Men's Soccer Edged by Manhattanville in Season Finale

KINGS POINT, N.Y. — A Victor Naci (Bordeaux, France/Bernard Palissy) goal was not enough for the St. Joseph's University, N.Y. (Brooklyn) men's soccer team as they suffered a 2-1 defeat to Manhattanville College on Tuesday night from the campus of the United States Merchant Marine Academy. 

The loss saw the Bears conclude the 2023 season with a 5-9-1 overall record and a 4-6-1 mark in Skyline Conference play.

How it Happened

An attack-minded Valiants side saw their first goal come from the foot of Manuel Morales, courtesy of a free kick, inside 10 minutes. In the 34th minute, the Bears responded when Pablo Mejia (Elmhurst, N.Y./Academy of Finance and Enterprise) found Naci inside the box for the game's equalizer. The stalemate lasted six minutes as Morales scored a second for Manhattanville.

SJBK had more attacking chances presented to them in the second half while playing with a man advantage for much of the stanza. Unfortunately, the Bears could not draw the match level a second time; falling to the Valiants 2-1.

For the Bears

• Naci ends the season with 10 goals, bringing his SJBK career total to 32; one shy of matching the program record.

• Naci had eight of the Bears' 21 shots, three of which were on target.

• Mejia provided his second assist of the year.

• Francisco Garcia (Brooklyn, N.Y./Park Slope Collegiate) had three shots while Mejia, Diego Volpe (Long Branch, N.J./Red Bank Catholic), and Joaquin Franco (Brooklyn, N.Y./Williamsburg Prep) all had two shots each.

• Christian Chimborazo (Elmhurst, N.Y./Queens Technical) collected nine saves, finishing the season with 56 stops.