2001 CUNYAC Men's Soccer Preview

CCNY Readies to Recapture Past Glory

Last season fourth-seeded York knocked off Regular Season Champion CCNY 1-0 on their home field in the semifinals of the CUNY Tournament and went on to win the CUNY Championship. That loss, the Beavers' first against CUNYAC competition, left the whole squad with a bitter feeling that will only be cured by claiming the 2001 title and the automatic NCAA bid that comes with it.

"Our starting 11 will be stronger this year," said fourth-year CCNY head coach Ray D'Argenio. "I think we were the best team last year, but we couldn't get it done that day versus York. That's why we play the games. My guys are more motivated and prepared this season."

CCNY (11-5-1) returns nine starters from a year ago, including the league's top two scorers in Ivan Popov (18 goals, 6 assists) and Randy Wray (13 goals, 6 assists). Incidentally, the high-scoring tandem are also the last two CUNYAC Players of the Year; Popov, a junior from the Bronx, NY won the award last season, while Wray, a native of Costa Rica, earned the honor in 1999.

Alongside the duo, D'Argenio expects strong campaigns from sophomore goalkeeper Roger Cyrus (Brooklyn, NY), senior defenseman Kirk-Dean Scarlett (Brooklyn, NY) and Randy Wray's brother Andy (Costa Rica). With all of this experience, the Beavers, once the dominant team in CUNY, are aiming to recapture the school's past soccer glory and their first NCAA Tournament appearance.

Medgar Evers (9-7-2), last year's Regular Season and Tournament runner-up, could be right back at the top, although veteran coach Stanley Harmon is not as positive as usual. "My expectations are not as high as I would like them to be. We have the bodies for a successful season, but the other coaches are out there recruiting and everyone keeps getting stronger."

The Cougars have only two returning starters back, including junior midfielder David Chung (Brooklyn, NY). Freshman Jason Dryden (Jamaica, WI) should add some needed scoring punch to the Medgar lineup, but it is the inexperienced defense that may cause concerns in the long run.

John Jay (7-9-1) will be welcoming back a friendly face on the sidelines this season, when former coach Dave Umeh returns for a second engagement. Umeh was the head coach of the Bloodhounds in the mid-nineties. Returning for Jay this season will be junior goalie German Rojas (Brooklyn, NY) and the 2000 CUNYAC Rookie of the Year Ricardo Bulling (Brooklyn, NY), who scored nine goals (1.25 ppg) in his freshman season.

"It feels great to be back," said Umeh. "It is a fulfilling experience to work with CUNY students that come from all around the world. To bring them into one big pot and bring their different styles of play together."

York (8-6-2), the fourth-place finisher during the regular season, will look to capture lightning a second time, as new head coach Linval Cunningham looks to his veterans for leadership. Among them are junior forward Marc Meo (12 goals) and keeper Stephane Koutoud (1.06 GAA) from Jamaica, NY along with team leader and sweeper Chimela Okoro (the CUNYAC Tournament MVP) from nearby Laurelton, Queens. Okoro, an imposing and very talented defender headed in the winning goal off a free kick in the 111th minute of the contest for a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory over #2 seed Medgar Evers to qualify for the school's first-ever NCAA Tournament. With an influx of new Cardinals, Cunningham and the defending champs will look to catapult themselves back to the title game.

Baruch (6-8) will also feature new leadership, as Bobby Francis, a Statesman from 1976-78 will enter his first season at the helm. Following a 3-5 CUNYAC record, Baruch returns only four regulars, including junior goalie Luis Kijner (Ecuador) and senior midfielder Oneil Hamilton (Jamaica, NY), who scored eight points last season. As for new impact players, Francis will have a freshman sweeper in Bimal Thapa and midfield transfer from Sweden, George Mikos.

"We're looking to be competitive on the field," said Francis. "The talent is there for us to start building a solid program."

The fourth new coach in CUNYAC for 2001 is Antonio Superbia at Brooklyn (4-10-1). Superbia returns to the Flatbush campus ten years after a standout career on the Brooklyn soccer team in the early nineties. As a superbly technical midfielder, the 5'6 dynamo led the team to the Division I NCAA Tournament in 1991. Returning for the Bridges are senior keeper Richard Sherry (Brooklyn, NY), sophomore midfielder Billy Coulanges (Haiti) and Eugene Rutitskiy, a senior from Kiev, Ukraine.

"In our first season, we're going to take it one game at a time," said Superbia, a native of Brazil. "I'm very excited to have nine players returning from last season and the men are very enthusiastic. It's a thrill to be able to coach at my alma mater."

Superbia is even more thrilled to inhert some very talented players whom he hopes to blend into instant winners.

New York City Technical (3-10-1) will have an entirely new look in coach Stefan Charles-Pierre's fourth season. "It's going to be different," said Charles-Pierre. "We're going to have an entirely new squad."

Midfielder Marlon Reid returns for his sophomore campaign after netting four goals as a rookie, while Fabian Enriquez is expected to anchor the defense. Leading newcomers include goalkeeper Nahum Ramos (El Salvador) and Togar Travers (Staten Island, NY), while the Yellowjackets also hope that forward George Ofosu-Ameyaw returns to his form of two seasons ago when he tallied team-leading 7 goals.

A shift in the conference's elite teams last year was evidenced by the two schools at the bottom of the standings. Hunter (3-14-2) and Staten Island (1-11-1) had won the last five CUNYAC titles before this sudden turn of events. The Hawks won the championship in the odd seasons, 1995, 1997 and 1999, while the Dolphins took the 1996 & 1998 crowns.

Second year Hunter Coach John Benintendo will count on an experienced defense led by sophomore all-star Baffour Acheampong (Kumasi, Ghana), senior Alec Nolan (New York, NY) and junior Adolfo Lee (Buenos Aires, Argentina). A promising group of newcomers includes rookie midfielder Jason Chen (Orangeburg, NY).

College of Staten Island head coach Carlo Tramontozzi will also have a rebuilt team, counting on senior midfielder Behar Shala (Brooklyn, NY) and junior forward Tom Consolmagno (1.87 ppg in 1999, 2nd in CUNYAC) to anchor a young squad only a year after Consolmagno tore his ACL in the Dolphins' first game in 2000. One of the young guns is Tom's younger brother Chris, a freshman out of Tottenville in Staten Island.

Looking forward to the championship, the CUNY Athletic Conference has finally found a superior off campus facility for the annual tournament. The newly-renovated Metropolitan Oval in Ridgewood, Queens, will serve as host to the last two rounds of the championship. The finale is slated for Saturday, November 3, 1:00 pm.

"I am pretty sure that four or five teams will be battling for the championship come November," concluded an always optimistic Medgar Evers' Harmon. Meanwhile the Beavers hope to avoid the disappointment of a year ago and look to make it a one-team race.

2001 CUNYAC SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED by BRINE
Quarterfinals: Saturday, October 27 @ Higher Seeds
Semifinals: Wednesday, October 31 @ Metropolitan Oval
Final: Saturday, November 3, 1:00 pm @ Metropolitan Oval o Ridgewood, Queens