BOX SCORE

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern men’s soccer team started the year off with a scoreless draw Friday night against the North Georgia Saints at the NSU Soccer Complex. It is the first time in program history the Sharks drew in their season opener.

Despite the outcome, the game served as a great way to kick off the athletic year as fans and alumni packed the NSU Soccer Complex full. Over 700 fans were in attendance as alumni, the Blue Legion, and Finatics all gave the Sharks a warm welcome back.

The Sharks put forth a balanced attack in which they controlled the ball for the majority of the game but could not find a way to score. Eight players recorded shots while freshmen Tyree Clarke (Birmingham, England), James Pucci (Carrara, Italy) and Phillip Klaus (Lippstad, Germany) all recorded a team-high three shots. Pucci and Klaus each had two shots-on goal.

Andrea Giombetti (Fr., Rome, Italy) earned his first career start in goal and debuted with a shutout. He had six saves on the night. The veteran defense also put forth a great effort. Returners Juan Rivera (Sr., Miami, Fla.) and Simon Nett (Sr., Grimstad, Norway) played the entire game while the captain Alvin Quaye (Sr., West Ham, England) logged over 100 minutes. The group consistently shut down the Saints as they rarely had serious chances to score.

The shot output in the game was very even as the Sharks barely edged North Georgia, 14-13. Each team had six shots on goal.

Although the home crowd of over 700 fans did not get to see a goal, they did witness a wild overtime period in which the Sharks nearly sealed the win twice. The first opportunity came in the first overtime from what appeared to be a great pass to Pucci in the center of the box. Pucci easily scored on the Saints’ Rade Tanaskovic, but as the crowd roared the goal was called off as Pucci was a step offsides.

The second opportunity came with 30 seconds remaining in the game. Clarke took a pass from up the middle and darted passed his defender. Going one-on-one with the keeper Clarke could not capitalize as Tanaskovic got a hand on the ball and corralled it in before another Shark could reach it.

The Sharks will move on to face West Florida this Sunday, Sept. 4 at 1:30 p.m. at the NSU Soccer Complex.

For the match results, be sure to check www.NSUSharks.com or sign up to have results sent directly to your cell phone by signing up for SMS text messages by clicking here. For the weekly NSU Shark Athletic news, please sign up for the Shark Alert E-Newsletter by clicking here.