JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The University of North Florida won its third straight ASUN men’s soccer championship in Jacksonville on Saturday night, beating sixth-seeded Queens 2-0 at Hodges Stadium behind an early header from senior Paul Schacherer and a late strike from senior Mark Romano.
Schacherer put the top-seeded Ospreys ahead in the 10th minute with his first goal of the season, heading the ball past Matthew Bademian in goal for Queens. The score stayed 1-0 for roughly 75 minutes. Then Romano, who played his high school soccer at Ponte Vedra, collected a feed from sophomore Omar Trto, a Mandarin High product, and drove it into the left corner with 6:38 to play. It was Romano’s eighth goal of the year, the most on the team, and both he and Trto had come off the bench.
The win lifted UNF to 13-4-3 and set a school record for victories in a single season. Fifth-year goalkeeper Luciano Natoli posted his seventh shutout of the year, and the Ospreys matched last season’s mark of nine clean sheets. The North Florida defense, anchored by ASUN Defensive Player of the Year Rafa Rios, held Queens to six shots and no corner kicks. Natoli made a late save, and a Queens shot rang off the upright in the final minutes.
Tempers flared after the second goal. Queens drew four yellow cards, including two on one player that led to an ejection, and several UNF players were also booked. Queens had played three times in a week, while UNF had a first-round bye as the top seed.
Marlon Montanella, in his first year as head coach after two seasons as an assistant, became the third coach in program history to win an ASUN title. Schacherer, Romano, Tyler Prebenda and Anton Khelil were named to the all-tournament team.
The Ospreys, 9-1-1 at home this fall, learn their NCAA Tournament first-round opponent during the selection show Monday, Nov. 16, at 1 p.m. The program is still chasing its first NCAA Tournament win.
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