Notre Dame College Men's Soccer is set for the teams first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2018.
Taylor Dyson has been a key member of this Falcons squad and has had a solid sophomore season that has included an MEC leading and NCAA Division II seventh best 36 points as he garnered All-MEC First Team honors. He has an MEC second best and DII 21st best 12 goals and had 12 assists on the year and his 0.6 assists per game are seventh in the country. "I had been recruited to Notre Dame College through the old (assistant) coach, Lewis Dunne, as he reached out to me through an American based agency that helps international students come through the United States, the Manchester, England native stated."
Pedro Alvez is from Brazil and came to NDC through an agency named 2 SV. "I was recruited in April 2020. My agency from Brazil, contacted Coach (Carl) Nolan who liked my highlight video and brought me in the fall of 2020, "Alvez mentioned. Alvez has played in 18 matches, starting 17 in goal recording eight shutouts. The native of Sau Palo, Brazil has a .717 save percentage. He has allowed 15 goals on the year.
Carlos Almeida is a native of Sau Palo, Brazil and he talked about 2 SV as well:
"I'm part of a sports exchange company called 2 SV that was managing me and got in touch with Notre Dame College to show them my highlight video, "Almeida explained. "After that, assistant coach at the time Lewis Dunne called me and we had a nice chat."
Almeida has played in 19 matches, starting 18. He has tallied two goals while dishing out four assists to get to his eight points on the season.
Alvez talked about the improvement of the squad since last season:
"The team has really improved its chemistry throughout this season. We struggled a little bit with that initially but now we are in a great place."
Dyson agreed:
"The season started very slow as we did not gel as a team as quick as we thought we were going to. It took the lads a couple games to understand each other. The turning point for the season was an away game we had at Wheeling (9/14.) After that game the season was on the up and up, the confidence that we built gave us belief that we could beat anyone and that was what was shown when we beat then #1 Davis & Elkins (4-0 on 10/5.) We believed we could beat them with the talent that we have, and we did it."
Dyson continued about the improvement the squad has made:
"The team has made huge improvements since last year's season, the boys are more together and can demand a lot more from each other through trust and respect. I would say the team chemistry has improved a lot."
Almeida talked about all the new faces and how it took a little while for the team to gel:
"This season we had a lot of new faces on the roster. I believe it took a few games for the team to have good chemistry, but after we got to know each other better, and got together, hardly anyone can stop this team."
Dyson told me about the first time he met both Alvez and Almeida:
"The first time I encountered Pedro and Carlos was at one of the older players houses as I was new and came to college earlier than most, so I got to see the lads early and we got along instantly, laughing, talking about home, they were just really nice guys. On the field they are both very demanding of their teammates in a positive manner making sure everyone is doing their best. Off the pitch the lads are very understanding that you can talk to them but are also very funny, love to joke around, and make sure everyone has a good time."
Alvez talked about meeting Almeida:
"Cadu (Carlos Almeida) came with me as a Freshman in 2020, he's from the same city as me in Brazil. He's also my roommate (as we moved into a house this year.) We have a lot in common.
I met Taylor in the preseason in the fall of 2021. To be honest, due to Taylor's heavy accent, I was barely able to have a full conversation with him in the beginning, but now he has become a great friend, and is also a great addition to our program."
Almeida talked about meeting his two teammates:
"The first time I met Pedro was on my first day here in the Spring of 2021. We had a good time. We had good first impressions of each other because we were both from back home and we are both Brazilians. When I met Taylor I was already in my second semester and he was in his first. I had a good impression of him being a humble guy and I already noticed in the first training session that he had quality."
Alvez told me the team had its longest win streak in a long time (eight straight wins before the loss to the University of Charleston,) and now they have been hot ever since. This included the win against #1 D&E on October 5th. Being able to beat the number one team in the nation was another boost to show us that we can achieve big things this season."
