Auburn, ME – The Central Maine Community College men's soccer team captured the 2024 YSCC Tournament championship with a 5-1 victory over #2 Paul Smith's College on Sunday afternoon on its home turf. It is the fourth straight conference crown for the Mustangs, which also won the regular season title with an undefeated 9-0-0 record in Yankee Small College Conference play.
Ivan Domingues and Mitch Cameron each scored a brace and Jeremiah Gomez also tallied a goal, as the Mustangs run their record to an unblemished 12-0-0 against teams out of the YSCC and sit 15-1-1 overall ahead of the USCAA National Tournament.
Cameron gave the home fans something to cheer about early with a goal in just the fifth minute. The first-year midfielder from Northwich, England fired a free kick from 20 yards out off the fingertips of a diving Cazmir Couble and into the back of the net.
The Knutsford Academy product followed that up six minutes later with his second of the game. Jeremiah Gomez backheeled a pass towards the top of the penalty area and Cameron stroked home a finish into the side netting with his left foot, giving the Mustangs the perfect start to the match.
"We talked about bringing the intensity from the get-go, and we did that well," said head coach Dalton Wing. "We dropped our intensity a little bit after taking a 2-0 lead, but we picked it up in the second half. That's kudos to all our guys for staying focused and playing solid soccer from beginning to end."
Paul Smith's would redouble their defensive efforts holding Central Maine at bay for the remainder of the first half. The Bobcats also found a route back into the game with a free kick of their own.
Liam Curthoys stood over the ball just outside the box, having already produced two assists from free kicks in the semifinal match the previous day. However, instead of Curthoys left foot it was the right boot of midfielder Adam Holt that stepped into the shot, curling a low effort around the wall and just inside the post past a surprised Cody Cleaveland. That cut the lead to 2-1 in the 36th minute.
The Mustangs refocused in the second half and began to connect passes in the midfield, giving them plenty of possession in the attacking third. Needing a strike to restore their two-goal cushion, the Domingues brothers connected for a tally as they have done so many times in their CMCC careers.
Igor Domingues got to the end line on the left side of the area, cutting the ball back to an open Ivan Domingues in the middle of the box. The YSCC Player of the Year spun with his first touch, planting a shot in the back of the net in the 57th minute.
That opened the floodgates for the Mustangs, as the team tallied twice more in the next three minutes to seal the game.
Jeremiah Gomez hammered one home in the 59th minute after Matty Waters and Mitch Cameron combined off a corner kick to set up the center attacking midfielder in the box. The assist by Cameron gives him ten goal contributions in his last nine matches this season.
In the 60th minute, Ivan Domingues knocked in his team-leading 22nd goal of the campaign to make it 5-1. David Nzuzi got free on the right side, his pass across was deflected by a defender, but went straight towards Couble. The goalkeeper reacted quickly enough to keep it out of the net, but the rebound fell kindly to an open Domingues who made no mistake from point blank range.
Things did get a bit chippy with the game no longer in doubt, as the referee handed out seven yellow cards in the final half hour. But when the clock hit zero CMCC had secured its fourth straight YSCC championship and a trip to the USCAA National Tournament.
The Mustangs also picked up some individual hardware with Ivan Domingues being named the tournament's most outstanding offensive player, while Mitch Cameron was named tournament MVP for his performance across the two matches tallying two goals and two assists.
Paul Smith's goalkeeper Cazimir Couble was named the most outstanding defensive player after his efforts getting the Bobcats into the championship game and his nine-save performance in the final.
"I'm very proud," said team captain Alfie Bashford. "A team that goes through the conference undefeated without even dropping a point, you may think that team faced no adversity, but that's not the case with this group. We all have our own individual challenges on and off the pitch. We've fought week in and week out, all the late nights, it's all been worth it."
Central Maine will now wait to find out its next opponent at the national tournament in Pittsburgh. The USCAA will announce the pool play pairings on Wednesday, November 6th.
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