DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (July 13, 2022) – For the seventh year, Mercy College Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top-10 most memorable moments of the 2021-22 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 Wednesday and Friday for the next five weeks, culminating with the top moment from the 2021-22 athletic year being unveiled on Friday, August 5th.
No. 8 – Men's Soccer Nearly Qualifies for ECC Championship
Coming in at No. 8 in our 2021-22 Top-10 Moments is men's soccer who nearly qualified for the ECC Championship for the fourth straight time.
After not having a season in 2020 due to COVID-19, the Mavericks were receiving votes nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll. Mercy was also picked first in the ECC Preseason Poll after winning the ECC Championship in 2019 and Matthias Kuhn was tabbed Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
The Mavericks, coming off two straight NCAA Tournament appearances, opened their 2021 season on September 2nd at American International. Mercy fell by a score of 1-0 in their first season-opening loss since 2017 and first game in 649 days.
Mercy regrouped and responded with a 2-0 win over Southern Connecticut State in their home opener on September 4th. With the win, the Mavericks improved to 11-0-2 in their last 13 home games and the win gave Head Coach Pedro Velazquez his 50th career win. Javier Mangado scored his first goal as a Maverick in the win and Rainiero Salas added his first goal of the season to move Mercy to 1-1 on the young season.
Velazquez and the Mavericks would then host perennial East Region power Adelphi on September 8th at Mercy Field. The Panthers entered the season ranked No. 15 nationally and were ranked No. 1 nationally during the 2019 season. Kuhn had his first goal and assist of the season, Salas netted his second goal of the season and Archie Jones also scored to lead the Mavericks to a 3-1 win over Adelphi. It was Mercy's first-ever win over Adelphi.
Mercy sat at 2-1 heading into their matchup with Saint Rose on September 15th. The game remained scoreless until Abraham Lopez found the back of the net, off an assist from Jones, to give the Mavericks a 1-0 win. Mercy improved to 3-1 on the year and 13-0-2 in their last 15 home games.
The Mavericks continued to roll as they entered ECC play against Staten Island on September 18th. Mercy came away with a 2-0 victory following goals by Pau Echarri and Kuhn. The Mavericks earned their fourth straight win and won their ECC opener for the third straight time. After the win over the Dolphins, Kuhn was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week.
Mercy headed back into non-conference action with a matchup at Mercy Field against Georgian Court. Marco Passera found the back of the net for the Mavericks, but it was not enough and the Lions came away with a 2-1 win. It was Mercy's first home loss since November 3, 2018 against LIU Post.
Velazquez led the Mavericks back into ECC play with a trip to Roberts Wesleyan on September 25th. Jones and Kuhn netted goals for Mercy to give the Mavericks a 2-2 draw with the Redhawks. It was the first draw in ECC regular season play for Mercy since a 1-1 tie at Queens on October 15, 2016.
Mercy dropped their second straight home game and their first ECC game of the season on September 29th when they fell 2-1 to Bridgeport. Echarri scored the Mavericks lone goal and Felipe Baeza made five saves but it was not enough.
The Mavericks entered their matchup with St. Thomas Aquinas on October 3rd with a 4-3-1 record overall and 1-1-1 mark in ECC play. Mercy jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Jones and Echarri. However, the Spartans netted two goals, including one with 3.4 seconds left, to tie the game at 2-2 after regulation. STAC found the back of the net in the 98th minute to give the Spartans a 3-2 overtime win. Mercy lost to STAC for the first time since 2016 and it was the first time Mercy lost two games in a row since 2016. Following the game against STAC, Echarri was named ECC Rookie of the Week.
Mercy remained winless since September 18th when they earned a 0-0 draw with UDC on October 9th. Eirik Elvestad made two saves to earn his third shutout of the season. The Mavericks bounced back and got back in the win column the following Saturday when they earned a 2-0 win over Molloy on October 16th. Kuhn tallied two goals in the win and Elvestad made four saves to beat the Lions, who would go on to win the ECC Championship and appear in the NCAA Tournament. Elvestad was named Rookie of the Week following his performance against the Lions.
