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11/11/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 11/12/2024 11:52

Men’s Soccer Enters Patriot League Semifinals as Regular Season Champions for Second Year

Men's Soccer Enters Patriot League Semifinals as Regular Season Champions for Second Year

Terriers are top seed in the tournament for second year in a row

The BU men's soccer team played to a tie with Harvard October 8. The Terriers captured their second consecutive Patriot League regular season championship October 29 and enter the league tournament as the top seed. Photo by Kaeli Talora

Varsity Sports

Men's Soccer Enters Patriot League Semifinals as Regular Season Champions for Second Year

Terriers are top seed in the tournament two years in a row

November 11, 2024
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With a 1-1 draw against Holy Cross November 5, the Boston University men's soccer team won back-to-back regular season conference championships for the first time in over a decade.

The Terriers have had a roller-coaster of a season, finishing with a 4-3-10 record. The 10 draws are not only a record for BU, but also an NCAA record. The team started its season 1-2-5 before ending on a seven-game unbeaten streak, claiming the Patriot League regular season title along the way. The last time the Terriers lost a game was September 28.

"Going into the season, that was one of our goals, and it's really special to the group just because there's been a lot of adversity and ups and downs," says goalkeeper Andrew Wike (Questrom'24, MET'25). "It feels good, but ultimately, the job's not finished, so we're looking forward to the semifinal round of the championship on Tuesday."

Goalkeeper Andrew Wike (Questrom'24, MET'25) during the November 5 game at Holy Cross. Wike, with four shutouts, has been the go-to starter for the Terriers this season, despite an early season injury. Photo by BU Athletics

The Terriers will host Colgate at Nickerson Field November 12, starting at 7 pm.

While the Terriers' record this season pales before their 12-4-4 record last year, head coach Kevin Nylen says it demonstrates the team's resilience. Every game but two was decided by one goal.

"Results are different, but opponents stay the same. But the common denominator is BU," Nylen says. "We have an X on our back, maybe a little more this year, because we're the previous year's champion. Everybody's gonna give you their best, and we've gotten everybody's best."

Capturing the 2024 regular season title gave BU the top seed in the Patriot League tournament, as well as a first-round bye. It's the third straight season BU has earned a first-round bye in the tournament.

Nylen says winning the Patriot League championship last season has prepared the team for the pressure of this year's tournament. And from Wike: "The playoffs have a different feeling about it, and so having the experience of being there a couple years in a row definitely is going to help our group a lot."

Te team has battled adversity throughout the season. At one point, nine players were out with an injury, Wike among them.

The team's ability to overcome those setbacks is a testament to something Nylen spoke about at the beginning of the season: depth succession, or making sure the team continues to rotate in quality talent. The Terriers had lost their top-two point leaders, but this season, a mix of both upperclassmen and underclassmen has filled in the missing gaps.

"We're far, far more balanced this year, and you also don't know who's going to step up and who's not," Nylen says. "We've had a bunch of guys who have been here who have also picked up one to three goals. Defenders adding points is obviously a huge category and those help the differential."

Defenseman Quin DeLaMater (CAS'26) is tied for the team lead in points this season, with three goals and three assists to match. DeLaMater picked up Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week honors on November 4.

Forward Andrea Di Blasio (CAS'27), in his first season as a Terrier after transferring from Syracuse, is tied for the most points, scoring four goals and an assist. He also has the second-most game-winning goals in the conference.

"He's had some really good moments. He's had some learning moments. But he's given us valued minutes," Nylen says. "I can see him only getting better as we continue to move forward."

The coach points to the team's balance this season as one of its greatest strengths. There are 11 goal scorers and 4 multi-goal scorers: DeLaMater, Di Blasio, forward Aidan Bone (Questrom'24, SHA'25), and forward Damola Salami (Questrom'26).

Wike has earned the starting job in net. He began the season with a shutout before an early-season injury. The team rotated between goalkeeper Ben Alexander (CAS'26) and Sheraz Saadat (ENG'26) in the interim. When Wike returned in mid-September, he resumed his starting role. Throughout the season, he's tallied a 1.34 goals-against average, 0.676 save percentage, and 4 clean sheets.

"Our goalkeeper group is good, and they push each other and work well together in training. Wike made some big saves when called upon," Nylen says. "I couldn't be more happy for a guy to be able to keep it going for us."

The Terriers have not lost to a Patriot League team at home since a double overtime shootout loss to Navy in the conference semifinals in November 2022. They are hoping to keep that streak alive Tuesday, and if luck prevails, during the championship game on November 16.

"We talk about it every day. Our coach preaches it, our staff preaches it: Nickerson is home," Wike says. "When we play at Nickerson, we feel like we're at home."

The BU men's soccer team battles Colgate in the Patriot League semifinals on Tuesday, November 12, at 7 pm at Nickerson Field. Admission is free, and fans can stream the action on ESPN+. If the Terriers win that game, they will host the Patriot League Championship on Nickerson Field on Saturday, November 16, at 1 pm. That game will also be streamed on ESPN+.

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