WALTHAM, Mass. - After a year off the top of the Northeast 10 podium, the Franklin Pierce men's soccer team is back holding gold in 2025. The No. 3 seed in the NE10 Championship, FPU went on the road Sunday and knocked off No. 1 seeded Bentley, 4-1, in battle of nationally ranked foes.
The win is the seventh title in Franklin Pierce history and the fourth in five years. FPU's four goals marked the second-most tallies scored by the Ravens against a conference opponent this fall, and continues a hot streak of Pierce averaging 3.2 goals per game over the last five games. The four goals are also the third-most scored in an NE10 Championship final and the most since SNHU scored five in 2014.
Pierce got the action going early when Borja Blazquez scored in the game's seventh minute. Bentley controlled much of the remaining first half, finally equalizing with 80 seconds remaining on Antonio Santos' third goal. The junior went bar down off the crossbar, knotting things up at the break.
The second half, however, was all Ravens. Jesse Oostendorp burried what would be the game-winning-goal in the 58th minute, buffered by Joao Araujo in the 68th and sealed by Guillermo Avendano in the 85th.
For his efforts, Avendano was named the United States Marine Corps Most Outstanding Player. The goal brings his total for the Championship to four and for the season to an NE10-beast 13.
NE10 Goalkeeper of the Year Cam Hall made five saves while David Skorodumov stopped a pair of shots for Franklin Pierce.
Bentley's appearance in the final was the team's first since 2017 after the Falcons claimed their first regular season championship since 1995 this fall.
NE10 All-Championship Team
United States Marine Corps Most Outstanding Player: Guillermo Avendao, Franklin Pierce
Lucas Nicolaou, Adelphi
Felipe di Paola, SNHU
Cam Hall, Bentley
Antonio Santos, Bentley
Stepan Fiker, Franklin Pierce
Julen Martin, Franklin Pierce
Elite 24 Award
Zach Spitznagle
Junior, Bentley
Accounting
3.897 GPA
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