FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern men's and women's soccer teams will make their way up to Florida Tech for important Sunshine State Conference matches Tuesday, Oct 30. The women are set to kick off at 5 p.m. while the men begin their match at 7:30 p.m.
The night will serve as the final road matches for each team in the 2013 regular season.
With only two matches left in the season for the women's team (5-8-2, 1-4-1 SSC), the Sharks currently sit in seventh in the conference with four points, tied with the Panthers and just two points behind fifth-place Lynn. The top six spots make the SSC tournament.
The Sharks are matching up with the Panthers for the second time this season, where FIT beat the Sharks in Fort Lauderdale, 3-0, thanks to a hat trick from Aubri Williamson.
NSU is coming off a 2-2 draw in their last match against Palm Beach Atlantic, a match in which the Sharks outshot the Sailfish 22-10. Rut Kristjansdottir (Fr., Reykjavik, Iceland) scored the first goal of the match in the 11th minute, the first of her career. PBA responded quickly scoring goals in the 12th and 15th minute to give the Sailfish a 2-1 halftime lead. Malin Broberg (Sr., Stockholm, Sweden) scored the tying goal in the 66th minute, resulting in the game's final score.
The Sharks picked up their first SSC win a week ago against Eckerd, 2-1, to set them up for their final two crucial matches.
The Panthers (8-5-1, 1-4-1 SSC) are coming into Wednesday's contest winning just two of their last six matches. Both wins came in non-conference action against No.14 Armstrong Atlantic, 2-0, and Palm Beach Atlantic, 3-0. The Panthers have beaten three top-25 opponents this season. FIT has been heavily reliant on the goal scoring of Williamson, who has tallied 11 of the team's 23 goals.
Following the completion of the women's game, the Shark men (3-7-3, 0-5-1 SSC) will play in an unofficial elimination match against Florida Tech (4-8-1, 1-5-0 SSC). The Sharks and Panthers are at the bottom of the standings, fighting to maintain their chances of making it into the SSC Tournament. NSU has one point in the standings while the Panthers hold three points with two matches left, making Wednesday's loser out of contention for a postseason spot.
The start of Wednesday's match could be seen as the 111th minute of the battle between NSU and FIT. The two teams battled earlier this season to a scoreless draw at the NSU Soccer Complex. Although the match finished without a goal, the Sharks looked like the sharper and more aggressive team on the field. NSU nearly doubled Florida Tech's shot output, 17-9, and forced six saves by Panthers goalkeeper Mitch Thorn. NSU goalkeeper Andrea Giombetti (Jr., Rome) made four saves in the match en route to a shutout.
Historically, the Sharks have been successful against FIT and have earned nine wins against the Panthers in program history. However, the Sharks have been trying to push that total to double digits since 2009, with Florida Tech slipping through their grasp in recent years.
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