GNAC Men's Soccer Report: Week 5

Norwich junior Joseph Thongsythavong had a five-goal week for the Cadets, who won a pair of GNAC contests.

October 4, 2021

( FOR THE WEEK OF SEPT. 27 - OCT. 3 )

	PLAYER OF THE WEEK Joseph Thongsythavong, Norwich (Jr., F - Salem, Mass.) - Thongsysthavong had one of the most impressive weeks of his collegiate career, tallying five goals, including all four in a 4-0 win over Regis on Saturday. Thongsythavong also tallied a goal and an assist in Wednesday's 4-1 win over Dean. Thongsythavong's first-half hat trick vs. Regis was his second of the season and pushed his career total to five. Thongsythavong leads Norwich with 10 goals and four assists for 24 points and has scored 27 goals in 28 career games.
	GOALKEEPER OF THE WEEK David Walbridge, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (GR, GK - Hampden, Mass.) - Walbridge made five saves and picked off a handful of balls in the box to help the Monks defeat Johnson & Wales, 1-0, in a rematch of the 2019 GNAC Championship on Saturday. The graduate student keeper also logged 60:29 minutes of scoreless play in a 4-1 win over Regis on Wednesday.
	ROOKIE OF THE WEEK Dane Stephens, St. Joseph (Conn.) (So., F - Jamaica) - Stephens registered two goals and an assist for five points in a 1-0-1 week of GNAC play. He scored USJ's lone goial in a 2-1 setback at Connecticut rival Albertus Magnus before tallying a goal and a helper in a 4-0 road win at Colby-Sawyer.

HONOR ROLL

Kelvin Cortez, Albertus Magnus (Jr., M - Meriden, Conn.) - Cortez led the Falcons with four points and two goals in last week's games, scoring both goals in the Falcons' important 2-1 victory over St. Joseph (Conn.) on Wednesday. Both of Cortez's goals came within a 55-second span just before the end of the first half which put the Blue Jays in a hole that they could not get out of. He also started in Albertus' 1-1 double-overtime draw against Emmanuel (Mass.) on Saturday to help AMC remain unbeaten in GNAC play this season at 5-0-1.

Garfield Robinson, Albertus Magnus (Jr., GK - West Haven, Conn.) - Robinson continued to be a force in goal for the Falcons this season, as he led Albertus to a 1-0-1 record last week with 10 saves and two goals allowed. He started the week by picking up a 2-1 victory over St. Joseph (Conn.) on Wednesday with five saves. Robinson then earned a 1-1 double-OT draw against Emmanuel (Mass.) on Saturday with five more saves in 110 minutes.

Rubelsi Moran, Anna Maria (Fr., M - Holden, Mass.) - Moran scored two goals with an assist for five points in Anna Maria's 5-0 win over Rivier on Saturday as part of a 1-1 week.

Alec Erskine, Emmanuel (Mass.) (Jr, M - Coventry, Conn.) - Erskine netted four goals on the week to lead Emmanuel in points with eight. The junior tied an NCAA scoring record, netting consecutive goals in eight seconds, becoming just the fifth men's soccer player to accomplish the feat and the first D-III player to do so en route to a hat trick in the Saints 6-0 win over Lasell. He added a goal vs. Albertus Magnus in a 1-1 hard fought draw.

Austin Sweeney, Johnson & Wales (RI) (Jr., M - Nutley, N.J.) - Sweeney totaled three goals for the Wildcats over the past week. In a GNAC tilt against Anna Maria, he had a hat-trick, converting on three of his eight shots with six of his shots going on goal. He added one assist on the night, totaling seven points.

Mamadi Jiana, Norwich (Fr., M - Chicopee, Mass.) - Jiana scored a goal and had three assists for five points to help lead Norwich to a 2-0 week with wins over Dean College and Regis (Mass.). Jiana recorded an assist on Norwich's first goal in a 4-1 win over Dean College on Wednesday. He also added a goal. Jiana added two assists in Saturday's 4-0 win over Regis (Mass.) to help the Cadets extend their winning streak to three straight games.

Jason Harlow, Rivier (Fr., F - Naples, Maine) - In a 1-1 week, Harlow registeres a hat trick on four shots in a 6-0 shutout over Northern Vermont-Lyndon.

Charles Mputu, St. Joseph (Conn.) (Jr., M - Hartford, Conn.) - The junior had two goals and an assist for five points in a 4-0 win at Colby-Sawyer on Saturday.

Kuma Onyejose, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (Senior, F - East Greenwich, R.I.) - Onyejose scored a pair of goals in a 4-1 victory over Regis College on Wednesday.

GNAC WEEKLY ARCHIVE

WEEK	PLAYER	GOALKEEPER	ROOKIE
1	Musa Jiana, ELMS	Bryce Antoch, DEAN	Musa Jiana, ELMS
2	Amerle Nemeye, NOR	Freddie Beckmann, REG	Jacob Freitas, REG
3	DeAnte Anderson, USJ	David Walbridge, SJC	Arian Bobi, AMC
4	Joel Agbetossou, USJ	Vincent Conelli, EMM	Luis Agudelo, AMC
5	Joseph Thongsythavong, NOR	David Walbridge, SJC	Dane Stephens, USJ

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 3,500 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.

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