FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 6, 2015
Panthers v. Penmen in Sunday's Northeast-10 Championship Game
Top-seeded Southern New Hampshire will take on third-seeded Adelphi in Sunday's NE-10 Men's Soccer Championship Final.
#1 Southern New Hampshire 2, #4 Bentley 0 | BOX SCORE
HOOKSETT, N.H. - Junior Gilbert Manier, pictured, notched a goal and an assist to lead the third-ranked and top-seeded Southern New Hampshire to a 2-0 victory against fourth-seeded Bentley in a Northeast-10 Conference Championship semifinal contest Friday night at Larkin Field.
The Penmen advance to their fifth consecutive Northeast-10 Championship final and will take on third-seeded Adelphi, which topped Merrimack 2-1 in the other semifinal, on Sunday, Nov. 8 (1 p.m.) at Larkin Field.
Southern New Hampshire was able to jump ahead just over 18 minutes into the first half when graduate student Orri Gustafsson netted his first goal of the year. After Manier collected a pass outside the left side of the Bentley box, he struck a one-touch cross through traffic into the middle of the penalty area that Gustafsson redirected past the Falcons' keeper to stake the hosts to a 1-0 advantage.
Manier doubled the lead in the 37th minute with his first of the 2015 campaign. Graduate student Sofiane Tergou started the play as he knocked down a Bentley clearing attempt 10 yards out from the box, maintained possession and found fellow graduate student Robert Brown. Brown turned and hit a streaking Manier in stride, and he dribbled into the left side of the box before unloading a shot just inside the right post with 8:43 remaining.
The Penmen defense made the lead stand as it held the Falcons, who were playing a man down after a red card at 15:59, to four total shots and one shot on goal. Senior Nick Zucco made his lone save of the evening in the 69th minute, when he sprawled to his right to snare a Brett Ripperger header attempt that preserved the 2-0 lead and his seventh shutout of the season.
#3 Adelphi 2, #2 Merrimack 1 | BOX SCORE
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – For the first time in program history, Adelphi is headed to the Northeast-10 Conference Championship Final after a 2-1 win at Merrimack in the semifinal round earlier this evening.
A foul in the 27th minute by Merrimack allowed a penalty kick attempt for Adelphi midway through the first half. Alejandro Penzini stepped up and converted his fifth penalty kick of the season to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead that they would take into the halftime break.
The host Warriors held the 9-2 advantage in shots after 45 minutes, forcing Spenser Powell to make two saves for the Brown and Gold. Merrimack also manufactured four corner kicks compared to one for Adelphi.
Merrimack continued to control the offensive side of the ball, taking 11 shots compared to four allowed in the second half. However, two saves from Powell in both halves helped keep the match at 1-1 into the final stages.
After a Juan Meza shot went high on the other side for the Warriors, the Panthers reversed the field looking to attack. Just into the 86th minute, James Thristino was able to take away the ball from the Merrimack goalkeeper, Lucas Rezende, and shoot into an open net to put the Brown and Gold up with less than five minutes remaining.
In the final two minutes, two Merrimack shots were blocked, securing the NE-10 Final berth for Adelphi.
2015 Northeast-10 Conference Men's Soccer Championship Schedule
1. Southern New Hampshire (12-1, 36 pts)
2. Merrimack (9-2-2, 29 pts) *
3. Adelphi (9-2-2, 29 pts) *
4. Bentley (8-4-1, 25 pts) **
5. Southern Connecticut (8-4-1, 25 pts) **
6. Le Moyne (8-4-1, 25 pts) **
7. Saint Rose (7-5-1, 22 pts)
8. Saint Michael¹s (5-7-1, 16 pts)
* Merrimack and Adelphi tied during the season; Merrimack earns the higher seed via a win over So. New Hampshire (Adelphi lost to SNHU).
** In the three-way tie between Bentley, So. Connecticut and Le Moyne, the tie-breaker was record within the mini-conference (Bentley had a 2-0 record; So. Connecticut had a 1-1 record; and Le Moyne had a 0-2 record).
Tuesday, November 3rd
Quarterfinals at Higher Seeds
Match 1: #1 Southern New Hampshire 3, #8 Saint Michael's 0
Match 2: #2 Merrimack 2, #7 Saint Rose 0
Match 3: #3 Adelphi 2, #6 Le Moyne 0
Match 4: #4 Bentley 3, #5 Southern Connecticut 2
Friday, November 6th
Semifinals - at Higher Seeds
Match 5: #1 Southern New Hampshire 2, #4 Bentley 0
Match 6: #3 Adelphi 2, #2 Merrimack 1
Sunday, November 8th
Championshipat Highest Seed
Match 7: #3 Adelphi at #1 Southern New Hampshire, 1 p.m.
ABOUT THE NORTHEAST-10 CONFERENCE
The Northeast-10 Conference is an association of 15 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 6,000 student-athletes.
Each year, 4,000 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 23 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
