DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (July 26, 2023) – For the eighth year, Mercy College Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top-10 most memorable moments of the 2022-23 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 Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, culminating with the top moment from the 2022-23 athletic year being unveiled on Monday, July 31st.
No. 3 – Men's Soccer Wins ECC Championship and Hosts NCAA Tournament Game
Coming in at No. 3 in our 2022-23 Top-10 Moments is men's soccer who won their second ECC Championship in three seasons and hosted their first-ever NCAA Tournament game.
The Mavericks went 9-5-2 in 2021 just missing out on qualifying for the ECC Tournament due to a tiebreaker. Head Coach Pedro Velazquez and the Mavericks looked to get back to the ECC Tournament and make their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019.
Mercy was picked third in the ECC Preseason Poll and opened their 2022 season on August 25th at Saint Rose. Senior Benjamin Van Buren scored the game-winning goal in the 88th minute to lead the Mavericks to a 2-1 come-from-behind win. Junior Daniel Rodriguez also scored, and sophomore Eirik Elvestad made one save to earn the win. Mercy won their first season opener since 2019 and defeated the Golden Knights for the fifth straight time.
The Mavericks resumed action on August 28th with their home opener against New Haven. Freshman Mateo Bacigalupo scored the game-winning goal in the 12th minute, off an assist from junior Carlos Fernandes, as Mercy earned a 1-0 win. The Mavericks started 2-0 for the first time since 2018 and had won seven straight home openers. Freshman Simon Steffensen made five saves in his debut to earn the win. Following the pair of wins, Van Buren was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week and Bacigalupo was tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Velazquez and the Mavericks concluded the month of August with a road game at perennial East Region power Adelphi on August 31st. Fernandes, freshman Nicolás Cerda and Van Buren scored as the Mavericks played the Panthers to a 3-3 draw. Mercy scored the first three goals that Adelphi had surrendered this season.
Mercy capped off the week with a 3-1 loss to Southern Connecticut State on September 3rd. Cerda scored off an assist from freshman Mathias Schilbred-Eriksen in the loss. The loss moved Mercy to 2-1-1 on the year. Cerda was named ECC Rookie of the Week following the two games.
The Mavericks were receiving votes nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll entering their matchup with American International on September 7th. Junior Daniel Dalmau netted the game-winning goal in the 80th minute, off an assist from Schilbred-Eriksen, to give Mercy a 1-0 victory. The win was Mercy's first over AIC since 2016.
Mercy opened ECC play on the road at Daemen on September 10th. Senior Vasco Baptista recorded the game-winning goal in the 86th minute to give Mercy a 1-0 win. The win moved Mercy to 4-1-1 overall and 1-0 in ECC play. The Mavericks won their ECC opener for the fourth straight season and improved to 9-0 all-time against the Wildcats. After the two wins, Van Buren was named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Velazquez and the Mavericks entered the Top 25 at No. 24 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches poll ahead of the game against Jefferson on September 14th. Rodriguez and senior David Breitenbach scored to give the Mavericks a 2-0 win. Schilbred-Eriksen and Baptista added assists and Elvestad made four saves to earn the win.
The Mavericks continued to impress as they won their fourth straight game via shutout with a 3-0 victory over D'Youville on September 17th. Sophomore Luís Silva recorded a game-high two goals and Van Buren also scored to lead the way. Schilbred-Eriksen, Breitenbach, Baptista and senior Marco Passera added assists. The victory moved Mercy to 6-1-1 overall and 2-0 in ECC play. Van Buren was again named to the ECC Honor Roll following the two wins.
Mercy moved up to No. 23 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches poll prior to their game against Queens on September 21st. Baptista netted the game-winning goal and had an assist as Mercy earned a 3-1 win over the Knights for their fifth straight win. Silva and Breitenbach also scored and Schilbred-Eriksen and Dalmau added assists. Mercy improved to 7-1-1 overall and 3-0 in ECC play following the win.
