When Phillip Arceneaux looks at his Blinn College teammates, one thing stands out.
“There are a lot of hungry mouths to feed,” the sophomore forward said. “Everybody on this team expects to contribute and wants to be great.”
That’s exciting news for a Buccaneer men’s soccer squad fresh off an almost teamwide reset just one year removed from the most successful season in program history.
Ahead of its season opener against ninth-ranked Eastern Florida State College at 5 p.m. Thursday at Hohlt Park, Blinn is set to deploy a 34-man roster that features just seven returners from a historic 2023 campaign.
One year ago, the Bucs put together a program-best 14-7 record and earned a berth in the Gulf South District Tournament for the sixth time before exiting in the semifinal round.
Blinn scored a program-record 84 goals and record 115 assists while forward David Garcia set both the single-season (19) and career (35) scoring records en route to a second-team NJCAA Division I All-America selection and a United Soccer Coaches Junior College Division I Men’s All-America team. Returning sophomore goalkeeper Noah LeMaster also made history with 14 wins in goal.
(Pictured: Blinn’s Phillip Arceneaux heads the ball during a match against Coastal Bend College on Sept. 9, 2023)
Last year’s accomplishments reaffirm the rising standard set by a string of successful seasons.
“We’ve had very, very good players and teams come through Blinn College, but we believe from a skill standpoint, this could be the most talented team we’ve fielded in program history,” sixth-year head coach Michael McBride said. “The signs are there in the way we train, the way our men compete against each other, and the way we carry ourselves in everything we do. Whether or not we put that all together when the time comes remains to be seen, but the potential to be great is there.”
From a veteran standpoint, several capable goal scorers aim to keep Blinn’s offense running. As freshmen, forward Diego Ramos (seven goals), midfielder Mathew Williams (five), and Arceneaux (five) provided reliable scoring ability, and that trio along with other strikers will be looked upon to bump up their production this fall.
McBride says the team is also excited for the addition of freshman forward Ethan Lindo, who has flashed elite scoring abilities during the team’s training sessions and scrimmage matchups.
“Everybody here is starting from scratch,” Lindo said. “I have abilities, but so does every other man on this team, and it’s our job to not only prove that we belong but also do what we can to help this team succeed while working together. We all want to be great and want to be the top guy, but I believe it is also our job to put our egos aside and be what the team needs to be in the big sequences, as well.”
While Blinn maps out its scoring strategy, a big component to its success could be sophomore defender Philipp Mokwa, who was second on the team with 12 assists as a freshman. Ramos added eight assists.
Defensively, the Bucs get a big boost with the return of LeMaster. The second-year keeper started all 21 of Blinn’s matches last season and allowed just 1.27 goals per game while recording 94 saves on 119 shots (79% save rate). Also joining the mix are sophomore transfer Brenden Ferguson (NAIA Oklahoma Wesleyan University), freshman transfer Bennett Woodworth (NCAA Division II Palm Beach Atlantic University), and freshman Connor Vela.
(Pictured: Blinn’s Phillipp Mokwa, center, battles for the ball during a match against Coastal Bend College on Sept. 9, 2023)
“This group of keepers wants to learn and keeps their ears open as we bounce ideas off each other, and on top of that, there’s intensity and drive out of each keeper to win the starting position,” LeMaster explained. “With the talent level we have at the position, you’re going to have to be at your best every match or you could lose your starting job, and that’s the type of competition and intensity you want at your position.”
If LeMaster enjoys competition, he and the rest of the Bucs are sure to see plenty of it this season.
After its opener with Eastern Florida State, Blinn’s tough slate includes back-to-back ranked home matchups against Region XIV North powerhouse and second-ranked Tyler Junior College (Sept. 7) and No. 12 Louisiana State University-Eunice (Sept. 13). In the Region XIV South, the Bucs will battle both eighth-ranked Angelina College and No. 17 Coastal Bend College twice.
McBride said that while Region XIV is traditionally one of the toughest soccer regions in the NJCAA, scholarship availability and recruiting efforts have tightened the gaps between the region’s top-, middle-, and lower-tier teams.
“Nobody is rolling for anybody in this region,” McBride said. “We will have a fight every time we take the pitch regardless of who we play or where we are. That’s what makes our region arguably the toughest in the country, but we also coach our men in a way that helps them prepare for those battles, and we play the schedule we play because of our belief in their ability to get the results we want.”
Blinn’s home matches are played at Rankin Field located inside Hohlt Park in Brenham, Texas, and will be broadcast live on www.buccaneersports.com through a partnership with TSBN Sports.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 49 national championships since 1987.
