Recap by Director of Athletic Communications Luke Tracy 

MATTHEWS, NORTH CAROLINA (12/7/2023) – The Franklin Pierce Men's Soccer program is heading back to the NCAA Division II national championship for the second year in a row after a nail biter win over the Lewis University Flyers on Thursday evening. The official NCAA Division II Semifinals video recap can be found here. 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Franklin Pierce was quick to show off why the program earned first seed in the tournament, scoring a goal in the eighth minute. Lewis worked to clear the ball out of their zone when Franklin Pierce's Martin Carpena (Cali, Colombia) forced a turnover. The lost ball found the foot of Aaron Sanchez (A Coruña, Spain), who hit a quick pass to a cutting Younes Addar (Castellon, Spain) at the top of the goalie crease. Off a one timer chip shot, Addar hit the ball by the Lewis goalie making it a 1-0 game.
• Neither team found the back of the net for the remainder of the first half, but Lewis broke the streak in the 55^th minute. Lewis' Mikey Revell hit a cross pass to the top of the goalie crease where Arturs Gorodnickis hit a sliding shot that slipped by Franklin Pierce's Karl Vernet (Miami, Florida).
• Later in the 61^st minute, Lewis took the 2-1 lead after Charles Carlback received a PK off a foul in the box.
• Thursday night's game marked only the second time this season that the Ravens had to climb back from a deficit and the response came quickly. Less than 90 seconds after the Ravens went down 2-1, Jeronimo Ferrando Ferri (Valencia, Spain) lined up a corner kick. Hitting the ball towards the center of the box, Thomas Esperoe (Bremnes, Norway) connected with a header which redirected towards the far side of the net. The ball landed at the foot of Younes Addar who chipped the ball by the Lewis GK, bringing Raven fans in the crowd to their feet.
• As the clock ticketed away with 2-2 on the scoreboard, both teams battled to grab the lead and the Ravens made it happen in the 76^th minute. Franklin Pierce's Rodrigo Parafita Bestillieiro (A Coruña, Spain) possessed the ball in the Flyer's middle third. Working to get by his defender, Parafita launched a cross pass to the right side of the goalie crease. Antonio Lampreia Lima (Lisbon, Portugal) cut between two defenders and hit a jumping header by the Lewis GK, grabbing Franklin Pierce's second lead of the game.
• Following Lima's lead taking leap, the Ravens were able to burn off the rest of the clock and secure the advancement to the Championship.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Whistles were blown often in the match between the Ravens and the Flyers as a combined 23 fouls were called by the referees. The Flyers received the most with 14 compared the Raven's nine. For yellow cards, the Ravens tallied five compared the Flyer's single yellow card.
• Offensively, the Ravens soared above the opposition outshooting the Flyers 23-6.
• Corners:
  • Ravens: 7
  • Flyers: 2

NEXT FOR THE RAVENS:

• The Ravens will have one day to rest, reset and recalibrate for the NCAA Championship set for Saturday, December 9^th at 5:00 PM against Colorado State Pueblo which is a rematch of the 2022 game where Franklin Pierce came out on top.