[NJCAA DIVISION I MEN] Tyler Junior College will go for an unprecedented third consecutive national title at the NJCAA Division I Men’s Tournament that begins Thursday at the Reach 11 Sports Complex in Phoenix. Five of the eight finalists were qualifiers for the 2010 tournament that took place in Tyler, Texas. For a look at the eight finalists ...

#1 Darton College (Ga.). Earned its second straight berth to the national tournament via a 3-2 win over Spartanburg Methodist in the SE District title game. Diego Ramos ranks in the top 10 nationally with 64 points (17 goals, 30 assists). Jowayne Laidley is second with 11 goals.

#2 Tyler Junior College (Texas). A 5-0 shutout win over Mississippi Gulf Coast gave the Apaches their third straight district championship. Sammy Deing’s 10 goals and three assists (23 points) leads the team. Anis Abdulgasem is just behind him with eight goals and five assists (21 points).

#3 Cloud County Community College (Kan.). Defeated Western Texas, 2-0, in the district title game. The Thunderbirds are led by German Solano Barreiro, who ranks third nationally with 78 points (28 goals, 14 assists) and Luke Huggett, who ranks ninth with 62 points (29 goals, 4 assists).

#4 Iowa Western Community College. Returned to the national tournament for the second straight season after winning the Great Lakes District with a 2-1 overtime victory of College of DuPage. Antonio Banos ranks among the top goalies with a 0.77 GAA. Ignacio Mateos leads the team with 33 points (9 goals, 15 assists), while Dayvin Palmer is the team’s top goal scorer with 12.

#5 Monroe College (N.Y.). The Mustangs beat Burlington, 3-0, in the Northeast District title game. Monroe boasts three players who have more than 20 points: Karamba Janneh with 27 points (11 goals, 5 assists), Anthony Asante with 24 (9 goals, 6 assists) and Marino Peixoto has 20 points (8 goals, 4 assists).

#6 Lincoln College (Ill.). Won the Central District for the second year in a row with a 2-1 win over MCC-Maple Woods (Mo.). Edwin Moalosi is the main offensive threat, ranking 11th in the NJCAA with 56 points (21 goals, 14 assists). Ruben Gaytan is second on the team with 24 points (8 goals, 8 assists).

#7 College of Southern Maryland. Earned its ticket to Arizona by upsetting former No. 1 Schoolcraft, 5-4, in penalty kicks to win the North Central District. Samson Defeugaing leads the Hawks with nine goals and five assists, while keeper Dameon Hayden ranks 20th in the nation with a 0.68 GAA.

#8 Pima Community College (Ariz.). Upset perennial power Yavapai, 2-0, in the Region 1 championship and then won the district title with victories over Northwest and North Idaho.  Jann Nash leads the Aztecs in goals (9), while Nicholas Peppe has the most assists (10) to go along with seven goals.