Glory Days

The Suffolk fall sports season built to a thrilling conclusion, thanks to the winning ways of women’s cross country and men’s soccer, each of whom clinched their league championship.

The women’s cross country team won their fourth consecutive title on November 2 at the 2024 Conference of New England (CNE) Championship in Springfield. On November 9, the men’s soccer team clinched their first CNE championship in dramatic fashion, pulling out a memorable victory on penalty kicks at home versus Roger Williams University.

A running dynasty

Capturing four titles in four years has earned women’s cross country “dynasty” status at Suffolk, and the team shows no signs of slowing down. “Winning the conference championship is our ultimate goal every year,” says Head Coach Will Feldman. “We’re already thinking about next season.”

Four of Feldman’s runners finished in the top 10 on the championship 6k course amid a 92-runner field: Graduate student Amalia Dorion (third place, 22:13.06); junior Amy Pattelena (fourth place, 22:19.08); graduate student Sydney Fogg (seventh place, 22:39.10); and sophomore Sofia Moukaddem (tenth place, 23:05.11).

Fogg is a three-year team captain and the first-ever Suffolk female runner to earn all-league honors four times during her collegiate career. “Sydney is our rock and personifies what our program is all about,” says Feldman, whose staff includes Associate Head Coach Kerstin Darsney and Assistant Coaches Josh Brodin, Cole Bolduc, BSBA ’23, Justin Turner, BS ’23, and Sarah Roberts, BS ’24. “She is a hard worker, competitive, a good teammate, and a motivated leader.”

Feldman attributes his squad’s continued success to a “team first” attitude. “This is a group of student-athletes who are not running for themselves; they are running for each other,” he says. “They all buy in 100% on how they perform as a team.”

On Saturday, November 16, the Suffolk cross country program hosted the NCAA Division III East Regionals at the Hopkinton Fairgrounds in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. The women’s squad finished fifth in their 30-team field, while the men’s cross country team claimed eighth place for the second straight year, in a 33-team field.

Working overtime for the win

It has been a week since the Suffolk men’s soccer team was crowned 2024 CNE champions, and Head Coach Bill Maddock is still beaming ear to ear.

“Any time a team wins a championship, it’s a special group,” he says. “It’s particularly special for me because our seniors were part of my first recruiting class. As freshmen, they were asked to leave the program better than they found it, and they have done that substantially.”

Maddock says this is his “best team” because of its overall talent, maturity, and selflessness. “Everyone is willing to make the individual sacrifice for the good of the team,” he says.

In the championship game, a goal at the 73-minute mark by senior Brady Sorensen, assisted by senior Tommy Handelsman, tied the score at 1-1. Following double overtime, senior Taj Jensen, sophomore Luke Blawn, and graduate student Dan Colbert then made their penalty kicks to secure the Rams’ first conference title since 2010.

Sophomore goalkeeper Nathan Harlow, who hails from London, England and attends Suffolk on an academic scholarship, made ten saves in the win over Roger Williams and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

“Nathan plays with a calming presence and is technically so consistent,” says Maddock, who credits Assistant Coaches Juan Gonzalez, Danny O’Neill, and Jose Meza, along with Goalkeeper Coach Kyle Tremblay, for much of the team’s success.

One key maneuver by Maddock in the title game was replacing Harlow, who protected the net through 110 minutes, with sophomore back-up goalkeeper Mateu Farre-Torres, who saved four of five shots in the shootout.

“Mateu is just better at penalty kicks,” says Maddock. “He is crafty, athletic, and gifted in his ability to read and react very well.”

Maddock also applauded the leadership skills of two-year co-captains Jensen and senior Jack Phelps. “Jack is so dedicated to his craft and leads by example,” he says, “while Taj is the energy and pulse of the program and sets the tone for others.”

After qualifying for the NCAA Division III men’s soccer tournament—their first appearance in over a decade—the men’s soccer team bowed to Connecticut College, 4-1, in the opening round on November 16, with senior Erik Van Even scoring for the Rams late in the match.