FAIRFIELD, Conn. -  The Fairleigh Dickinson University men's soccer team defeated Sacred Heart 3-0 Friday afternoon to complete its 2017 regular season schedule and clinch a berth in the NEC Conference Tournament next weekend. The win moves the Knights to 10-4-3 on the season including a 3-2-2 mark in the NEC.  FDU will return to action Friday, November 10^th when they take on LIU Brooklyn in the NEC Conference semi-final matchup as the #3 seed.

Goalkeeper Jahmali Waite stopped two of two shots on goal on the afternoon to earn the win and improve his record to 3-2-2.  Jacob Labovitz (7), Ahu Obhakhan (7), and Daniel Lasarte (4) provided the goal scoring on the afternoon for the Knights.  FDU is undefeated in its last six matches (4-0-2).  

"The guys did a good job of getting the critical win today," head coach Seth Roland said.  "Jacob opened things for us with a very good goal and Ahu extended the lead with a nice shot from 20 yards. Dani put the game out of reach in the second half with a nice run and finish.  We're excited to advance to the NEC Playoffs and look forward to preparing for our semi-final match-up versus LIU."

Following a 1-1 draw against LIU Brooklyn last Monday, FDU controlled its own destiny, as a win over the Pioneers would guarantee them the final spot in the NEC Tournament.  The Knights came out and took care of business from the get-go, keeping their foot on the gas from opening kickoff until the final whistle. 

Lasarte, Obhakhan, and Labovitz took turns putting SHU keeper Zach Watson under siege early, each testing the net-minder with a hard strike within the first eight minutes of play. 

Following a shot off the crossbar at the other end from Sacred Heart's Ezra Siyadhuba, FDU countered with a nice offensive sequence of their own, finally beating Watson courtesy of a nice strike from Labovitz.  After collecting a well-placed through-ball from Itai Erez, the freshman made a nice move to get around a pair of SHU defenders before firing a hard volley from 12 yards out to put the Knights up 1-0. 

"Defensively we were pretty solid and focused. Jahmali was confident in goal and the back four of Leddy, Casey, Justin and Quentie did well," Roland said.   

Spurred on by the early tally, the Knights ratcheted up the pressure even more, with Labovitz himself adding two more shots, including one that was deflected narrowly out of trouble by the SHU back line.  

Following another volley from Erez, FDU doubled its lead to 2-0 in the 31' when Obhakhan collected a rebound in the box and put home the second effort from eight yards out. 

A pair of wide efforts from Altin Celaj was all SHU could muster in return before the first half expired with FDU leading by two. 

Despite the two goal lead, FDU's pressure was just as intense to start the second, as Obhakhan nearly put the Knights up by a third marker in the 52' when he collected a loose ball from a corner that was swallowed up by Watson. 

The two squads exchanged bouts of possession for much of the remainder of the second half before Lasarte added a third tally in the 77' to ice things away for the Knights and lock up the #3 seed in the NEC Conference postseason.  

 "I'm very proud of the guys," Roland said.  "We dug ourselves a big hole going 0-2 to start conference play, and then had to travel to Western PA to play Saint Francis University and Robert Morris. I think it's safe to say that there weren't many people who thought we could rebound and make the NEC playoffs at that point. But the only opinions that matter are the ones in our locker room, and our guys really believed in themselves.  They brought home two wins from that difficult road trip in PA, and then tied Central Connecticut and LIU before beating Sacred Heart today. It's been an inspiring run, and hopefully we can keep it going."