Massachusetts Maritime debut a real kick
September 12, 2008
By John Connolly, Boston Herald Sports
Lucky Red Sox fans may keep their game ticket as a souvenir of the Olde Towne Team's newly minted record for consecutive sellouts, but the same might be said of the faithful band of 100 fans who witnessed history in the making at Commander Ellis Field in Bourne last Saturday.
That's where Massachusetts Maritime Academy kicked off its varsity women's soccer program with a 2-1 win over Newbury College.
The first-ever goal in MMA history came off the foot of sophomore midfielder Ashley England of Hanover in the 22nd minute. The play featured a break through the middle. When the Newbury keeper bobbled the initial shot, England was in perfect position to knock home the rebound.
The game-winning tally developed on a play down the right flank, as freshman forward Rebecca Luciani of Wakefield brought the ball toward the end line. She sent a cross into the box where Colleen Welsh, a senior back from Shelton, Conn., put it home in the 19th minute of extra time.
"(Luciani) did a nice low ball that somehow made it through the defense. (England) tipped it and I was wide-open, just a perfect play. I'm actually a defender. I don't get many chances," said Welsh, who is assigned to Second Company at MMA and majoring in marine transportation.
"It was quite interesting. Everyone was so excited that we pulled it together. We were working hard and the communication was great."
Colleen's younger sister Emily, a freshman goalkeeper, got credit for the win and finished with four saves.
"We played club (soccer) last year and they've worked hard in the offseason with weight training and everything, and I think they shocked themselves at how well they played together," said Buccaneers coach Christine McCarey, a former goalkeeper at Springfield College.
"It was pretty awesome. I'm so proud of them. They're such a good group of women and strong leaders on campus. Every day we get out to practice, they know from the get-go that I expect them to work hard and that's what they did on Saturday."
It's all pretty heady stuff for a neophyte program at a school that has a small enrollment (approximately 1,000), intense academics, as well as obligations with the military-style curriculum. There are about 200 women students and close to 40 percent partcipate in varsity sports.
"A couple of challenges that we face is that we are a small college with not a great population of women, so it's tough to establish an upper base of seniors and a base recruiting class with freshmen," McCarey said. They have a lot of demands with academics and within their regiment, but they are so strong-minded. They are very determined and work through things. They find that balance.
"I would say that is the big challenge, that they are able to manage their time," McCarey added. "A lot of our players are squad leaders or executive officers within the regiment, so they have a lot of responsibility outside of soccer and then I ask a lot of them. Their time is so important because they don't have a whole lot of it. They don't want to waste it. They even study on the bus on the way to a game."
That level of dedication makes the future on and off the field look bright.