Courtesy of Sean Elliot
The Connecticut College men’s soccer team is no stranger to high-pressure games, having defeated Middlebury College 3-1 just last year to clinch the program’s first-ever NESCAC title. They followed that impressive feat with a trip to the National Championship in Las Vegas, sadly coming up empty against Amherst College in a narrow penalty kick shootout. Despite this heartbreaking loss, the team returned for the 2025 season with revenge and determination. While twelve seniors graduated last year, thirteen first-years arrived to fill in the gaps. Led by captains Charlie Miles ’27, Elliot Spatz ’26, Max Haberman ’27, and Sam Brockelman ’26, the Camels ended the regular season with an 8-2-5 record overall and qualified for the NESCAC tournament.
Although they finished fifth in the NESCAC regular season, Connecticut College were certainly favorites heading into the conference tournament as the reigning champions. The team first faced Williams College, defeating the nineteenth-ranked Ephs 2-1 with goals from Max Haberman ‘27 and Gavin Vanden Berg ‘26. The semi-final game featured a match-up between the Camels and the Cardinals of Wesleyan University. Once again, the Camels came out on top, winning by one goal 2-1 with goals coming from Gavin Mpiana ‘27 and Maurice Pigola ‘26. Advancing to the final, they were set to face off against the Jumbos of Tufts University. The two teams battled for the entire ninety minutes, with Connecticut College ultimately giving up a goal in the last ten minutes of the game and falling short of the NESCAC victory. Despite the outcome, members of the team felt that the guys performed well and set themselves up for success for the remainder of the postseason. Captain Elliot Spatz ’26 noted that this loss served as an extra motivator “to be as successful as possible in the big moments of the postseason.”
NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year and captain Max Haberman ’27 shared that the team was confident going into all three NESCAC tournament games. “We knew that we could outplay Williams just like the week before, and once you make the finals weekend anything can happen. Before Wesleyan and Tufts, we had that same confidence, and I think it showed despite the final outcome.” Sophomore defender Dylan Hoke ’28 adds that, disregarding the scores, we “statistically outplayed our opponent in many categories.” Hoke also touched on the adversity that the team faced in the tournament, highlighting “going down 1-0 against Williams, holding a lead for over 70 minutes against Wesleyan, and the constant attempt to try and tie the game against Tufts in the last ten minutes.” The Camels adopt the saying, “never too high, never too low,” which according to Hoke, is “a reminder to keep a level head.” It was this mentality and the collective talent of the team that propelled them through the conference tournament and prepared them for NCAAs, giving them the “ability to compete with and beat the top teams in the country” according to captain Sam Brockelman ‘26.
Shaking off their NESCAC loss, Connecticut College men’s soccer set their sights on the ultimate goal of the season, to win a national championship. When asked, Brockelman, Haberman, Hoke, and Spatz unanimously agreed on this final objective, while also “taking every game as a new opportunity” according to Haberman. After much anticipation, it was announced that the Camels were set to host both the first and second rounds of NCAAs. For players like Spatz, this meant one last guaranteed game on Freeman Field: “For me personally, those were my last two games on Freeman…it’s bittersweet. Postseason, whether NESCACs or NCAAs, has always been great at home.” Fellow senior Brockelman added, “…I felt so grateful walking out to play in back-to-back NCAA tournament games, because there is no better feeling than walking onto the field to compete and feeling like your school is behind you.” The first round placed Connecticut College against the University of St. Joseph (CT). The Camels were excited and felt confident heading into the game, relying on their 3 months of foundation and chemistry to really control the game, according to Hoke. The Camels had a plethora of chances in the first half; however, the first found the back of the net with just two seconds left. Kevin Hwong ’27 fired a shot from outside the box to give his team the advantage going into halftime. The second half featured an unstoppable Connecticut College team, tacking on five more goals, with Haberman netting two. Spatz added one, alongside Chase Corcoran ’29 and Shinya Frank ’29, who both recorded their first career goals.
The Camels returned the next day to take on the Babson Beavers. Brockelman noted that “Babson has always been a good team, and we knew that we would have to play well to beat them.” The confidence from the previous day’s game gave the team momentum heading into the second round. The game proved to be more of a challenge, with Connecticut College narrowly earning the 2-1 win. Both Camel goals were penalty kicks taken by Marco Perugini ’27. Spatz shared how this win was truly a full team win that “required maximum effort from everybody.” Brockelman added that there were times where Connecticut College controlled the speed of play, while other times Babson was the more dangerous team. “At halftime, we talked about playing quickly and confidently and not letting their fouling, trash-talking, and antics get to us.” The team did just that and sealed the victory. Brockelman also highlighted the importance of resiliency, especially in the NCAAs: “…it’s all about staying resilient no matter the conditions, the score, or what the other team is doing…our team did an excellent job sticking together and not letting ourselves get distracted from what was important.” It was ultimately this resiliency and commitment that advanced the team to the Sweet Sixteen for the third consecutive season.
The Round of 16 featured a familiar foe: the Polar Bears of Bowdoin College. Having played Bowdoin in the regular season and tying 1-1, Connecticut College knew that a tough game was to be expected. Prior to the game, Hoke shared that the team needed to “keep playing the way we’ve been, imposing our possession-based style on the game and limiting moments when we could be outcompeted in certain areas, such as on set pieces or defensively.” Brockelman stated that the “team has to focus tactically on being disciplined defensively and knowing our assignments, as well as being confident and thinking quickly when we have the ball.” The Camels were sound defensively against the Polar Bears, allowing no goals across the ninety minutes. However, they were also unable to break through, leaving the game at a scoreless tie at the end of regulation and two overtimes. Penalty kicks were forced to be the deciding factor. Unfortunately, Bowdoin College ultimately prevailed 3-2 in penalty kicks, with Perugini ’27 and Max Weiss ’26 being the two successful kickers for the Camels. A heartbreaking ending to the team’s 2025 season to say the least.
“…avoid taking these experiences for granted”: something reiterated by Hoke ’28 when asked about the season as a whole. As stated before, the Camels are no stranger to high pressure games and postseason play. Despite the Sweet Sixteen loss to Bowdoin, the Connecticut College men’s soccer team remains one of the most competitive and successful teams in the conference, with their statistics showing their talent and depth year after year. It is safe to say that the team will return next year with even more determination and the desire for revenge. And for the eight graduating seniors, congratulations on an impressive collegiate career. I’m sure they would all echo Hoke’s advice to not take a single game for granted, as you are only guaranteed so many in a Camel uniform.
