CARY, N.C. – Earlier this week before leaving for the 2024 College Cup, Vermont soccer associate head coach Brad Cole took offense to the terms ‘underdog’ and ‘Cinderella.’
“I understand the Cinderella aspect of it to an extent. But I don’t think that whatsoever. I don’t think we’re underdogs,” said Cole, a born-and-bred Vermonter. “We’ve been working really, really hard to make this happen. I get upset when people say it’s an underdog story.
“We don’t see that at all with ourselves. Our expectations are, this is where we belong.”
Brad, you can shout that from the rooftops of WakeMed Soccer Park for all to hear. For everyone to hear. From Cary on the east coast to the other side of the country and back again. The unseeded Catamounts on Friday night booked their spot in the NCAA national championship game after dispatching No. 3 Denver in a penalty shootout.
Vermont will play for the national crown on Monday vs. No. 13-seeded Marshall, which knocked off No. 1 Ohio State in the Friday nightcap.
And, by no measure, is this Catamount run a fluke.
Those back in Vermont and ardent supporters of the program know: the Catamounts reached the College Cup for the first time because they earned it. They spent years building toward this moment. From losing to eventual national champion Syracuse in the 2022 to last year’s Round of 16 exit at West Virginia, the Catamounts turned into something Vermont hasn’t been before.
But that doesn’t make it lucky. Or fateful. Or whatever else you want to call it.
“I think everyone is looking at Vermont right now and saying, ‘These underdogs, watch out for Vermont.’ But let’s shorten that up and let’s just call us dogs,” eighth-year Vermont head coach Rob Dow said during Friday’s postgame news conference. “I’m proud and proud and proud over again to be this program’s coach.”
For the uninitiated, Vermont brings swagger. Have you watched some of the Catamounts’ highlight-reel goals? That skill isn’t by accident. Google David Ismail and volley. Or Yaniv Bazini and clutch. And that’s all the proof you need.
Vermont brings experience. Among the 16 returnees from 2023, fifth-year seniors Zach Barrett and Max Murray anchor Vermont’s back line as the team’s foundational soul.
“These guys are leaving a legacy that’s going to paint the walls of the University of Vermont athletic department,” Dow said of Barrett and Murray.
More:Two of the nation’s ‘better defenders’ have Vermont soccer on brink of College Cup
It has talent everywhere. Sophomore Sydney Wathuta was named the America East midfielder of the year with his 14 assists second to only one player in the country. Freshman Ryan Zellefrow was a difference-maker Friday, so was classmate Niklas Herceg, the 6-foot-6 goalie from Germany who has 18 saves in the past three NCAA Tournament games. His kick stop in the penalty shootout shifted momentum.
“I wouldn’t trade any of guys for anyone else,” Cole said. “I’d take the 28 guys we have, the two managers, our five coaches, our trainer. I would take us.”
And, above all, it plays as a team.
“Yes, we wanted to prove something. At the end of the day, we are going to play Catamount soccer,” Murray said. “Whether you are with us at the beginning or with us now, we are just going to step onto the field and do what we do best, and that’s play Catamount soccer.”
Contact Alex Abrami at aabrami@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter: @aabrami5.
