College Sports

The best soccer that Division I junior college has to offer will be on display this week at Tyler Junior College’s Pat Hartley Complex.

The national tournament is back in the Rose City for the eighth year in a row. That streak will end, however, in 2008 when the event heads to Phoenix, Ariz.

The rotation continues in 2009 when Trenton, N.J., hosts the tournament before it comes back to Tyler in 2010.

The battle for the NJCAA Division I national championship will begin Thursday with games at noon, 2 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.

The winner’s bracket semifinals are scheduled for 4 and 6 p.m. Friday, with the final at 1 p.m. Sunday. The third-place match is set for 11 a.m. Sunday. There will be no action on Saturday.

Defending champion Jefferson College (Mo.) will open at 2 p.m. Thursday against San Jacinto South.

The consolation semifinals will be at noon and 2 p.m. Friday, with the consolation final set for 9 a.m. Sunday.

The Pat Hartley Complex, located on the TJC campus off Fifth Street, has two natural-grass soccer fields. Both will be used during the tournament.

“We’ve had perfect weather, so both fields look very good,” said TJC athletic director Dr. Tim Drain.

Drain added that the matches will rotate between fields 1 and 2. “The only time we will specifically assign a field is for the championship game.”

Tournament passes may be purchased before the start of the tournament in the Intercollegiate Athletics Office, located inside Wagstaff Gymnasium.

Day passes will be sold on the day of the game only. Tournament passes are $8 each. Day passes are $4 for adults, $3 for students with ID, and $2 for children 9-14. Children 8 and under get in free, as will any youth soccer team that comes together in uniform.

“We’re pleased to be hosting this tournament for the eighth time,” Drain said. “Once again we owe thanks to SPORTyler, Tyler Convention and Visitors Bureau and others who assist us with making it possible. We encourage fans to not miss this great event.”

This year the tournament field was seeded 1-8, a sharp contrast from when the event first came to Tyler. Back then, the draw was pre-determined based on districts.

“There were a couple of years where arguably the best two teams played each other in the first round,” Drain said.

Drain said last year the top four teams were seeded and the next four were randomly placed in the draw.

Smoke Signals: The national tournament banquet is set for 6 p.m. Wednesday in the Apache Rooms of the Rogers Student Center on the TJC campus. All eight teams will be recognized, and there will be a T-shirt exchange among the athletes. … San Jacinto College-South will represent Texas at the national tournament. The Coyotes defeated TJC in the regional final, Ranger in the district semifinals, and Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa in the district final. … This year’s event includes five teams from last year’s tournament — Georgia Perimeter, Yavapai (Ariz.), Jefferson (Mo.), Mercer County (N.J.) and Illinois Central. 

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2007 NJCAA D1 NATIONAL

SOCCER TOURNAMENT

TEAM CAPSULES

Georgia Perimeter College

Decatur, Ga.

Mascot: Jaguars

Seed: No. 1

2007 Record: 19-0-2

National Championships: 2005

Head Coach: Marc Zagara

Key Players: Michael Mecerod (17 goals, 11 assists); Bediako Swan (16 goals, 5 assists); Cesar Tejara (10 goals, 14 assists); Jon Selkow (.340 GAA).

Key Games: def. Tyler, Louisburg (N.C.).

District Final: def. Hiawassee (Tenn.), 3-0, in Southeast.

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Yavapai College

Prescott, Ariz.

Mascot: Roughriders

Seed: No. 2

2007 Record: 21-2-0

National Championships: 1990,92,97,02,03

Head Coach: Mike Pantalione

Key Players: Francis Khamis (20 goals, 9 assists); Justin Meram (18 goals, 10 assists); Sam Hayden (.952 GAA).

Key Games: lost to San Jacinto, def. Schoolcraft (Mich.).

District Final: def. North Idaho, 4-2, in West.

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Marshalltown Community College

Marshalltown, Iowa

Mascot: Tigers

Seed: No. 3

2007 Record: 16-1-0

National Championships: none

Head Coach: Marcello Serrano

Key Players: Arkenson Neckels (22 goals, 11 assists); 14 players with 10 or more points on the year; Ken Searles (.269 GAA).

Key Games: def. Jefferson, def. Illinois Central.

District Final: def. South Suburban (Ill.), 2-0, in Great Lakes.

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Jefferson College

Hillsboro, Mo.

Mascot: Vikings

Seed: No. 4

2007 Record: 18-3-0

National Championships: 2006

Head Coach: Stephen Peck, Jr.

Key Players: Anthony Bradshaw (25 goals, 7 assists); Jesus Jimenez (16 goals, 5 assists); Jonathan Barraza (.864 GAA).

Key Games: lost to Marshalltown and Tyler, def. San Jacinto and DuPage (Ill.).

District Final: def. Barton County (Kan.), 5-0, in Plains.

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San Jacinto College

Houston

Mascot: Coyotes

Seed: No. 5

2007 Record: 15-2-2

National Championships: none

Head Coach: David Santesteban

Key Players: Roy Hernandez (10 goals, 6 assists); Ricardo Ximines (10 goals, 6 assists); Gabriel Rodriguez (.288 GAA).

Key Games: beat Yavapai and Tyler (twice); lost to Tyler.

District Final: def. Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa, 2-1, in South.

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Mercer County Community College

Trenton, N.J.

Mascot: Vikings

Seed: No. 6

2007 Record: 13-5-1

National Championships: 1968,82,88,91,95,96,04

Head Coach: Charlie Inverso

Key Players: Luke Stedmond (12 goals, 4 assists); Rob Cabrera (8 goals, 7 assists); Alexander Eliasson(1.124 GAA).

Key Games: lost to Tyler, tied Georgia Perimeter, def. CCBC-Essex (Md.).

District Final: def. Monroe CC (N.Y.), 3-0, in Northeast.

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Illinois Central College

East Peoria, Ill.

Mascot: Cougars

Seed: No. 7

2007 Record: 18-4-0

National Championships: none

Head Coach: Oz Bakirdan

Key Players: Brian Santos (13 goals, 7 assists); Alan El-Darazi (.264 GAA).

Key Games: lost Marshalltown (Iowa), def. DuPage (Ill.).

District Final: def. Macomb (Mich.), 3-2, in Central.

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CCBC-Essex

Baltimore, Md.

Mascot: Knights

Seed: No. 8.

2007 Record: 13-5-1

National Championships: 1974

Head Coach: Rich Zinkand

Key Players: Angel Praganov (12 goals, 6 assists); Ulrich Gueret Mpoko (11 goals, 7 assists); Justin Cherry (1.429 GAA); Pablo Mora (1.077 GAA).

Key Games: lost to Mercer (N.J.), split with Louisburg (N.C.).

District Final: def. Louisburg, 1-0, in Mid-Atlantic (Essex was unranked at the time while Louisburg was No. 6).

Notes: The Knights won district for the first time since the mid-90s. … CCBC stands for Community College of Baltimore County.