DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (June 11, 2020) - For the sixth year in a row, Mercy College Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top-10 most memorable moments of the 2019-20 season, with all 10 sports represented.

Mercy College Athletics will release a Top-10 moment, as chosen by the athletics staff, with a recap every Thursday for the next ten weeks, culminating with the top moment from the 2019-20 athletic year being unveiled on Thursday, June 11th.

No. 1 – Men's Soccer Wins First ECC Tournament Championship Since 2004

Coming in at No. 1 in our 2019-20 Top-10 Moments is men's soccer who won their first ECC Tournament Championship since 2004.

Mercy went 13-4-1 in 2018 and earned their first ECC Regular Season Championship since 1992. The Mavericks also made the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1989 and won their first NCAA Tournament game since 1989. Mercy was ranked No. 24 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll in 2019 and was selected to finish first in the ECC Preseason Coaches' Poll. Seniors Maximiliano Rebolledo-Camus and Gaston Rozenblum were tabbed ECC Preseason Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year.

Head Coach Pedro Velazquez and the Mavericks opened up their 2019 season on September 5th against Assumption. Senior Kevin Rodriguez and freshman Matthias Kuhn both scored to lead the Mavericks to a 2-0 victory over the Greyhounds. Mercy won their season opener for the second straight year. On September 7th, Mercy played Southern Connecticut State and senior Ignacio Mangada and sophomore Steven Fernandez both scored as the Mavericks earned a 2-2 tie. After the week was over, Kuhn was named ECC Rookie of the Week and junior Francisco Ricci was named Defensive Player of the Week.

Following the pair of wins, Mercy moved up to No. 16 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Poll. The Mavericks resumed action on September 12th with a tilt against Franklin Pierce. Rebolledo-Camus and senior Manuel Achondo both netted goals to give Mercy a 2-1 victory over the Ravens moving the Mavericks to 2-0-1 on the year. Franklin Pierce would go on to advance to the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals. Mercy headed back onto the road where they would play at Millersville on September 14th. Four different Mavericks scored as Mercy remained unbeaten with a 4-1 road win. After the pair of wins, Rebolledo-Camus was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week, sophomore Aaron Denk-Gracia was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week and Achondo earned Honor Roll recognition.

Mercy moved up to No. 12 nationally heading into their matchup with Dominican on September 17th. Senior Santiago Corral netted a game-high two goals as the Mavericks came away with a 3-1 win over the Chargers. Mercy improved to 4-0-1 for the second straight year. The Mavericks concluded the week with their ECC opener against Queens on September 21st. Mangada and junior Nigel Hawthorne both scored as the Mavericks defeated the Knights, 2-1, to increase their win streak to four. Following the pair of wins, Mangada was tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll.

The Mavericks crept up to No. 9 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll and hosted Jefferson on September 25th. Mangada, Rebolledo-Camus and graduate student Juan Lares tallied goals as Mercy picked up a 3-0 win over the Rams. The win improved Mercy to 6-0-1 and gave them their best start since 2016. The Mavericks continued to roll when Fernandez, Corral and sophomore Archie Jones scored goals to guide Mercy to a 3-1 win at ECC foe Daemen on September 28th. The win gave Mercy their best start to a season in over 30 years. Mangada was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week following the two wins and Corral was named to the Honor Roll.

Mercy inched up to No. 8 nationally after the pair of wins. The Mavericks traveled to Georgian Court on October 2nd and dropped their first game of the season by a score of 1-0 to fall to 7-1-1 on the year. Mercy quickly rebounded on October 5th when junior Ryan Sipavicius netted a goal and an assist to pace the Mavericks in a 3-0 victory over Molloy. After the win, Sipavicius was tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll.

Heading into their matchup with Chestnut Hill on October 8th Mercy sat at No. 11 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Poll. Corral stepped up for the Mavericks and delivered a game-high three goals with an assist to lead Mercy to a convincing 7-0 victory over the Griffins at Mercy Field. The win gave Mercy their best start to a season since 1989 and the seven goals were the most scored since October 18, 2012 against Felician. Mercy finished off the week with a thrilling 1-0 win over Staten Island on October 12th as Mangada scored the game-winning goal in the 63rd minute. The victory improved the Mavericks to 10-1-1 on the year, giving them double-digit wins for the third straight year. After the wins, Mangada was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week again, Kuhn was tabbed Rookie of the Week and Corral and Rozenblum were tabbed to the Honor Roll.

Mercy sat at No. 9 nationally heading into their ECC matchup with St. Thomas Aquinas on October 16th. The Mavericks needed late game heroics again and this time Achondo delivered the game-winning goal in the 75th minute to give Mercy a 1-0 victory over the Spartans. The Mavericks ended the week with a 2-1 double-overtime loss to New York Tech on October 19th, dropping their first ECC game of the year.

