Indispensable Midfielder Helps Leads Bears into NCAA Tournament

By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The all-star soccer game took place when Tyler Chang (Acushnet, Mass.) was a junior at Fairhaven High School.

Bridgewater State University coach Brendan Adams was in attendance that day scouting potential players for his program, and Chang was among those making a favorable impression.

"I made some notes saying, 'This is a good player, a good skilled kid to watch,'" recalls Adams now. "But the notes went missing."

So Chang wasn't recruited by the Bears during his senior year at Fairhaven High.

When he decided to attend Bridgewater State without being recruited in 2023, Chang called Adams and inquired about joining the men's soccer team as a walk-on.

"I just came here, I wasn't recruited," said Chang. "He did know about me and he like put me on the backburner."

It all worked out, however, as Chang has developed into one of the best players in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.

The junior midfielder has made the all-conference first team in back-to-back seasons and is indispensable part of the BSU program.

The Bears (13-5-1) will be playing in their second NCAA Division III tournament in three years on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. when they face Rowan University (15-3-4) of Glassboro, N.J., in Middletown, Conn.

"I literally talked to him in June before his freshman year here," said Adams. "He didn't really get recruited and we didn't know much about him."

And those scouting notes that went missing?

"I found them after Tyler had come to school here," said Adams.

Chang wasn't even sure he was going to play soccer in college, but his mother, Fatima, and a brother convinced him to keep his career going.

"My mom and my brother kept pushing me and I was like, 'Alright,'" said Chang. "I'm so happy that I did."

So are the Bears, who are 35-13-9 with three straight MASCAC regular-season titles since Chang arrived.

Chang started his career as a defender, coming off the bench in 16 of 19 games as a freshman when BSU went to the NCAAs.

He has been a midfielder since, contributing in a variety of ways and becoming a goal scorer this fall.

Chang made a highlight play during last Sunday's MASCAC championship.

With time running out and BSU in front of the Massachusetts MaritimeAcademy, 1-0, he was standing in front of the cage and headed away a potential game-tying goal with 2:50 remaining.

"He doesn't cease to amaze," said Adams. "That was a typical play for him. He's in the right place always at the right time."

Chang had two assists in each of his first two seasons but is third on the team with five goals and 14 assists this season, chipping in with three assists.

His first career goal came in a 2-0 win over Emerson College on Sept. 23.

"I'm happy about that," said Chang of adding goal scoring to his game in college.

The Bears rely on Chang for his energy, hard work and determination.

He makes things happen as a midfielder, chipping in at both ends of the field.

"He came in as a freshman and really worked hard," said Adams. "His best skill is his hard work and how determined he is. That freshman year, every time there was a big play by us, it was, 'Great play, Tyler.'

"He'd track a kid down, or block a shot or have a one-on-one win. He did an amazing job. He just went after it. He was like a machine."

Chang's role only grew as a sophomore and junior and he has all-conference status two years in a row.

"I just work hard, try to push my teammates by my effort," said the 5-foot-10, 160-pound Chang. "They see me work so hard that it pushes them to work just as hard.

"I continue to try to get better every day.The guys in the locker room push me."

Adams has high praise for the player who has done so much in his three seasons with the Bears.

"He logs a lot of minutes and runs a lot of miles in the game," said Adams. "The best compliment I can give him is if we had 11 Tyler Changs out there, we'd be trying to push for a national championship. He's such a hard worker."