come a long way in the two months he’s been with the team, and will make his first start for the Spartans on Saturday as they open their Sunshine State Conference schedule against Barry.

“I’m really excited about it,” O’Connor said. “Making a big move from New Zealand, it’s been a big change for me and it’s been good so far. Things have been great and I’m looking forward to starting this game.”

O’Connor has been bringing energy to the Spartans attack in the past two games, but it did take him time to get adjusted to the Florida climate. The temperature in New Zealand rarely gets above 80 degrees in the summer, so joining the Spartans at the height of summer left was a major difference.

“It’s taken him a little time to get adjusted,” Spartans coach Adrian Bush said. “He’s had to adapt to the heat, but I think he’s adjusted very well. I give him a lot of credit, because he’s a long, long way from home, and he’s doing very well.”

Weather aside, though, Bush said O’Connor has fit right in with his new teammates.

“He’s a very likable buy, great personalty, great spirit, maturity level is very good,” Bush said. “You can tell he comes from not just a good family but a good soccer background. He gets it, he understands the importance of working hard.”

SLIGHT DROP: Tampa dropped to No.5 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Division II poll this week after a 1-1 draw against West Florida. Bush said while the performance against the Argonauts was disappointing, he was happy that the side had pulled out a tie, and had appeared to learn a valuable lesson from the game.

“I definitely think we’ve had a great week thus far in training,” Bush said. “I think the attitude is right. You know, it’s one thing to play poorly, we give West Florida all the credit in the world, but we didn’t play well, but the main thing, and I think the maturity of our team, is to understand why we didn’t play well. And it wasn’t about breaking down film or anything, it was workrate, and I think it was a big lesson for them. Thank god it didn’t cost us a loss, but I think it was a wake-up call for them, and we make look back from now and say that was a turning point in our season.”

Midfielder Ryan Griffin said he thinks the reduced pressure of not being ranked No.1 will allow the team to loosen up as it nears the midway point of its season.

“When you’re No.1 in the nation, everyone wants to kill you,” Griffin said. “Now we’re No.5, there’s a little more breathing room, and we can look forward to conference play that starts this weekend.”

CONFERENCE CALL: Barry finished with a 3-4-1 record in SSC play last season, and currently hold a 4-3-1 record entering Saturday night’s game. That doesn’t mean Bush is taking the Buccaneers, or any other SSC opponent, lightly.

“This is what it’s all about,” Bush said. “One of our main goals was to win the conference, and now it’s one game at a time. There’s no easy games, we know that, and we have a lot of respect for all the teams in this conference, but you’ve got to get result, and the eight-game gauntlet starts Saturday.”

Griffin said that while the Spartans had been tested by the games they had faced so far, they were now hitting the critical point of their season.

“The NAIA teams we played were all solid teams, but those games don’t count,” Griffin said. “If you don’t win your conference, or do well in your conference, you’re not going to have a chance to play in the NCAA tournament, so these are the real games. We have eight of them, and we’re looking to win all of them.”