SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College men's soccer team will continue its run in the 2025 Liberty League Tournament on Friday afternoon, when the fourth-seeded Garnet Chargers look to knock off unbeaten and top-seeded Hobart College in the semifinal round at Hobart's Cozzens Field.
ALL TOGETHER NOW: The men's soccer team is joined in the postseason this fall by the women's soccer team, field hockey team and women's volleyball team; this marks the first time since 2009 that all four Union fall sports qualified for the postseason in the same year. Combined with the football team's unbeaten conference slate so far, Union is the only Liberty League school to have all five sports still in contention for a conference title as the calendar turns to November.
THE TEAMS: Union (7-5-5, 4-1-4 Liberty League) is seeded fourth in the Liberty League Tournament and will face off with top-seeded and #16 Hobart (11-0-5, 6-0-3 Liberty League) after the Garnet Chargers defeated fifth-seeded Clarkson University in a shootout in the first round. The other semifinal matchup features second-seeded Skidmore College (10-3-3, 6-2-1 Liberty League) hosting third-seeded Vassar College (9-5-3, 5-2-2 Liberty League) after the Brewers defeated sixth-seeded St. Lawrence University by a 4-1 score on Tuesday.
POSTSEASON HISTORY: Union is making its 10th appearance in the Liberty League Tournament and first since 2023, when Union hosted the semifinals before losing to Ithaca College in penalty kicks. The Garnet Chargers are still searching for their first conference championship after making three appearances in the final, and currently hold a 2-9-4 record in Liberty League Tournament history, including two wins and two losses in penalty kicks. The team's last postseason victory came in the 2009 semifinals with a 3-2 (2OT) win over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
UNION VS. HOBART: Union and Hobart have met 48 times on the pitch, with Hobart holding a 23-18-7 advantage in the all-time series. The Statesmen have had the better of the series in recent years, going 8-0-3 since the 2014 season. The Garnet Chargers would do well to replicate the teams' first postseason meeting, when Union advanced in penalty kicks (5-4) over the top-seeded and undefeated Statesmen in 2008. The teams also met the next year in the conference title game, with Hobart winning in overtime by a 2-1 score in Union's most recent championship game appearance.
LAST MEETING: The two sides faced off at College Park Field less than two weeks ago in the penultimate game of the regular season, with the teams playing to a scoreless draw. Defense ruled the day on the afternoon, with the teams combining for just one on-target shot attempt, a key save by senior Jacob Perry in the 65th minute that kept the game scoreless. Hobart finished the day with an 11-5 edge in shots overall.
ABOUT UNION: The Garnet Chargers finished the regular season with an 7-5-5 record and a 4-1-4 mark in the Liberty League, marking the first time since 2010 that the team dropped only one game in Liberty League play. The team's five regular-season losses are also the fewest in a season since posting a 10-3-4 regular-season mark in 2015.
LAST TIME OUT: Union advanced in the postseason for the first time since 2009 with a 5-4 shootout win over Clarkson after the teams battled to a 1-1 draw after two overtimes. First-year Kofi Sarfoh looked to put Union into the semifinals when he scored his third goal of the year in the 87th minute, but Clarkson netted the equalizer 88 seconds later to even the score. Senior Jacob Perry finished with two saves in 110:00 of play, then came up with two huge saves in the shootout to seal Union's advancement.
FIRST-YEAR SUCCESS: In his first season as head coach, John Ciano has picked up seven victories headed into the semifinal round, tied for the most by a Union leader in his first season since Aldo Nardiello (11-5-1) in 1991. The four conference wins and .667 conference winning percentage are both best for a first-year skipper in program history as well.
DEFENSE-MINDED: Union ranks sixth in the Liberty League by conceding only 17 goals in 18 matches. The team's 16 goals allowed during the regular season are the fewest allowed since allowing 16 in 17 outings during the 2016 campaign. The team has allowed one goal or fewer in 14-of-18 matches, including seven shutouts, while 13 of Union's 18 matches this season have seen two or fewer combined goals scored, including six 1-0 games and two scoreless draws.
PERRY POWER: Senior Jacob Perry had led the Garnet Chargers from the back, posting a 1.00 goals against average and .815 save percentage with six shutouts in 17 appearances. The three-time Liberty League Defensive Player of the Week was even better in Liberty League play, leading all conference goalies in goals against average (0.56), save percentage (.886) and shutouts (5) in nine conference matches this season.
REAPING THE REWARDS: In addition to Perry's three honors, sophomore Eamonn Kelley was named the Liberty League Offensive Player of the Week on November 3 for his game-winning goal against St. Lawrence and first-year Gavin Blake earned Rookie of the Week honors on October 20 after netting the go-ahead goal in a win over Ithaca.
ABOUT THE STATESMEN: Hobart has spent the last seven weeks in the United Soccer Coaches national rankings, reaching as high as 11th before its tie against Union dropped the Statesmen a few spots. Hobart leads the Liberty League and ranks 19th in Division III by allowing 0.62 goals per game, while the team's eight shutouts are tied for best in the conference. Tommy Chyzowych leads the Liberty League with a 0.62 goals against average and has only needed to make an average of 2.3 saves per game with a save percentage of .795. Brady Leitner paces an offense that averages 1.94 goals per game with nine goals and an assist in 15 matches, followed by Quinn Phillips and Griffin Coutts with five goals apiece.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Union-Hobart winner will advance to the Liberty League Tournament championship game on Sunday at the home of the highest remaining seed.
2025 Liberty League Tournament
First Round – Tuesday, November 4, 2025
#3 Vassar 4, #6 St. Lawrence 1
#4 Union 1, #5 Clarkson 1 (Union 5-4 PKs)
Semifinal Round – Friday, November 7, 2025
#4 Union at #1 Hobart, 1:30 PM
#3 Vassar at #2 Skidmore, 4:00 PM
Championship Game – Sunday, November 9, 2025
Semifinal Winners at Highest Remaining Seed