By David Wolcott, Old Colony Memorial

PLYMOUTH – After enjoying solid high school soccer careers at Plymouth South, both Nick Parker and Joe Cohen were looking for a way to keep playing the game they love at the college level. That opportunity turned out to be located about 15 miles south of the high school in Buzzards Bay at Massachusetts Maritime Academy.

Cohen, a sophomore goaltender, and Parker, a junior midfielder, are both Facilities Engineering majors at the college and are two of the major reasons why the Buccaneers men’s soccer team is more than holding its own against the competition this season. Their strong play has not gone unnoticed as over a three week period last month either Cohen (twice) or Parker (once) were named the MASCAC’s Player of the Week.

“Joe was good for us last year, but this year he has been absolutely phenomenal in goal. He’s has really worked his tail off to become a very good goaltender,” Mass. Maritime Head Coach Greg Perry said. “Nick is one of the kids on the team that has a nose for the net and displays some good offensive instincts. He’s such a competitor and he plays with an edge. It’s all-out effort every second he’s on the field and his game has matured a great deal since he was a freshman.”

At the beginning of this week, Mass. Maritime was just under .500 with a 5-6 record, 2-1 in MASCAC games. Cohen has seen all of the action in net, playing every single second between the pipes for the Bucs in those 12 games. He has allowed just 11 goals so far this season, posting five shutouts with a 0.86 goals against average and a save percentage of .847.

Parker, who played more of a defensive position in high school, has moved up to the midfield in college with solid results. Starting in 10 of the 11 games he has played this season, Parker leads the team in goals (five) as well as points (11). He missed significant time as a freshman because of a severe knee injury but came back to score three goals last season as a sophomore.

“College soccer has been a challenge. It’s definitely more of a physical game than in high school, but at the same time it is also more technical in nature because of the skill of the people playing the game,” Parker, a two-sport captain at Plymouth South, said. “College is more of a passing game rather than just kick and chase after the soccer ball. I’ve had to really improve my own technical skills to keep up with the pace of the game. The skill level is better across the board.”

Cohen got some time in the net at the end of his sophomore year at Plymouth South and took the job over for good as a junior when he and Parker helped the Panthers make the state tournament for the first time in more than a decade. He’s continued to work on his game since then and now has a lot on his shoulders as the last line of defense for the Bucs.

“The speed of the game is the biggest difference from high school to college,” Cohen said. “In college, the forwards are better, but so are the people playing defense in front of you. You may not see as many chances in net, but all the shots that get to you are good ones.”

Cohen said one of his biggest assets in the net is his height. Checking in at an athletic 6-foot-2, Cohen said he works a lot on playing the angles and trying to make sure he’s in the right place at all times to come up with the save.

“I like to try to cut down the shooting angle as best as I can,” Cohen explained. “There are a lot of technical aspects to playing goal that might go under the radar.”