Men’s Soccer shoots for Centennial crown

The Hopkins’ Men’s Soccer team opens the year ranked fourth in the Centennial Conference following a heartbreaking end to the 2015 season, when they suffered a loss to Haverford College in the Conference semifinals.

Entering the season, the team lost a trio of all-Conference selections: Forward Eric Buck, midfielder Ian Heinrich and defender Andrew Park. Park was also a member of the Third Team NSCAA All-Region team, while Buck was named to the ECAC All-South first team.

Still, the Blue Jays returned just as talented, led by senior midfielder Samy Ramadane, a third-team all conference player last season, along with co-captains senior Victor Osio and junior Michael Swiercz. The team also welcomed eight freshmen to Homewood this fall.

Senior Bryan See will return as the team’s starting goalkeeper. See played nearly every minute in his debut season for Hopkins in 2015 after transferring from UC Irvine. He posted a .776 save percentage and allowed only 1.21 goals per game.

He won 11 games with five shutouts, and had an impressive 374 minute run without letting in a single goal. Junior Jonah Muniz will be the team’s most experienced defender on the field and will be accompanied by two veterans, senior Matt Williams and junior Eric Herbert.

The team will have to rely on several newcomers, including a quartet of freshmen defenders: Connor Jacobs, Nathan Keeney, Brent Thomas and Zach Epstein. Ultimately, the success of this unit will largely determine the performance of the team this season.

To help the youngsters in the back, Hopkins returns with an experienced group of midfielders, who include junior Mike Swiercz, junior Drew Collins and sophomore Cole Rosenberger. Swiercz appeared in all games during the 2015 season and started 11. Meanwhile, Rosenberger started in every game last year and tied for the team lead in assists. Sophomores Arden Chew, Max Song, Sebastian Salathe and Gerrit Church, who all saw the field in their rookie seasons, will join the midfield as well.

Up the field, the Jays are led by senior Samy Ramadane, who was the team’s top goal scorer despite only playing in 10 games due to injury in the 2015 season. Forward Victor Osio, who added three goals of his own, finished tied with Ramadane for the team lead in assists with three. Sophomore Hayden Helm saw significant game action last year, scoring three points, and is expected to play a large role in the coming season.

The Blue Jays opened the year with an away game against Goucher that stretched into the second period of overtime. The Jays outshot the hosts 28-4, and even took the lead in the 71st minute following a strike by midfielder Drew Collins. Hopkins would come close to a win but conceded a goal in the 87th minute and were forced to settle for the tie.

At the first home game of the year, Hopkins fell behind visitors Bethany College early on in the 19th minute. The Blue Jays would not capitalize on scoring opportunities until the 82nd minute, when Ramadane sent a free kick to assist Muniz. Despite opportunities throughout the final minutes and into overtime, the Blue Jays were again forced to settle for a tie.

Hopkins did come away with a 1-0 win against Merchant Marine, their first of the season. Osio put the team up for good in the 37th minute with a strike from inside the box off of an assist from Collins. The Blue Jays were backed by a shutout performance in net from See, to seal the 1-0 victory.