RINDGE, N.H. (11/2/22) - The top-seeded Franklin Pierce men's soccer team advanced to their third straight Northeast-10 Championship Final on Wednesday evening, upending No.4 in-state rival Southern New Hampshire University with a dominating 6-1 victory in the semifinal round at Sodexo Field. Sophomore forward Braudilio Rodrigues (Lisbon, Portugal) led the way for Pierce, notching seven points with a goal and five assists, setting for a new single-game program record in helpers.  

The second-round triumph improves the Ravens to 19-0-1 (10-0-1 NE10) overall on the season. The fourth-ranked Penmen conference tournament run comes to a close, finishing with a record of 8-6-4 (5-3-3 NE10). In the opposing bracket, the seventh-ranked Le Moyne College Dolphins emerged victorious over the sixth-ranked Adelphi University Panthers in penalty kicks (3-1).

The Ravens broke through on the scoreboard at the 7:23 mark of the opening half when graduate Miguel Secades Rodrigues (Langreo, Spain) scored off a give-and-go passing play between Braudilio Rodrigues and Jonas Cervera Anchel (Chiva, Spain). Just over eight minutes later, the Penman tied the game on a long ball shot from junior midfielder Luca Shubitidze, only to see the Raven lead restored by Cervera Anchel in the 20^th minute. Towards the latter stages of the first half, the Ravens would continue to add to their lead with goals from graduates Jero Ferrando Ferri (Valencia, Spain) and Javier Gutierrez (Asturias, Spain), with each originating off of short-side centering passes by Rodrigues. The Ravens would carry their 4-1 advantage into the second half.

Just over four minutes into the second half, Braudilio Rodrigues changed things up a bit with a goal to push the Raven lead to 5-1, netting his 17^th of the season. With the match already out of hand, Franklin Pierce continued to pile on the offense with another goal in the 58^th minute by Jonas Cervera Anchel, who sent a shot top corner after a cut-in move inside the box. With the score at 6-1, the Ravens would add one more strike with just five seconds remaining on the game clock from senior Joao Valente (Averio, Portugal), who sent a shot into a wide-open goal to cap the offense at 7-1.

Raven starting goalkeeper Javier Torres (Benalmadena, Spain) faced two shots total in his first collegiate playoff victory, making one save through the full 90 minutes. SNHU starter Preston Neal made no saves on six shots faced, before being relieved by Christian Da Cruz who surrendered one goal on two shots. Both teams additionally had a pair of yellow cards each throughout the match.

The stage is now set for Franklin Pierce men's soccer in the NE10 Championship Final, which will be played on Saturday, November 5^th and will feature the No.7 Le Moyne College Dolphins with kickoff at 6 p.m.