Second-Consecutive and Fifth Title in the Ravens Program History.
RINDGE, N.H. – It was never a question of how for the top-ranked Franklin Pierce University men's soccer team, as they claimed their second consecutive Northeast-10 Championship title following a 2-0 victory over the seventh-seeded Le Moyne College Dolphins on Saturday evening at Sodexo Field. Both goals for the Ravens came in the second half from sophomore forward Braudilio Rodrigues (Lisbon, Portugal), who received the Northeast-10 Championship Most Valuable Player Award, also for the second straight year.
The title comes as the fifth in program history for the Ravens, who continue to build upon their historic season with a 20-0-1 (10-0-1 NE10) record following the win. Le Moyne, following the finals loss, concludes their season with a 7-6-6 (3-4-4 NE10) record.
The two teams would play through a relatively quiet first half was mostly quiet, as the top tier Raven offense clashed with a well-grounded Le Moyne defense. Through the first 45 minutes of action, the Ravens were able to squeeze eight shots through the solid Dolphin defensive effort, and would go on to carry the 8-0 shots advantage into the second half, with no goals scored.
Finally, in the 55th minute of the second half, Braudilio Rodrigues opened the scoring after his shot deflected off a Dolphin defender following a center from graduate Jero Ferrando Ferri (Valencia, Spain), breaking the silence for a 1-0 Raven lead. Rodrigues then returned to double the Raven lead just over thirteen minutes later, catching a perfectly placed pass behind the Le Moyne defenders from Vicente Valor Martinez (San Juan, Spain), sending a shot far post on a near breakaway, finalizing the offensive output at 2-0. Throughout the remainder of the half, the Ravens would take control of overall possession and drain out the remaining time.
Senior goalkeeper Kosta Maniatis (Montreal, Quebec) faced no direct threats in the title game, claiming his 12th shutout victory of the season. Le Moyne netminder Josh Mahr made a single stop in the loss.
With the postgame announcement of the NE10 All-Championship Team, forward Braudilio Rodrigues and midfielders Vicente Valor Martinez and Miguel Secades Rodrigues (Langreo, Spain) were each named as Raven selectees. Additionally, junior defender Bernardo Prego (Evora, Portugal) was named the recipient of the Northeast-10's annual Elite-24 Award for the having highest cumulative GPA as a participant at the finals.
The win also grants Franklin Pierce the NE10's automatic bid into the upcoming NCAA Championship. The NCAA will officially announce the tournament field on Monday, November 7th with the selection show at 6:30 p.m.
-Recap provided by Franklin Pierce athletic communications-
ALL-CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM
Braudilio Rodrigues, Franklin Pierce *
Vincente Valor Martinez, Franklin Pierce
Miguel Secades Rodrigues, Franklin Pierce
Terence Crysler-Howard, Le Moyne
Josh Mahr, Le Moyne
Jesper Mikkelsen, Adelphi
Mikel Cortazar, SNHU
*Most Outstanding Player
ELITE 24 AWARD
Bernardo Prego, Franklin Pierce
NE10 Men's Soccer Championship
1. Franklin Pierce (10-0-1, .917)
2. Southern Connecticut (6-3-2, .636)
3. Assumption (5-3-3, .591)*
4. Southern New Hampshire (5-3-3, .591)*
5. Saint Rose (5-3-3, .591)*
6. Adelphi (5-4-2, .545)
7. Le Moyne (3-4-4, .455)**
8. Bentley (4-6-1, .409)**
* In the mini-conference between Assumption, Saint Rose & SNHU, Assumption earned the #3 seed based on a 2-0 record within the mini-conference. Saint Rose & SNHU were both 0-1-1 within the mini-conference and played to a tie in their regular season contest. When looking at results vs. common opponents, both teams have the same record (5-3-3). When looking at results vs. the highest seeded teams, both lost to Franklin Pierce and both beat Adelphi. SNHU eared the #4 seed based on a win vs. SCSU; Saint Rose played to a tie against SCSU.
** Le Moyne earned the #7 seed based on their head-to-head win over Bentley during the regular season.
Saturday, October 29th
Quarterfinals – at Higher Seeds
Match 1: #8 Bentley 0, #1 Franklin Pierce 7
Match 2: #7 Le Moyne 3, #2 Southern Connecticut 2 (2 OT)
Match 3: #6 Adelphi 2, #3 Assumption 2 (4-3 PK's)
Match 4: #5 Saint Rose 1 #4 Southern New Hampshire 1 (5-3 PK's)
Wednesday, November 2nd
Semifinals - at Higher Seeds
Match 5: #1 Franklin Pierce7, #4 Southern New Hampshire 1
Match 6: #6 Adelphi 0, #7 Le Moyne 0 (3-1 PK's)
Saturday, November 5th
Championship – at Highest Seed
Match 7: #1 Franklin Pierce 2, #7 Le Moyne 0
ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 13 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 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 NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
