NEWTON, Mass. – With their scoreless draw against Norwich on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field, Mount Ida's men's soccer program wrapped up their Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) regular season schedule, securing the best conference record since the program jointed the GNAC in 2007.
The Mustangs (8-5-3, 5-2-3 GNAC) match their all-time record for wins in conference play. They have won five games in the conference three other times (2008, 2003, 1999), but only their 2008 season was in the GNAC, and that year they had three losses (5-3-1).
Eight overall wins is also the most in a regular season since that same 2008 campaign, when Mount Ida went 9-6-4 and reached the GNAC semifinals for the only time in school history.
This year's squad, which has locked up the #5 seed in the GNAC tournament, will look to equal that feat by beating Norwich, their first round opponent, in what will be a rematch of Saturday's affair next Sunday in Northfield, Vt.
In Saturday's meeting, the first time Mount Ida has taken a result against the Cadets since 2009, the Mustangs saw junior goalie Mat Pils (Monroe, Conn.) make three saves, including stopping a penalty kick attempt to collect his seventh shutout of the season.
His opposite, junior Christian Hallstrom (Las Vegas, Nev.) also made three saves while earning his fifth shutout of the year.
In a game that was played on the edge of knife, where shots were barely in favor of the home team (14-13), the best chance to score was that of Cadets freshman Moab Schiers (South Weber, Utah), who stepped up to a penalty in the 20th minute, only to have Pils make a diving stop to his right.
Mount Ida looked dangerous from their set pieces, including their corner kicks where they had a 9-7 advantage and a 4-0 edge in the first overtime period.
Sophomore Carlos Martinez (Chelsea, Mass.) had four shots in the game, and freshman defender Shawn Bernardo (Peabody, Mass.) saw a deflection fall to him in front of the net, but wasn't able to cash in, putting the ball just wide.
Junior Derek Morin (South Paris, Maine) had a look at goal in the second overtime, but his shot was right at Pils, who snagged it for his first save since the final ten minutes of regulation.
Mount Ida wraps up their regular season with a non-conference home game on Monday against Brandeis at 6:00 pm. That game is Senior Night, when the Mustangs will be honoring six players who are in their final season with the Green and White.
Norwich has concluded their regular season schedule and will return home to await the Mustangs in the GNAC Quarters on Sunday.