Davis’ goaltending helped Skipjacks stay competitive

WYE MILLS – If a Hollywood casting call went out for a soccer goalie, Mace Davis might not get the part.

"I have to admit, when I first saw Mace standing there saying he would like to play goalie, I really had no idea that he would be as good as he turned out," said Chesapeake College head men's soccer coach Mark Dennis of his freshman goaltender.  "He is of average height (5-foot-9) and the prototypical college goalie is six feet or taller.  Often teams will try to chip the ball over a shorter-than-average goalie, but Mace routinely times these and either grabs them or deflects them over the bar. He uses experience and discipline to compensate for the height, and he has a tremendous amount of heart."

That heart came in handy on a team that went 0-11.  Davis was in goal for nine of those games, stopping 103 shots while allowing 41goals. 

"When we were overmatched this season, and that was often, we would be outshot like 20-1," said Dennis.  "That is an enormous amount of chances our goalie has to deal with.  Even on the routine plays that puts a lot of pressure on your goalie to be perfect, but Mace seemed to come up with a couple spectacular saves every game that really were special to watch."

Ironically, this was the second time in three years Davis filled a goaltending void.  Two years ago, after having played on defense as a North Caroline High junior, he switched to goalie.

"We actually didn't have anyone to play goalkeeper," recalled Davis.  "The coaches asked me to step up and I did."

Davis didn't play soccer last fall during his first year at Chesapeake College, but he decided to go out for the Skipjacks this year.

"I've always loved soccer," said Davis.  "They actually didn't have a goalie – again – so I decided to step up and play."

Dennis said Davis covered for a defense that often played without any available substitutes.

"When other teams' offenses were able to get through our back line and Mace stepped up with one of those big, one-on-one saves it really picked up the team and kept them working hard for each other," said Dennis.

"There's a lot more pressure playing goalie, but I actually enjoyed it," said Davis.  "The hardest part is learning to handle that pressure.  Sometimes I felt like I let my team down, but I just had to hone my skills and learn to play better."

Davis' net play helped give the Skipjacks a couple of opportunities at picking up wins.  He posted 24 saves in a 2-1 loss to Cecil College and had 16 saves in a 2-1 overtime setback against Prince George's Community College.  Davis also came up with 18 saves in a 3-0 loss to Howard Community College that could have been quite a bit more lopsided except for his play.

Dennis said the Skipjacks – unlike teams with those lean, lanky netminders – didn't have to worry about their goalie getting hurt by aggressive opposing strikers.

"Mace is so strong," said Dennis of his 210-pound goalie.  "Most teams worry about their goalie being in a collision and getting hurt, but Mace is like a rock.  So our guys usually laughed when someone tried to intimidate Mace by running into him because they (opposing players) didn't fair too well."

Dennis was also impressed with his goalie's composure.

"You look at the stats of other goalies and realize that they play some games with only a handful of shots taken against them," said Dennis.  "Then I think of how Mace had to stand up to the peppering he took, yet he handled himself well and stayed composed and didn't take it out on his teammates."

"It was frustrating at times," said Davis, noting the Skipjacks had a lot of players with no previous soccer experience.  "A lot of times the confidence wasn't totally there (in trusting the inexperienced players), but as the season went on we learned we could rely on the new players."

Davis expects to play for the Skipjacks again next fall before transferring to a four-year university – and he doesn't expect another winless season.

"I think we can have a chance to be really good," said Davis.  "There are a lot of good (high school) programs here for us to find players."