Moon Township, Pa. – The journey to the Northeast Conference Tournament was filled with twists and turns, ups and downs, for
Robert Morris University.
Yet here the Colonials are, a resilient group of 28 players, led by 21st-year coach
Bill Denniston, on a stage they aspired to reach nine months ago.
"You start talking about it in February when you're lifting weights and running out in the cold," Denniston said. "Well, this is it. The hard work got them here. To win it would be outstanding, but the goal is to get there so you have a chance."
No. 4 seed Robert Morris (4-10-3, 3-3-1 NEC) faces host and top-seeded St. Francis Brooklyn (12-4-1, 6-0-1) at 2:00 p.m. Friday. The victor moves on to play the LIU Brooklyn-Fairleigh Dickinson winner on Sunday in the championship game.
An NCAA Tournament berth, last achieved by Robert Morris in 2005, is on the line.
"Anything can happen now," said Denniston, whose team lost to St. Francis Brooklyn, 3-1, Oct. 20. "Because there are so few opportunities to score and so few goals in our sport, sometimes a stronger team will lose. That's just the way it goes. It's the nature of soccer."
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St. Francis Brooklyn enters the tournament with a 6-1-1 record at home and is riding a five-game winning streak. The Colonials, meantime, won two in a row before losing their regular-season finale at Saint Francis U.
"Our guys believe in themselves," Denniston said. "They'll be ready."
It wasn't long ago that the Colonials were longshots, it seemed, to even qualify for the postseason. They opened with six consecutive losses and were 0-7-2 after a tie with Duquesne on Sept. 24.
Nine games.
No victories.
No chance?
Not this group. Buoyed by a nine-member senior class, the Colonials remained calm and poised. Undeterred, even. It was then that Denniston realized a turnaround was possible.
His beliefs were confirmed Oct. 1. That's when the Colonials overcame a 1-0 second-half deficit with goals at the 80:20 and 86:47 marks to defeat visiting Howard, 2-1, to close out the non-conference schedule. Leading scorer
Bayley Winkel scored the game-winner and senior goalkeeper Fondi Winter preserved the win.
"That game turned the switch," Denniston said. "We said, 'We can do it.' We felt that we could have won more games before then, but it was no longer just talk. We got that important win."
A win and a tie to open the NEC schedule set the Colonials off on a path that led them to a fourth-place finish in the conference.
As it turns out, one of the smallest players on the roster, Winkel (5'8", 140 pounds) has made the biggest impact. The senior from Whitney, Ontario, has blazed his way (the man can run) to 10 goals, making him the 11th player in program history to reach that total. He also has two assists.
A transfer from Drexel, Winkel is looking to make his second and final season with the Colonials magical.
"This is something I haven't experienced before," said Winkel, who scored only one goal in 17 games in 2016. "My teams always missed the playoffs, so I really appreciate having this type of opportunity."
Denniston appreciates having a scorer of Winkel's pedigree. In fact, the veteran coach believes Winkel is capable of carrying the Colonials through the tournament. And, to Winkel's credit, he does not shy away from such talk.
"As a player, you want to be the one making the big plays and scoring the big goals," said Winkel, one of six Canadians on the roster, all of whom played for the same soccer club. "For me personally, this is my senior season, and who knows how much soccer I have left. I'm going into this weekend with the mindset that this is all I have left. So, if it's me making the winning play or scoring the winning goal, I'd love that opportunity."
If Winkel plays up to his great potential, and senior midfielder
Keane McIvor (8 assists), goalkeeper Fondi (33 consecutive starts) and graduate-student defender
Bennett Jull continue to excel, the Colonials believe they can compete with any of the three teams at the NEC Tournament.
"These guys never quit, never lose their poise," Denniston said.
Denniston was effusive in his praise of Jull, who missed all but one game last season with a "sports hernia-type injury," per the Robert Morris coach.
"When we didn't have him, we just didn't look the same," said Denniston, who's led the Colonials to eight NEC Tournament appearances. "We didn't have that attitude and fight. He plays in the back, and you always want a leader in the back."
After this weekend, the Colonials hope to be out front at the NEC Tournament.
"We've made it this far because we've done it as a team," Winkel said. "So this isn't all about individual efforts. It's about going out there and doing it together. We're looking forward to it."
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