Daytona Beach, FL- The seedings and pools were released this morning for the National Junior College Athletic Association Division I Men's Soccer National Championship. The Marshalltown Community College Tigers were awarded the 4th seed in the tournament landing them in pool D with Eastern Florida State College and Cowley College. Pool D play action opens up on Monday, November 12th at 5PM ET.
Eastern Florida State College enters the tournament for the third time in six seasons as the 5th seed. They earned their berth by defeating Georgia Military College (previous NJCAA #1 ranked team) in the Southeast District Championship game. The Titans of Eastern Florida State College are 14-4 on the season and rely heavily on their nationally ranked #5 defense to win games. They average 3.06 goals per game, lead by Schimiliguen Castin and Aeodon Kyra who both have scored eight times each this season. Goalkeeper Nour Moaoui has only allowed five goals on the season while denying 49 shots.
Cowley College qualified for its first ever berth in the national tournament and is entering as the 9th seed. They earned their trip to nationals by advancing to the Plains District Championship game with Barton Community College. Cowley, also the Tigers, own the best record (percentage) in the tournament at 17-1 and were undefeated in conference play. They average 3.33 goals per game, while having a goals against average of 1.05. They will look to midfielder Santiago Giminez to fuel their offense as he leads the team in both goals and assists. Goalkeeper Ramiro Diez enters the tournament allowing 14 goals on the year while making 37 saves.
The MCC Tigers will first face the Cowley Tigers on Monday, November 12th. They will then enjoy a day off on Tuesday while Eastern Florida State takes on Cowley. The MCC Tigers will then faceoff against Eastern Florida State on Wednesday, November 14th. All games will be played at 5PM ET at Daytona State College and will be broadcast on NJCAATV.
