HIALEAH, Fla. ( Sept. 30, 2023) – The NAIA’s No. 14 Florida National University’s men’s soccer team defended their home turf with a 3-0 win over the New College of Florida Banyans Saturday. The Conquistadors (7-1-2) came into Saturday morning’s contest versus NCF (3-2-0) fresh off a 2-2 draw against the NCAA DII Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish on Sept. 28.
Florida National faced a 30-minute lightning delay just eight minutes into the ball game. Both teams headed to the locker rooms for cover and play resumed once the all-clear was given. NCF was able to keep FNU off the board right up until the 36th minute. A smartly placed corner from Bautista Dominguez set up a crushing header from defender Ricardo Delwing. Delwing had a header fly just high of the mark 17 minutes into the game but would not be denied a second time.
FNU led 1-0 at the half, recording nine shots and five corner kicks. The Banyans only managed to put up two shots and three corners.
Nine seconds into the second half, Dominguez capped off two excellent passes from Fabio Andres Lozano and Diogo De grutolla Ramblas for a long-distance stunner to make it a 2-0 ball game. The Conquistadors kept looking for opportunities to score, racking up five shots through the next thirty minutes of play. In his second game back from injury, Nicolas Martinez collected his second goal this week just past the 78th-minute mark off a deflated clearance attempt by the NCF backline.
FNU would put up six more shots in the game’s final minutes and NCF’s goalie Matthew Wilcox recorded two saves in that same window. The Conquistadors ended the match with 11 corners to the Banyans’ five. Wilcox had ten saves while FNU goalie Juan Manuel Fermoselle recorded one save.
Up Next: FNU returns to action on Oct. 5 at home versus CAC rival Florida College at 10 a.m.
