In a game that could have netted KSC’s men’s soccer team the Little East Conference’s (LEC) No. 1 seed, the team suffered a 3-0 loss to Rhode Island College’s (RIC) Anchormen.
The Oct. 22 game honored men’s soccer’s two seniors, fifth-year Declan Pietro Coughlin and senior Mbambi Mbungu. The Owls entered the game with hopes of clinching the regular season division title in a season that has seen success for the Owls thus far, improving on their previous season’s record of 5-12-2 and now standing at 9-5-2 at the conclusion of the current season.
Men’s soccer coach Matt Schmidt commented on the importance that both seniors have played in the team. Schmidt said Coughlin being away from the game for some time due to an ACL tear in his first and sophomore years was a roadblock for him, but he has since rebounded significantly, starting in each game this season. “Last year [Coughlin] was a great leader for us, but just wasn’t completely himself and fluid as a player, and he did a lot of work in the offseason and the spring, and just got himself back to that full level of speed,” Schmidt said.
“[Coughlin] is one of the best soccer minds on the team,” Schmidt said. Coughlin has served as one of the Owl’s captains for the past three years.
Coughlin said despite his long tenure at the team, he has learned a lot this past season. “This is my third year as a captain, but you never stop learning… this [has] definitely been my best year as a leader I would say… I’m such a good leader as I am today because of my teammates,” he said.
Coughlin said the improvement from last season to this season has been stark. “We lost 12 games last year, and I say victories don’t teach you anything, but losses you can learn something from… we had lots of stuff to learn on… the thing about this team is we really love the game,” he said. Coughlin said improved chemistry has been one of the keys to their success, noting the differences in coaching philosophy between Schmidt and former men’s soccer coach Rick Scott. “With Schmidt, there’s an identity behind [the philosophy], he has developed players… when we go out on the field, we know what we want to do, we know our gameplan,” he said. “Last year was a bit of a toxic environment, and this year every practice we give 100 percent… it’s a privilege to go out with my teammates every day for practice, I couldn’t ask for anything better.”
Schmidt said Mbungu is also a key player on the team, as he is the team’s top goalscorer, and is a leader in the LEC. Schmidt said Mbungu’s energy on the field has been beneficial to the team. “I don’t know if you’ve ever seen some of the celebrations when he scores a goal, but he ends up kind of doing a front-handspring flip, and just seeing him smile and get that joy, and being able to do that celebration multiple times this year has been good,” Schmidt said.
Mbungu, who joined the team in his junior year, said the team’s improvement has aided his progress. “[The team improving] has kind of made my job easier as a striker to focus more on scoring goals instead of working on defending,” he said. “The maturity from last year to this year, we also grew. Last year was a very young team, and the same guys that were there last year, they’ve grown… so they’re more experienced as well, so we’re in a good spot right now.”
Mbungu said the team generally being younger puts them in a good position for next season and hopes he has been seen as a mentor to some younger players. “I try to lead by example… I try to be at practice on time, try to work as hard as I can, those little things where people watch me and they try to be like me,” he said.
Schmidt said the dynamic of the team having only two players leaving is still impactful. “It is interesting to just have two guys leaving… one huge goals contributor, another a huge assists contributor, so we are going to need some guys in those next classes to fill those spaces,” Schmidt said.
Despite Schmidt going into the game optimistic, he noted the team suffering injuries had been an overarching concern.
The Owls began the game with an offensive edge, outscoring the Anchormen 6-4 in the first half. Despite scoring opportunities having arisen, RIC’s goalkeeper Jack Reed proved instrumental in stumping the Owls’ offense early on. With just over five minutes remaining in the first half, the Anchormen managed to make their offensive strike. Following a corner kick, the Anchormen’s Lucas Duquette netted in a header assisted by a chipped ball from Alijah Nunes, giving RIC a 1-0 lead as the half neared completion. KSC attempts at returning RIC’s favor proved unsuccessful, as Reed continued to prevent shots from getting past him.
The Anchormen’s offense did not let up as the second half began, with the team’s first shot attempt making it past the Owls’ goalkeeper, junior Regan Racicot, widening RIC’s lead to 2-0. The bleeding for the Owls did not stop there. Following a pair of unsuccessful goal attempts, RIC scored their third and final goal of the game, getting off an inside-the-box shot that went past Racicot, who rushed at the ball.
A comeback bid from the Owls’ proved to fall flat, with sophomore Rahul Drukpa, as well as first-year Cristian Correa and junior Caleb Harmon, firing off additional shots in the latter part of the second half to no avail.
The Owls ended up getting blanked 3-0 by RIC, with the Anchormen’s Reed securing seven saves.
Keene State men’s soccer ended their regular season with a win against Worcester State 2-1. Now they will move on to the Conference Tournament.
Nathan Hope can be contacted at
nhope@kscequinox.com
