Richard Bland Travels To Florida For Southeast District Championship
SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. -- Richard Bland College has earned the No. 2 seed for the 2016 NJCAA Southeast District Men's Soccer Championship this weekend, November 4-5, hosted by Daytona State College in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Region X (10) Tournament Champion Statesmen (12-6-2) are making their first-ever appearance in the Southeast District event and will play No. 3 seed and Region 8 Runners-Up Eastern Florida State College (11-4) on Friday, Nov. 4, at 1 p.m. at the ERAU Soccer Field on the campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. The Southeast District title match is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m.
"We are very happy to bring home our first Region Championship," explained third-year head coach Eduardo de Souza. "We started this program from ground zero two and a half years ago when Athletic Director Chuck Moore trusted me to build a reputable program. Region X is one of the best NJCAA Division I conferences in the country. We are very focused to compete this weekend and our mentality is to play to win every game!"
NJCAA SOUTHEAST DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP INFORMATION
First Semifinal
No. 2 Richard Bland vs. No. 3 Eastern Florida State
Date: Friday, Nov. 4, 2016
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: ERAU Soccer Field, Daytona Beach, Florida
Second Semifinal
No. 1 Daytona State vs. No. 4 Georgia Military
Date: Friday, Nov. 4, 2016
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: ERAU Soccer Field, Daytona Beach, Florida
Championship
First Semifinal Winner vs. Second Semifinal Winner
Date: Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016
Time: 2 p.m.
Location: ERAU Soccer Field, Daytona Beach, Florida
Scouting the Statesmen
Richard Bland is 12-6-2 overall, establishing a new school-record for wins (12), and attaining its second consecutive 10-win season in the four-year history of the program. The Statesmen will play this weekend as one of the hottest teams in the post-season as they are 8-2-2 in their last 12 matches with five shutouts. Richard Bland is coached by head coach Eduardo de Souza, who is in his third season, and assisted by first-year assistant coach Nick Surkamp. The Statesmen have been led in scoring through 20 matches by freshman Eduardo Pessoa/Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with 11 goals and one assist for 23 points. Pessoa is followed by freshman Dusan Stankovic/Belgrade, Serbia with six goals and four assists for 16 points, sophomore Sukrija Dudic/Richmond (5g, 3a) and freshman Peter Diawuo/Alexandria (3g, 7a) with 13 points each, along with sophomore Sebastian Hendi/Alexandria (5g) as well as freshmen Hussein Osman/Alexandria (3g, 4a) and Miguel Ramos/Casal de Cambra, Portugal (2g, 6a) with 10 points each. Freshman goalkeeper Justin Ennis/Gainesville has started 12 of 14 matches, playing 1081:54 with three shutouts, a 1.25 goals against average and 42 saves for a save percentage of .737 percent.
Scouting Eastern Florida State
Eastern Florida State, located in Melbourne, Florida, is 11-4 overall, finishing 7-2 in Region 8. The Titans are coached by head coach Oliver Twelvetrees, who is in his fourth season, while assisted by Nick Robinson and Nicolas Nazon. EFSC is led in scoring by Danilo Orsi-Dadomo with 12 goals and nine assists for 33 points, followed by Joshua Donnelly with four goals and nine assists for 17 points, along with Seigel Knight (6g, 2a) and Craig McCall (3g, 8a) with 14 points each. Keeper Bryce Notardonato has started 14 of 14 matches, playing 1212:00 with six shutouts, a 1.11 goals against average and 66 saves for a save percentage of .815 percent.
Scouting Daytona State
Southeast District host Daytona State, located in Daytona Beach, Florida, is 15-2 overall, finishing 7-2 as the Region 8 Champion and No. 1 seed for the tournament. The Falcons are coached by head coach Bart Sasnett, who is in his first season, while assisted by Travis Rovillo. DSC is led in scoring by Mohamed Hussein with eight goals and seven assists for 23 points, followed by Joe O'Sullivan with nine goals and four assists for 22 points, Jonas Bukh with 10 goals and one assist for 21 points, along with Ryan Goldsmith with four goals and six assists for 14 points. Keeper Palemon Plancarte has started nine of 14 matches, playing 900:00 with one shutout, a 1.00 goals against average and 57 saves for a save percentage of .851 percent.
Scouting Georgia Military
Georgia Military College, located in Milledgeville, Georgia, is 12-4 overall as the Region 9 Champion and No. 4 seed for the tournament. The Bulldogs are coached by head coach Dave Sexton, who is in his third season, while assisted by Sone Ngolendelle. GMC is led in scoring by Jack Arra with 15 goals and 15 assists for 45 points, followed by Taku Mashingaidze with nine goals and 15 assists for 33 points, Luke Deacy with 13 goals and six assists for 32 points, along with Matheus Brandao with five goals and eight assists for 18 points. Keeper Ricardo Ortiz has started 16 of 16 matches, playing 1319:00 with three shutouts, a 1.36 goals against average and 100 saves for a save percentage of .833 percent.
Series History
Richard Bland has never played Eastern Florida State, Daytona State or Georgia Military previously in the sport of men's soccer.
NJCAA Division I Poll
Daytona State is ranked No. 8 in this week's NJCAA Division I Poll, while Eastern Florida State is ranked No. 15 nationally. Both Richard Bland and Georgia Military received votes in this week's poll, the first-time ever that the Statesmen have earned votes in the national poll.
Last Time Out
Richard Bland claimed its first-ever NJCAA Region 10 Men's Soccer Tournament Championship October 29-30 at the WRAL Soccer Park in Raleigh, North Carolina. Against the odds, the No. 5 seed Statesmen won back-to-back matches on consecutive days against higher seeded teams for their title. In the Championship match, Richard Bland battled No. 2 seed Spartanburg (S.C.) Methodist College to a 1-1 double-overtime tie, before winning in the PK Shootout, 4-2. The Statesmen had advanced to the finale with their 2-1 upset of No. 1 seed Louisburg (N.C.) College in a semifinal contest, the program's first-ever win against the defending national champion Hurricanes, who were also ranked No. 9 nationally in last week's Poll.
Up Next
The Southeast District Champion will advance to the 2016 NJCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championships November 14-19 at the Pat Hartley Soccer Complex in Tyler, Texas, located approximately 100 miles southeast of Dallas.