CLINTON, Miss. – The Nova Southeastern University men's soccer team (1-0-0) picked up a victory on day one of the 2015 season on the road against the Mississippi College Choctaws (0-1-0), 3-1, Thursday afternoon.
 
"The best way to start the year obviously is with a win," said head coach Giuseppe DePalo. "We had the chance to throw a lot of guys out there and were able to learn a lot of stuff from our new guys. I'm really pleased with the attitude of this team right now, we are all looking forward to the rest of the trip."
 
The game was sealed by goals from a trio of seniors in Stefano Fanfoni (Cremona, Italy), Matthias Bruno (Rome, Italy) and Juan Rodriguez (Lima, Peru). NSU fell behind early in the match, but through an up tempo style and plenty of depth, were able to quickly equalize and take over the match.
 
At the start, two NSU newcomers in Faycal Oulahbib (Jr., Paris, France) and Daniel Gutierrez (Fr., Weston, Fla.) nearly put NSU ahead. Both had great looks at the goal but put their shots just high of the crossbar. In the 25^th minute, the Choctaws capitalized on miscommunication, allowing Kendall Carballo to score one-on-one with Taylor Bailey (Greeneville, Tenn.) in his freshman debut.
 
The home team would lead for just over eight minutes. In the 33^rd minute, Fanfoni created his own space on the left side and bombed a ball from 23 yards out into the far post and in to equalize. The unassisted goal led to a tied match at halftime. The contest was fairly even at the break, with both teams getting real chances.
 
The match loosened up in the second half, with the early September heat playing a real factor. NSU went from six shots to 11 in the last 45 minutes, most of which were on goal. While the Choctaws took a half dozen shots in the second half, they could not get back on the board.
 
The game-winner came quickly in the 48^th minute on a free kick from Filippo Mancini (So., Genova, Italy) in his NSU debut. Mancini sent an excellent free kick towards the far post, with Bruno in perfect position to head it in from inside the box. It was the second goal of the center back's career and the first since his freshman campaign.
 
NSU pushed for the third goal to seal the game, and through key substitutions, asserted control of the midfield. The subs paid off, with veteran Rodriguez coming off the bench to seal the match. In the 78^th minute, Rodriguez won a tackle in Choctaw territory and took the ball ahead himself, scoring against MC's Humberto Pelaez at the near post. Despite allowing his third goal, Pelaez gave the Sharks a good fight and made seven saves. It was the most saves a non-SSC keeper has made against NSU in nearly two years.
 
With three matches in five days, DePalo hoped to lean on his bench, and did so Thursday. The Sharks used 20 players, with all but one playing at least 30 minutes. Only Bailey and junior Viktor Jonsson (Reykjavik, Iceland) played the full 90 minutes.
 
Overall, the Sharks took 17 shots, with 10 logged on target. Defensively, Bailey looked strong in his collegiate debut. He made three saves after allowing the opening goal in the 25^th minute.
 
The Sharks will rest Friday and remain in Clinton for a neutral site match against Delta State Saturday at 5 p.m. ET.