It is no secret that the Hofstra men’s soccer team has had a successful season. Its 14-1-1 record is the best for Pride head coach Richard Nuttall since the 2015 season, where his team finished 14-8-0. They have ridden an 12-game unbeaten streak going back to a 4-0 home victory against the University of Albany on Tuesday, Sept. 14. Normally, when you think about the men’s soccer program, you think of names like Matthew Vowinkel, Storm Strongin and Wessel Speel. Now, it seems like their secret weapons – senior Hendrik Hebbeker and sophomore Ryan Carmichael ­– are no longer hidden. Both players are having incredible seasons and their contributions to the Pride’s success are evident.

The red-hot play of Carmichael and Hebbeker all started on Saturday, Sept. 25, when the Pride defeated the College of William & Mary 4-1 on a clear, sunny day at the Hofstra Soccer Stadium. Carmichael recorded a hat trick, while Hebbeker scored the other goal and tallied two assists.

“When I got the three, before that, I was a little bit annoyed, because I only had one or two,” Carmichael said. “After I got that three, I just started trying to score every game. And then, getting one or two, the odd game’s a bonus. I’m just trying to keep the streak going.”

That game against the Tribe began a streak of 11 goals in seven games for Carmichael, who also has an eight-game point streak. During this span, Carmichael has had three games with either a hat trick or a brace. He tallied a total of eight goals in those games against William & Mary, the University of Delaware and the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

However, don’t think that Hebbeker hasn’t been playing his part as well. During the last nine games, he has procured seven assists and scored four goals. Half of Carmichael’s goals have been assisted by Hebbeker during this run. 

“There’s got to be the guy who scores the goals, otherwise you have no assists,” Hebbeker said. “Credit to [Carmichael] for putting the goals away and to Matt [Vowinkel] and the other guys.”

 Hebbeker grew up in Germany and has been playing soccer since he was a four-year-old boy living in Cologne. 

“I joined the academy of Cologne when I was six years old and played there until I was 15 or 16, and it got a little bit competitive,” Hebbeker said. “I joined another club, also an academy. Not as big as the one I had been on before, and I played there until I came here.”

Carmichael grew up in a medium-sized town in Northern Ireland called Armagh. Unlike his teammate, Carmichael is relatively new to the sport of soccer. He was a two-sport athlete, who also played Gaelic football, and did not start playing soccer until he was in his teens.

“I played [soccer] most of my life at school with my friends, but I didn’t play with a club until around 13,” Carmichael said. “I’ve been playing every weekend since then.”

Both came to Hofstra for the same reasons. 

“For me it was really the combination of everything,” Hebbeker said. “Everything seemed really good here. It’s a good school academically. It’s a decent-sized school … there’s always stuff to do around here and New York City and the beach is close. It was sort of a balanced criteria.”

“Obviously, great program, great soccer program,” Carmichael said. “Academics as well, [Hofstra]’s a good school for academics. Also, the beach is nice, during the summer, but not around now.”

The successes of both Carmichael and Hebbeker have been substantial factors in the 12-game unbeaten streak the Pride have been on this year. 

“Every game is the only game you think of,” Carmichael said. “Once you win it, you’re on to the next game.”

 “Before the hours and days before the games, [the coaches] remind us of the importance of every game,” Hebbeker added. “Every player is on the same page. Every player is focusing always just on the next game and not on anything else.”

This mentality can be seen by looking at the Pride’s record since Tuesday, Sept. 14, as the team has a 11-0-1 record overall and a 5-0-1 record in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play. In fact, this team has been so good that they have now started showing up in the national rankings, as the Pride is ranked No. 14 in the country in the United Soccer Coaches Poll.

Carmichael currently leads the Pride with 13 goals this season, which puts him in a four-way tie for second in the entire National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Hebbeker, who sets up many of the team’s goals, has gotten nine assists, which puts him on the NCAA leaderboards in a tie for fourth. 

The entire team knows that they’re hitting the home stretch, and their last game is going to be a challenge on Saturday, Nov. 6, against UNC Wilmington, but the Pride feel they can win since home has been where the points are. The team is 8-0-0 at home this season. 

“I think the home field, historically, has been a big advantage for us,” Hebbeker said. “We were able to get some great results against some really good teams.”

With the CAA Tournament coming up, and Hofstra inching ever closer to clinching a spot, Carmichael and Hebbeker think the Pride have a good chance at a title. 

“There’s no, really no bounds this year,” Hebbeker said. “We’ve gotten some great results against good teams, and it doesn’t feel like a stroke of like or a one-time thing. It seems like the team is as good as we seem at the moment. If we can keep it going, and even maybe step it up in parts, we can go all the way.”

“Last year was my first year, and it was heartbreaking to lose in penalties at the end of last year,” Carmichael added. “I know [Hebbeker]’s been through that more than once.”

Hofstra has suffered heartbreaking losses in penalty shootouts in the CAA tournament the last three seasons, all of them coming at the hands of James Madison University (JMU). However, the team gained a considerable amount of confidence after beating No. 23 JMU on Saturday, Oct. 23, 1-0 at home. That’s a great start, with the possibility that they might face JMU in the CAA tournament again. Nevertheless, this can only happen if Hofstra clinches a berth.

If the Pride wants a shot at finally winning the tournament, expect that the team will rely on players like Carmichael and Hebbeker to keep doing what they’re doing. It’s been the status quo all season long.

Photo Courtesy of Adam Flash/The Hofstra Chronicle