The Mavericks made it two wins in a row and improved to 6-4-2 with a 1-0 win over Jefferson on October 19th. Martin Penafiel scored the game-winning goal for his first collegiate goal and Baeza made seven saves to earn the shutout win. Mercy continued its winning ways and extended the win streak to three games when they earned a 4-2 win over ECC foe Queens on October 22nd. Echarri had two goals with one assist and Kuhn and Jones also scored. The Mavericks improved to 7-4-2 on the year and 3-2-2 in ECC play. Following the pair of wins, Echarri was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week and Baeza was tabbed Defensive Player of the Week.
In the first NCAA Regional Rankings released on October 27th, the Mavericks were ranked 12th with 10 teams being selected from the Super-Region 1. Mercy honored seniors Felipe Baeza, Rainiero Salas and Tormod Simonsen on Senior Day prior to their game against Daemen on October 30th. The Wildcats took a 1-0 lead in the 15th minute of action, but Echarri tied the game at 1-1 in the 30th minute after a Salas corner kick. Neither team scored in the second half or the first overtime period, sending the game into a second overtime. Mercy wasted little time in finishing the game off as David Breitenbach scored following a Jones cross just 55 seconds into the period, giving Mercy a 2-1 win. With the win, Mercy had their second four-game winning streak of the season and moved into a tie for the fourth and final ECC Championship spot. Following the win over Daemen, Breitenbach was named ECC Offensive Player of the Week.
After the win over Daemen, Mercy moved up to No. 11 in the NCAA Regional Rankings. The Mavericks concluded non-conference play on November 4th with a 2-1 overtime loss to Dominican at Mercy Field. Penafiel scored the lone goal for Mercy and Baeza made four saves.
Mercy headed into their final game of the season against D'Youville on November 6th needing a win and some help. The Mavericks would do their part, dominating the Saints for a 14-0 win, to end the regular season with a 9-5-2 overall record and 5-2-2 mark in ECC play. Daniel Dalmau scored a career-high four goals with one assist, Echarri had three goals and Jones had two goals and an assist. Mercy was eliminated from ECC Championship contention earlier in the day due to losing a tiebreaker with Molloy and Bridgeport. However, the 14 goals scored in the win was a new school record and the 14-goal margin of victory was the largest in program history. Dalmau became the first Maverick to score four goals since Maximiliano Rebolledo-Camus on October 31, 2018. Following the offensive explosion, Dalmau was tabbed ECC Offensive Player of the Week and Echarri received Rookie of the Week.
Despite not making the ECC Championship for the first time since 2016, the Mavericks posted their fifth straight winning season under Velazquez and their fourth straight winning season in ECC play.
Following a successful season, awards began to trickle in for the Mavericks. Kuhn was named ECC Defensive Player of the Year and Echarri was tabbed Rookie of the Year. Kuhn and Echarri were tabbed First Team All-ECC and Jones and Salas were named Third Team All-ECC. Kuhn and Echarri were also named All-Region by the D2CCA and Kuhn was named Second Team All-Region by the United Soccer Coaches. Kuhn also took home Third Team All-American honors from D2CAA and was named to COSIDA's Academic All-America Division II Men's Soccer Second Team. The awards did not stop there for Kuhn as he was named ECC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the ECC Men's Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
The Mavericks did not just succeed on the field but also excelled in the classroom, posting a 3.63 cumulative GPA during the 2021-22 academic year. This marked the highest GPA out of all 10 teams at Mercy.
Velazquez and the Mavericks will look to return to the ECC Championship and NCAA Tournament in 2022, aided by key returners and a strong recruiting class.
Schedule for the Top-10 Moments of the 2021-22 Season
Every Wednesday and Friday for the next five weeks, the Mercy College Athletic Department will release the Top-10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Wednesday, July 6th. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Friday, August 5th.
No. 1 - August 5th
No. 2 - August 3rd
No. 3 - July 29th
No. 4 - July 27th
No. 5 - July 22nd
No. 6 - July 20th
No. 7 - July 15th
No. 8 - July 13th
No. 9 - Field Hockey Wins at No. 9 American International
No. 10 – Men's Basketball Sweeps Molloy for First Time Since 2005
