Men's Soccer | 11/10/2016 9:09:00 AM
ATLANTA, GA – Hartwick's men's soccer team enters the 2016 Sun Belt Conference playoffs in unfamiliar territory. Over the previous two seasons, Hawks finished as the regular season champion and had the luxury of a first-round bye into Friday's semis. 'Wick will have to do it the hard way this time around, playing in the opening round today against Appalachian State at 3 p.m. at GSU Soccer Complex in Atlanta, GA with a semifinal date 24 hours later with top seed Coastal Carolina on the horizon.
Despite the tough path, Hartwick head coach
John Scott believes the two-time defending champion Hawks are up to the challenge and it changes little in the team's approach.
"The mentality stays the same because it's a must win game," said Scott. "We know that only a good performance will get us to Friday and that's what we'll be aiming for."
The Hawks battled to a 2-2-1 regular season record with home victories over Coastal and Howard, a home draw with App State, and road losses to Georgia Southern and Georgia State, to claim the fourth seed in the playoffs.
The only meeting between the Hawks and fifth-seeded Mountaineers on Elmore on October 15 resulted in a 0-0 tie through 110 minutes. 'Wick would hold a 17-10 edge in shots in the match, including a 7-1 edge in the overtime periods, but couldn't push a goal past App State keeper Jake Agnew, who made eight saves.
"The last meeting between us isn't anything we're using as a benchmark," Scott added. "We just know it's on us to put in a performance we're capable of and if we do that we're a match for anyone."
The App State tie started a six-match winless streak for the Hawks that was stopped with a 1-1 draw with La Salle On November 1. They followed it up with a 3-0 shutout of Howard in the final game of the regular season on November 5.
All-conference back
Jack Donaldson (Paisley, Scotland/Mars Hill University) scored the go-ahead goal against the Explorers with all-conference players
Mike Rood (Conklin, NY/Susquehanna Valley) and
Hamish Ritchie (Aberdeen, Scotland/Aboyne Academy) registering assists versus the Bison.
"We take some momentum going into this playoff game having played well the last two matches and we want to keep that run going," said Scott. "We've got plenty of capable players on our team as the all-conference awards show."
Hartwick is meeting Appalachian State in the playoffs for the third consecutive year. The Hawks beat the Mountaineers in the semifinals in Statesboro, GA on their way to the title in 2014. 'Wick took down App State 1-0 on its home field last season before beating Georgia State in the final for the championship in Boone, NC last season.
