This weekend was a historic one for the University of The Bahamas’ (UB) men’s soccer team, as for the first time in the program’s history, the Mingoes captured the Bahamas Football Association (BFA) senior league title.
In the championship game, the Mingoes scored a 5-1 wire-to-wire victory over the IM Bears Soccer Club.
“Capturing a BFA title is a really good stepping stone in all fairness,” said Mingoes head coach Dion Godet.
“The program was handed to me two years ago and we have been rebuilding. Last year we were very fortunate because we were able to capture the B-Flight shield award. This year was a bit more of a proving ground, seeing that we were able to develop our program through recruitment. We are not a team of stars. However, we are more of a gritty, grind it out kind of team that’s not scared to get physical and it produced some victories.
“In all honesty, I’m glad that some young men are getting the opportunity to get a better education through the sport of soccer. The discipline allows persons like myself, in conjunction with the university, to embrace those with athletic backgrounds and gives us an opportunity to bring in males and females to ensure they get a quality education.”
The Mingoes finished with eight wins and one draw on the season, the best result ever since soccer was introduced at the University.
According to Godet, the team will continue to improve through recruiting, which he said is important, seeing that UB will be joining the Sun Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) in the very near future.
“I anticipate that we will be in the Sun Conference by at least 2019,” Godet added.
“Right now, my recruitment goes outside of New Providence and into Grand Bahama, and I’m looking to expand it even further. I’ve also gotten many requests from persons outside of The Bahamas to come to UB, but we are dealing with limited dorm space right now.
“The University is seeking to build a 120-room dormitory, and once that happens, it won’t be hard to get people here. I am looking to expand my recruitment this upcoming year to include more athletes from more islands. But I do think 2019 will see us in the Sun Conference. The University has consultants in now making sure that we are on track when we decide to make the leap.”
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