NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., August 23, 2024 – The era of Head Coach Ousmane "OC" Camara for the Monroe College Mustangs women's soccer team begins this Saturday, Aug. 24, as the 13th-ranked Mustangs open their season at home on Skidelsky Field against Montgomery College. The Mustangs have their sights set on returning to the NJCAA Div. I Women's Soccer Championship Tournament for the first time since 2021.
Camara came to New Rochelle back in January to take the helm for the Mustangs women's soccer program. Camara joined Monroe after eight seasons as the head coach of the Barton Community College Cougars in Kansas, where he amassed a record of 98-39-13 in a challenging Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference (KJCCC). A strong Cougars team ranked No. 9 in the final NJCAA Div. I Women's Soccer Rankings this past season after going 12-3-4 overall and 12-1-3 in the KJCCC. Barton earned an at-large selection into the 2023 NJCAA Div. I Women's Soccer Championship as the No. 9 seed.
Coach Camara takes on the task of coaching a roster of 26 student-athletes, including six returning sophomores. The team consists of athletes coming from 18 different countries, which means having to bring together a that speaks many different languages and plays many different styles of soccer. Luckily for Coach Camara, he speaks five different languages, but getting the team to adapt to the same play style is what he says will be one of the bigger challenges heading into this season.
"I was trying to put this team together with people coming from different countries, different soccer," said Camara. "So, the goal was for them to play the system. So, the system I like to play is to play one-two touches, simple soccer, so I think over time these past two weeks they've been understanding a little bit the way I want to play, so I think we're going to improve on that every day."
The Mustangs will get to showcase their talents at home many more times this season than in recent years, playing six regular season matches at Skidelsky Field with eight matches on the road. The season begins on Saturday, Aug. 24, when the Mustangs host Montgomery at 1 p.m.
Monroe's first road trip takes them to Texas next week, where they will begin a two-game trip with a matchup on Wednesday, Aug. 28, against No. 7-ranked Navarro College. They will then visit Dallas College Eastfield on Thursday, Aug. 29, to wrap up the first trip of the season.
The Mustangs quickly return home to host Mohawk Valley Community College on Saturday, Aug. 31, at 1 p.m. at Skidelsky Field. Then it's down to Florida for Monroe, where they will begin a two-day trip against Miami Dade College on Wednesday, Sept. 4. Miami Dade will then host a matchup between Monroe and Polk State College on Thursday, Sept. 5.
The Mustangs return to the northeast but remain on the road for their next three contests. On Saturday, Sept. 14, they will head out to Long Island to take on Div. III No. 4 Suffolk County Community College. They will then head down to Maryland on Saturday, Sept. 21, to face off with Div. II No. 18 CCBC Essex. Sunday, Sept. 21, will see Monroe challenge WVU Potomac State College.
A four-game homestand comes next for the Mustangs. They will first welcome the College of Southern Maryland to New Rochelle on Thursday, Sept. 26. They will then take on No. 11 Monroe Community College in a big rivalry matchup on Sunday, Sept. 29. The following week, Harcum College comes to town on Friday, Oct. 4. The homestand wraps up on Wednesday, Oct. 16, when Monroe hosts the Felician University JV team. Monroe then closes out the regular season with a trip to Harford Community College on Friday, Oct. 18.
The Mustangs will then have to earn their way into the 2024 NJCAA Div. I Women's Soccer Championship by competing in the East District Championship against teams from Regions 3, 15, 19 and 20. The winner will earn an automatic bid into the national tournament. The 2024 NJCAA Championship will take place from Nov. 17-23 at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita, Kan.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
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