Castleton University Men's Soccer
Coach John O'Connor

Castleton, Vt. – Castleton (12-3-2, 7-1-1) has earned the top seed in the upcoming North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Men's Soccer Tournament. The Spartans entered the final weekend of conference play needing wins over defending champion Thomas and UMaine-Farmington, and shutout both opponents on the road to take the top spot.

The Spartans will host eighth-seeded Lyndon in Sunday's quarterfinal round.

Maine Maritime (10-4-2, 7-1-1) is the second seed and will host number-seven UMaine-Farmington, while New England College (10-6-2, 6-2-1) finished third and will host sixth-seeded Colby-Sawyer.

Number-four Thomas (9-7-1, 6-3) will host the five seed, Husson (5-6-4, 5-1-3) in a rematch of last year's conference championship.

The top eight teams qualify for the NAC Championship. Predetermined tiebreaking procedures were used to seed teams with identical conference point totals.

Quarterfinal round games will be played on Sunday, November 3 at the higher seed. Winners will advance to the semifinal round held at the higher seed on Wednesday, November 6. Semifinal winners will meet Saturday, November 9 at the highest remaining seed.

Game times and dates are subject to change. The NAC Champion receives an automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Championship.

Championship Bracket

Quarterfinals – Sunday, November 3 at Higher Seed

(8) Lyndon State at (1) Castleton State

(7) UMaine-Farmington at (2) Maine Maritime Academy

(6) Colby-Sawyer at (3) New England College

(5) Husson at (4) Thomas

Semifinals –Wednesday, November 6 at Higher Seed

Husson/Thomas vs. Lyndon/Castleton

New England Coll./Colby-Sawyer vs. ME-Farmington/ME Maritime

Finals – Saturday, November 9 at Higher Seed

Semifinal Winners

1963 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS TO BE HONORED AT HOMECOMING & FAMILY WEEKEND

Castleton, Vt. – This weekend the Castleton men's soccer program welcomes back its only national championship squad, as they honor the 1963 NAIA Men's Soccer Champions on the 50th anniversary of their impressive feat during homecoming weekend.

It's been fifty years since Castleton took the field against Earlham College (IN) in Frostburg, Md. for the NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship. The game was cancelled due to snow and co-champions were named, but it is a memory that the players on that team have never forgotten.

The weekend kicks off with a reception for the 1963 NAIA National Champions on Friday evening at 5:00 pm in the Hall of Fame Room in Glenbrook Gym. All alumni, parents and friends are invited.

Saturday the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction begins at 9:00 am in the Campus Center 1787 Room. Former Castleton soccer and baseball player John Witalec '64 is one of two inductees this year..

Alums, players and families will then tailgate together prior to the Castleton's game versus Gallaudet at 12 pm. The day ends with the men's soccer game versus Colby-Sawyer College at 7:00 pm in Spartan Stadium. During halftime of the men's soccer game, members of the 1963 team will be introduced and honored.

The weekend finishes with a alumni versus alumni small-sided pick-up game on Sunday at 9:30 am in Spartan Stadium.

For more information on the general Homecoming & Family weekend schedule go to www.castleton.edu/homecoming.

KENDALL NAMED NAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK...

Castleton, Vt. - After helping lift the Spartans to a pair of victories, senior co-captain John Kendall was named North Atlantic Conference Player of the Week on Monday afternoon. Kendall played his role as a "supersub" to perfection this week, scoring three goals and notching two assists in a pair of Spartan wins this week.

The forward earned a career high six points on Wednesday night as the Spartans dominated SUNY Cobleskill 6-1. Kendall earned a pair of assists on goals by Spencer Dandurand, and then cashed in a pair of goals himself. On Saturday at Lyndon St., Kendall tallied the game-winner in overtime as the Spartans squeaked out a 3-2 victory over the Hornets. Kendall has scored five goals in his past three games, and has notched seven goals this year, good for third in the NAC.

With the pair of victories, Castleton improves to 8-2-2 on the year, with a 4-1-1 record within the NAC. The squad will host MCLA on Wednesday, Oct. 16 before Saturday night's conference matchup against Colby-Sawyer.

Castleton State College will hold it's inaugural Spartan College ID Camp on Sunday November 17th at Spartan Stadium on the campus of Castleton State College.

The Spartan ID Academy is designed to provide high school juniors and seniors with exceptional training as they prepare for the upcoming season as well as playing in college.

Players will experience what it is like to be part of the Castleton men’s soccer program with sessions and information vital for peak performance at the highest level.

Training sessions will be held at the beautiful Spartan Stadium, home of Castleton soccer. This state-of-the-art turf surface provides campers with the ideal environment to learn and develop
their skills.

For the first two hours participants will divided into training groups for technical and tactical sessions. Following the training will be an hour of small sided games.

After lunch players return for a technical session and the day finishes with an hour of full sided games.

Lectures on the college recruiting process will be held during lunch to provide campers with the knowledge of what it takes to play at the next level.

Castleton, Vt. - Junior midfielder Spencer Dandurand was selected as the North Atlantic Conference Player of the Week on Monday, Sept. 16 after leading the Spartans to a 4-2 victory over Plymouth State University.

On Saturday, Sept. 14, Dandurand led the Spartans to a 4-2 victory over Plymouth St. on Saturday, Sept. 14 with a game-winning goal late in the first half. The score marked his second of the season, tying the junior for the team lead. Dandurand has also notched a pair of assists this year, and leads the Spartans in points.

Castleton holds a 3-1-1 record and will take on New England College in their NAC opener on Saturday, Sept. 21 in Henniker, N.H.

DANDURAND NAMED NAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK

CASTLETON BLANKS CENTENNIAL 3-0 IN SEASON OPENER

Spartans Blank Centennial in Opener

Castleton, Vt. - In their opening match of the 2013 season, Castleton dominated possession and provided constant offensive pressure as they downed Centennial (Ont.) 3-0 at Spartan Stadium on Friday evening.

The Spartans received a spectacular effort from freshman Owen Fellows in his debut with the club. The freshman netted his first career goal and first career assist after coming off the bench for the home squad.

Castleton broke the scoring seal with a seamless connection in the 13th minute. Defender Justin Hepburn launched a long cross from the right side to a streaking Spencer Dandurand. In full stride, Dandurand leaped and struck the ball with his head, sending it over the keeper and into the net for the squad's first score of the season.

In the 45th minute, Fellows created his own chance, dispossessing Centennial goalkeeper Peter Karaskas and calmly slotting the ball into the open net to put the Spartans up 2-0 just before halftime.

In the second half, Castleton continued to dominate possession and maintained pressure as they pelted the Centennial defense with a flurry of advances. It was not until the 89th minute that the Spartans found the net again. Fellows received the ball on the left flank and found Vinny Addonisio in the middle of the box to beat the Centennial keeper and earn the Spartans' third goal.

Senior goalkeeper Nate Koenemann was sparsely challenged, but made one save on the Colts' only shot on goal to preserve his first shutout of the season.

Castleton will return to action when they travel to Southern Vermont on Sept. 4 for their first of three consecutive road games. The Spartans' will play their next home game on Sept. 11 when they host Plattsburgh St.