The Mavericks saw their five-game winning streak come to an end on September 24th with a 2-1 loss at Molloy. Breitenbach scored in the loss and Baptista contributed an assist. After the pair of games that week, Baptista was named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy crept up to No. 22 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches poll and would face District of Columbia on October 1st. Passera, Breitenbach, Silva and Rodriguez all scored to help lead the Mavericks to a 4-2 road win. The game was also Velazquez's 100th career game as head coach at Mercy. Mercy moved to 8-2-1 overall and 4-1 in ECC play with the win.
Velazquez and the Mavericks were ranked No. 24 nationally ahead of their showdown with non-conference foe Southern New Hampshire on October 5th. Silva scored two goals and Passera added a goal as Mercy earned a 3-0 win. Elvestad made five saves to earn the shutout win. The Mavericks improved to 6-0 at home and matched their win total from last year.
The Mavericks resumed ECC play on October 8th at home against St. Thomas Aquinas. Baptista scored a goal and Elvestad made five saves as the Mavericks played the Spartans to a 1-1 draw. Following the pair of games, Elvestad was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week and Schilbred-Eriksen was tabbed Rookie of the Week.
Mercy was ranked No. 23 nationally when they faced Staten Island on October 15th. Elvestad made three saves as the two teams played to a 0-0 draw. The tie moved Mercy to 9-2-3 overall and 4-1-2 in ECC play.
The Mavericks moved up to No. 18 nationally and got back into the win column on October 18th with a 1-0 win over East Stroudsburg at Mercy Field. Sophomore Martin Penafiel scored the game-winning goal in the 54th minute and Rodriguez assisted on the goal. Mercy had now recorded double-digit wins in four of the last five seasons and moved to 7-0-1 at home. Following the win, Penafiel was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week.
The first regional rankings came out on October 19th and the Mavericks were one of 12 teams under consideration for a spot in Super-Region 1. Mercy was ranked sixth in the second NCAA Regional Rankings ahead of their game at Bridgeport on October 26th. Breitenbach and Bacigalupo both scored as Mercy earned a 2-0 win at Bridgeport. Fernandes, Baptista and Silva added assists and Elvestad made three saves to earn his seventh shutout. With the win, Mercy moved to 11-2-3 overall and earned their fourth ECC Championship berth in the last five seasons.
Mercy hosted Roberts Wesleyan for Senior Day in their regular season finale on October 29th. Prior to the game, seniors Kevin Aguilar, Diego Arosemena, Passera, Van Buren, David Sassano, Hamza Khan, Breitenbach, Baptista, Pau Echarri and Javier Mangado were recognized for their contributions to the program. Rodriguez scored a goal and Baptista had an assist as the Mavericks earned a 1-1 draw with the Redhawks to end the regular season 11-2-4 overall and 4-1-3 in ECC play. After the week of games, Elvestad was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week, Bacigalupo was named Rookie of the Week and Baptista was tabbed to the Honor Roll.
The Mavericks earned the No. 3 seed in the ECC Championship and would play at No. 2 seed Queens in a Semifinal matchup on November 3rd. Prior to the game, the Mavericks moved up to No. 13 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches poll and fourth in the NCAA Regional Rankings. Mercy recorded the first two shots on goal of the game, but Dario Cruz stopped both to keep the game scoreless. The game remained scoreless until the 38th minute when Bacigalupo headed in a Silva cross to give Mercy a 1-0 lead. The score remained 1-0 heading into halftime.
The score stayed 1-0 until the 47th minute when Jose Mendez tied the score at 1-1. Elvestad made three saves to keep the score 1-1, but Angel Leon Zavala found the back of the net in the 80th minute to give the hosts a 2-1 lead.
The Knights looked to have the game won, but the Mavericks continued to battle and Baptista headed in a ball with just over a minute left to tie the game at 2-2. The score stayed 2-2 at the end of regulation, sending the game into overtime.
The first overtime period saw Fernandes draw a foul in the box in the 92nd minute and Penafiel connected on the ensuing penalty kick to give Mercy a 3-2 lead. The Mavericks backline would not surrender a shot on goal in the remainder of both overtime periods to earn the 3-2 win, advancing to Sunday's Final. The Mavericks advanced to the Final for the third time in four seasons and would play at top-seed Molloy on November 6th.