Almeida is excited about the tournament:
"I believe at this point in the season we are more confident than ever. We know the potential of our team and we are not just here to go to the NCAA Tournament. Our goal is to be National Champions. We saw what we are capable of when we won that D and E match when D and E was number one."
Dyson told me his biggest improvement since arriving on campus:
"My biggest improvement has been my dead ball quality. Perfecting my corners and free kick consistency has helped me and the team to get opportunities to score."
Alvez answered the same question:
"My biggest improvement I would say is my foot distribution. I've been able to help my team creating plays."
Almeida moved to NDC in the spring of 2021: "I started a new life from zero. I confess it took a while to adapt. One thing that made my adaptation difficult was the cold. Now I am fine and feeling at home."
Dyson told me that the coaches are very understanding and allow the players to have a voice.
"That is what makes them unique. A lot of coaches have sets of rules and are very harsh but the coaches we have will have rules but will also ask the players their opinions and will take them into consideration."
Almeida talked about what a help his head coach has always been:
"Coach Nolan has always helped us a lot, knowing the effort we made to get here while the pandemic was still a reality. Lewis (Dunne) always tried to talk to me and instruct me in the best way for me to perform well on the field. (Former Assistant Coach) Tyler (Wicham) has always tried to get us ready physically and now (Assistant Coach) Pat (Svilik) is doing a great job with us. I've always known that if I need something that's extra like personal problems, I can talk with any of them. You have to have balance in your life."
Alvez talked about how great it is to have such depth and great goalkeepers competing against each other daily:
"I've always been a goalkeeper since I was seven years old when I started playing soccer. Our goalkeepers this year bring many different qualities. Very glad to have them to push me every training session."
Almeida said, "I would say since I have been here my decision making is quicker. I try to find the spaces between the lines and make the team always look for a chance to score."
Dyson talked persistence:
"I think the persistence of the team wanting to score and wanting to help one another, not being selfish has helped me to thrive. Speaking to others has helped me, speaking to the goalkeepers about how I can improve but also talking to the people about what I like on the pitch and the things they like on the pitch, so understanding one another benefits everyone and I have been fortunate to be in those positions to score and help my teammates score. One lesson I learned is no matter how hard something is it will be achievable through hard work and if it is in a team environment being a family is everything. Being able to compete day in and day out with these players benefits me a lot as I improve a lot as a player and everyone else picks up things from each other, whether it be from movements or the way they strike the ball.
Everyone wants to win as it makes everyone go 100 percent as nobody likes losing. Intensity is the biggest difference as people develop a lot more within the college game and the game gets a lot faster with players being older and wiser. Players are also in better physical shape than high school so that makes you develop mentally and physically. I would say intensity and physicality is the biggest difference between high school and college soccer."
Alvez agreed:
"College soccer is 100 times more competitive than high school soccer. Our team is very competitive. Something different that we have this year is that the team rotation has been constant which allows a lot of freshman opportunities. I would say the biggest difference between the high school and college game is speed and physicality. You have to think faster."
Almeida gave another thought:
"As I said earlier this team is not here to be part of the NCAA Tournament. We are looking for the NCAA Tournament Trophy. Best of all we are playing happy and having fun. Everyone is friends off the field and we know that this is a unique phase that we are going through in our lives."
Alvez gave his final thought:
"Be resilient. Adapt to different situations and overcome everything that life throws your way."
Notre Dame College Men's Soccer (15-4-2 12-3-1 MEC) has secured a trip to the NCAA Tournament in Super Region One. They will be the eighth seed in the opening round and will take on #9 seed College of Saint Rose (Albany, New York) (9-4-4.) (Top seeded Franklin Pierce University (Rindge, New Hampshire) is the host of the region. Kickoff today (Thursday) is at 6 PM from Sodexo Field, with the winner facing Franklin Pierce on Saturday at 6 PM.
Taylor Dyson on the pitch.
Pedro Alvez in goal.
Carlos Almeida.
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