Junior Joel Serrano made four saves as the Mavericks earned a 0-0 draw with American International in their next game on October 22nd. Mercy sat at No. 17 nationally heading into their matchup at Bridgeport on October 26th. The Mavericks dropped their second ECC game against the Purple Knights, falling 1-0. Mercy fell to 11-3-2 overall on the year and 4-2 in ECC play after the loss. Serrano was named to the ECC Honor Roll after the pair of games.

Mercy was ranked sixth in the first NCAA Regional Rankings on October 30th and faced Roberts Wesleyan in a key ECC matchup on November 2nd for Senior Day. Four different Mavericks scored as Mercy bounced back and got back in the win column with a 4-0 win over the Redhawks. Mercy ended the regular season 9-0-1 at home. The win also moved Mercy back into first place in the ECC standings with one game left. Jones was named to the ECC Honor Roll after the win.

The Mavericks sat at No. 7 in the second NCAA Regional Rankings on November 6th and faced off against District of Columbia on November 9th. Three different Mavericks scored as Mercy secured their second straight ECC Regular Season Championship with a 3-1 victory over the Firebirds. Mercy ended the regular season 13-3-2 overall and 6-2 in ECC play. The outright championship was the first since 1989 and Mercy earned the top seed in the ECC Tournament where they would host No. 4 seed Molloy on November 13th. After the win, Achondo was named to the ECC Honor Roll.

Mercy faced off against the Lions in the ECC Championship Semifinals at Mercy Field. The game remained scoreless until the 39th minute when Achondo scored on a penalty kick following a Molloy foul in the box to make it 1-0. Serrano made three saves on the day to help lead the Mavericks to a 1-0 shutout win. The win gave Mercy their most wins in a season since 1986 and the Mavericks would host No. 2 seed Bridgeport in the ECC Championship Game on November 16th.

Mercy and Bridgeport played to a 0-0 draw after two overtimes with Serrano making three saves to send the game into penalty kicks. Achondo opened the penalty kick shootout with a make to give Mercy a 1-0 lead. Serrano then stepped up and stopped a Bridgeport shot to keep it 1-0. Mangada then found the back of the net to put Mercy up 2-0. The Purple Knights followed with a make to make it 2-1 before Rebolledo-Camus hit the post to give Bridgeport an opening. However, Serrano came up big for Mercy and stopped a Purple Knight shot to keep Mercy in front 2-1. Corral then delivered to put the Mavericks up 3-1. Serrano then came up with his biggest save as a Maverick to give Mercy the ECC Championship. Serrano was named Most Outstanding Player as Mercy won their first ECC Championship since 2004 and secured their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

Velazquez and the Mavericks earned the No. 6 seed in Super-Region 1 of the NCAA Tournament by virtue of going 14-3-3. Mercy would play a Second Round game after being a top six seed and would play at University of Charleston (WV) on November 23rd. The Mavericks would fall 5-0 to the eventual National Champions and see their season finish at 14-4-3. Mercy finished with their most wins in a season since 1986 and won the program's first ECC Tournament Championship since 2004. Mercy received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Poll for the second straight year.

The accolades poured in for the Mavericks after their historic season with Velazquez being named ECC Co-Coach of the Year and Rozenblum being named Defensive Player of the Year. Rozenblum, Achondo, Denk-Gracia, Mangada, Jose Izarra, Ricci, Serrano, Rebolledo-Camus and Kuhn received All-ECC accolades. The nine All-Conference selections set a school record. Denk-Gracia earned the ECC Men's Soccer Elite 19 Award and was named CoSIDA Academic All-District. Rozenblum and Denk-Gracia took home All-Region honors from the D2CCA and Achondo, Rozenblum, Denk-Gracia, Serrano and Mangada earned All-Region accolades from the United Soccer Coaches. The final award to come in was a Third Team All-American award for Achondo who took home All-American honors for the second straight year.

The 2019 season proved to be a historic one for the Mavericks and they will look to continue this success in 2020.

Schedule for the Top-10 Moments of the 2019-20 Season

Every Thursday for the next ten weeks, the Mercy College Athletics Department will release the Top-10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Thursday, April 9th. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Thursday, June 11th.

No. 1 – June 11th

No. 2 – Women's Soccer Makes Fifth NCAA Tournament Appearance

No. 3 – Volleyball Makes First ECC Tournament Appearance Since 2008

No. 4 – Women's Basketball Doubles Win Total Over 2018-19 Season

No. 5 – Bryan Griffin Sets Multiple School Records Throughout Season

No. 6 – Field Hockey Defeats 2018 Final Four Participant Pace

No. 7 – Men's Lacrosse Defeats No. 7 Pace

No. 8 – Women's Lacrosse Defeats No. 18 Bentley in Final Seconds on the Road

No. 9 – Softball Gets Off to Best Four-Game Start Since 2017

No. 10 – John Mooradian, Miguel Ortiz Sanchez and Anthony Murphy Reach Career Milestones and Move up in Baseball Record Book