The Mavericks would use late game heroics again against Molloy and would win the ECC Championship following penalty kicks. The Lions jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the 6th minute when Ryan Dobson headed in a Jonas Jacobsen corner kick. The score remained 1-0 heading into halftime.
The score stayed 1-0 into the 68th minute when Bacigalupo drew a foul in the box. Penafiel's penalty kick was stopped by Nick Conklu to keep Molloy ahead 1-0. Elvestad made two more saves to keep the score 1-0. The Mavericks tied their ECC Semifinal against Queens with just over a minute left in regulation and Mercy found the magic again in the 89th minute when a Fernandes cross was headed in by a Molloy defender for an own goal to tie the game with just 1:20 left to play. Both goalkeepers made a save in the final minute of play to send the game into overtime tied at 1-1.
Conkliu stopped the lone two shots on goal in the first overtime to keep the score tied at 1-1 after one overtime period.
Both goalkeepers made an additional save in the second overtime and the game stayed tied at 1-1, sending the game into penalty kicks.
Silva started with a goal and Molloy answered with a goal to make it 1-1. Baptista made it 2-1 and Nicolay Kutzop tied it again at 2-2. Van Buren gave the Mavericks a 3-2 lead before Dobson evened the score at 3-3. Penafiel earned redemption from his miss in regulation with a make to put the Mavericks up 4-3. Steffensen then stepped up after coming in off the bench for the penalty kicks, stopping a J.P. Rodriguez attempt to keep Mercy ahead. Breitenbach then delivered a make to give the Mercy the 5-3 win in penalty kicks and their fifth ECC Championship. Baptista was named the Championship's Most Outstanding Player as Mercy earned the ECC's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
Mercy earned the No. 4 seed in Super-Region 1 and would host No. 5 seed Davis & Elkins College in a Second Round matchup. The Mavericks earned their fifth NCAA Tournament berth and their third in four seasons. Mercy faced Davis & Elkins on November 12th and dropped a hard-fought 3-0 decision to the Senators, ending their season with a 12-3-5 record. Elvestad made a career-high 10 saves in the game and Fernandes had a team-high two shots on goal. The loss was Mercy's first home loss of the season and the Mavericks saw their season come to an end in the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four seasons.
The awards began to pour in after the season was completed. Van Buren was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week, Elvestad was named Co-Goalkeeper of the Year and Schilbred-Eriksen was tabbed Rookie of the Year. Van Buren, Elvestad and Baptista were named First Team All-ECC, Rodriguez and Schilbred-Eriksen were named Second Team All-ECC and Breitenbach, Passera, Silva and Penafiel were tabbed Third Team All-ECC.
Van Buren was named D2CCA First Team All-Region and Elvestad and Baptista were tabbed Second Team All-Region. Van Buren and Baptista were also tabbed United Soccer Coaches First Team All-Region and Schilbred-Eriksen was named Second Team All-Region.
The Mavericks were not only successful on the field but also in the classroom as Van Buren, Passera, Breitenbach, Baptista and Elvestad were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District. Elvestad was also named ECC Co-Men's Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
The 2022 season proved to be a successful one for the Mavericks and they will look to build upon that success under Velazquez in 2023.
Schedule for the Top-10 Moments of the 2022-23 Season
Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, the Mercy College Athletic Department will release the Top-10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Monday, July 10th. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Monday, July 31st.
No. 1 – July 31st
No. 2 – July 28th
No. 3 – July 26th
No. 4 – Women's Lacrosse Wins ECC Championship
No. 5 – Women's Basketball Wins Most Games Since 1989 and Hosts First-Ever ECC Tournament Game
No. 6 – Volleyball Posts First Winning Season Since 2005 and Qualifies for ECC Tournament
No. 7 – Field Hockey Posts First Winning Season in Program History
No. 8 – Baseball Qualifies for ECC Tournament for Third Straight Year and Wins First ECC Tournament Game Since 2010
No. 9 - Softball Qualifies for ECC Tournament for Third Straight Year
No. 10 – Men's Basketball Sweeps Bridgeport for First Time Since 2005
