FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern struck first Saturday night, but it was ultimately Palm Beach Atlantic that got the last laugh as the Sailfish pulled away in the second half en route to a 3-1 victory over the Sharks at the NSU Soccer Complex.
 
Filippo Mancini registered his first goal of the season in the 28^th minute. From that point on, however, the match belonged to Palm Beach Atlantic, who received three goals from three separate players to improve to 7-2-1, 3-0-1 in the Sunshine State Conference. The loss, meanwhile, drops the Sharks to 0-4 in the league and 2-7 overall.
 
The Sharks displayed great energy early, outshooting Palm Beach Atlantic 6-5 in the first half. Moments after a near score by Viktor Jonsson, Nova Southeastern was finally rewarded in the 28^th minute when Emilio Blanco linked up with Mancini to give the Sharks the 1-0 edge. The junior's left-footed strike marks just the third goal allowed by the Sailfish in their previous six contests.
 
Palm Beach Atlantic threatened in the 41^st minute, but was turned away by Sharks' keeper Nico Rosiglioni for one of his six saves in the effort. Michael O'Sullivan wouldn't be denied, though, with just under one minute remaining before intermission, heading a Farias Juarez corner kick into the back of the net to even up the match.
 
The equalizer certainly swung the momentum, too, as Palm Beach Atlantic carried that lifted spirit into the start of the second half. Nearing the 47-minute mark, PBA's Dominik Budic played a through ball perfectly in stride to Kebba Nyang, who converted the one-on-one chance with Rosiglioni for the go-ahead score. After leading 1-0, the Sharks were all of the sudden looking up at the Sailfish following a pair of goals in just 2:41 of game action.
 
Still up 2-1, Charlie Dennis would later add to PBA's cushion in the 64^th minute, collecting his team-leading sixth goal of the season off a rebounded shot to give the Sailfish enough breathing room the rest of the way.
 
After having the upper hand in the shots department in the first half, Nova Southeastern was outdone by PBA by a 10-2 margin in the final 45 minutes.  
 
NSU will look to bounce back when it returns to the pitch a week from tonight in a meeting with Saint Leo. For complete coverage of the action, visit NSUSharks.com and click on the provided links on the schedule page