At midseason, freshman forward Reese Weldon, from Dublin, Ireland, led the Jaguars in scoring with 53 points on 19 goals and 15 assists. (Photo by Bill Roa)

by Wade Marbaugh

At the end of the regular season, the 2014 Jaguar men’s soccer team boasted the best record in the nation, 14-0-1, and the Jaguars won the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association standings with a 5-0-1 conference record.

That represents the program’s best since 2009, when Georgia Perimeter finished second in the National Junior College Athletic Association Championship Tournament and the dominant program built by coach Marc Zagara earned him a place in the NJCAA Hall of Fame.

Following Zagara’s induction ceremony in Trenton, N.J., the Jaguars advanced to the national championship match, where they held Tyler College (Texas) to the only 0-0 double overtime championship game in NJCAA history and then lost on penalty kicks. Tyler’s coach, Steve Clements, had received the Hall of Fame honor on the same night as Zagara.

This season won’t see the high-flying Jaguars rise to such NJCAA glory. The team has been grounded for an eligibility infraction and barred from postseason competition.

Nevertheless, the talented squad was a pleasure to watch. They bear little resemblance to Zagara’s dazzling, high-scoring teams that won six consecutive conference championships and six trips to nationals, where they won the NJCAA championship in  2005 and three runner-up trophies.

These Jaguars grind down opponents with solid, fundamental soccer and win by smaller point spreads. The team finished without a loss despite a daunting schedule, defeating five nationally ranked teams.

Reese Weldon, a freshman forward from Dublin, Ireland, led the Jaguars in mid-October with 19 goals and 15 assists for 53 points. He ranked eighth in the nation in assists and second in the GCAA in scoring, trailing Darton State College forward Darwin Espinal, who led the nation with 77 points.

Jaguar goalkeeper Kekuta Jatta ranked first in the conference and 12th in the nation with a 0.75 goals-against average. (Photo by Bill Roa)

Goalkeeper Kekuta Jatta, also a freshman, finished first in the conference and 12th in the NJCAA with a 0.75 goals-against average. A product of Cobb County’s Wheeler High School, Jatta notched only 87 saves, a tribute to the Jaguar defenders and midfielders, who allowed few shots on goal.

Joining Weldon and Jatta on the All-GCAA first team were Jaguar midfielder Jhovany Lopez and Kevin Otokore and defender Alejandro Rodriguez. Midfielder Jhovany Contreras and defenders John Resendiz and Austin Graham were selected to the second team.

Zagara was named the GCAA Coach of the Year.

Follow Jaguar sports.