Ravens Clinch Third Consecutive NE10 Berth, Tie Stonehill 1-1 in Season Finale

EASTON, Mass. (October 26, 2018) – Franklin Pierce University men's soccer sophomore forward Yannik Felber (Vallendar, Germany) tallied a goal as the Ravens clinched their third straight Northeast-10 Conference tournament berth playing to a 1-1 draw with Stonehill College Friday afternoon on Skyhawk Field. With the win, the Ravens conclude the regular season at 7-9-1, 6-6-1 NE10 while the Skyhawks end their year with a 6-8-2, 5-7-1 mark.

The Ravens season got off to a sluggish start as they were 1-7-0 halfway through the season. FPU rebounded by finishing the campaign 6-2-1 including six straight wins to notch the third conference championship appearance under the tutelage of head coach Roy Fink. Right now, the Crimson and Grey sit sixth in the NE10 Standings (19 points), but can be leapfrogged by an American International College win tonight versus no. 9 nationally-ranked Adelphi University. Franklin Pierce will head back to the pitch on Tuesday away from campus for the NE10 Quarterfinals, opponent TBA.

Pierce faced a stiff test in the Skyhawks who were 5-1-1 on their home pitch this season prior to today's draw. On Skyhawk Field, Stonehill allowed a grand total of only six goals in eight games with four of those markers coming from NE10 Conference opponents (Le Moyne College: 3, FPU: 1).

Felber corralled a cross by teammate Jacob Maddox (Southborough, Mass.) in the 10th minute. The pass was off the right front post to the waiting Felber and he cashed in a shot just outside the goal line.

Stonehill's Patrick Doherty responded with the equalizer 11 minutes later as teammate Keegan Nutt passed the ball to the right side. Doherty struck for his second goal of the season and more importantly tie the match at 1-1.

No team could capitalize in the second half as their 19 combined shots were either saved, high or wide of the mark. Franklin Pierce was outshot 4-1 in the two 10 minute overtime periods. Raven goalkeeper Jadel Poon-Lewis (Diego Martin, Trinidad and Tobago) made a huge stop of Ian Pereira in the 98th minute stuffing his shot attempt and keeping the Raven victory hopes alive. Felber almost gave his squad the walk-off win at the 106th minute in the second overtime, but his shot grazed the crossbar.

Poon-Lewis stopped a season-high seven shot attempts in the tie and finished his regular season at 7-9-1. Billy Troast snared nine saves for the hosts.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (https://fpuravens.com/store). You can also follow the men's soccer team on Twitter (https://twitter.com/fpumsoccer), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/fpumsoccer/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/fpumsoccer/).