HAMDEN, Conn. ? The Monmouth University men's soccer team clinched a berth in the 2008 Northeast Conference Tournament on Friday when they played Quinnipiac to scoreless draw in Hamden. The Hawks, who clinched a berth in the conference tournament for the fourth straight season, now move to 11-3-3 on the season and 5-1-2 in the league while the Bobcats are now 9-4-4 and 4-2-2 in the conference.

“This was a very good college soccer match between two solid NEC clubs,” said Monmouth head coach Robert McCourt. “Our defenders did a great job today and we created some good scoring opportunities in the first half, but we couldn't put the ball away.”

The Hawks outshot Quinnipiac 26-20 in the match, including 13-5 in the first half. MU also had nine corner kicks, compared to seven for the Bobcats. Monmouth keeper Bryan Meredith (Scotch Plains, N.J./Scotch Plains-Fanwood) made four saves while logging his league-best ninth shutout of the season. His counterpart, Frederick Hall, made seven saves for Quinnipiac.

Monmouth's attack was paced by freshman Cesar Blacido (Ramsey, N.J./Ramsey) and sophomore Chase Barbieri (Hillsborough, N.J./Hillsborough), who each fired two shots on goal.

This marked the second match in a row that the MU defense held the nation's leading score without a point. In Monmouth's 1-0 win over FDU last Sunday, they held Samson Malijani, who at the time was the leading scorer in the NCAA, off the board and then on Friday they shut out QU's Graciano Brito. 

The Hawks conclude the 2008 regular season on Sunday when they take on Central Connecticut State at 2:00 p.m. in New Britain.