TEANECK, N.J. - On a night of trick or treating, the Fairleigh Dickinson men's soccer team (7-6-3, 5-1-2 NEC) was certainly treated, grabbing three points in the Northeast Conference table and a spot in the 2021 NEC Tournament following a 5-1 win over new league foe Howard (2-10-3, 1-6-1 NEC) on Halloween.

How it Happened 

• Neither side would score until just over 30 minutes elapsed in the first half when senior forward Diego Arribas delivered his eighth score of the season in the 31' to put the Burgundy and Blue up 1-0. Arribas was assisted by sophomore Tony Gomez on the score for Gomez's third career assist, though he would add another later in the fixture.
• Just under three minutes later, senior Rocky Garretson would tack on a goal of his own off assists by sophomore Alberto Herranz Lopez and Arribas to make it a 2-0 tally favoring the home side.
• Howard would get on the board in the 39' with their lone goal of the match scored by Sammy Oladeji, unassisted, for his fourth goal of the year.
• Another unassisted goal would come before the halftime whistle with Gomez adding his second goal of the season off a beautiful header in the 42' to make it 3-1, FDU in front.
• Picking up his first goal in the Burgundy and Blue is graduate student Stefano Pesce who was assisted by Gomez to make it 4-1 in the 54'.
• To close out the scoring affair, redshirt senior Adrian Barajas would get in the books with his first goal of the fall 2021 campaign while the assist was credited to freshman Kevin Leonhard, his fourth on the season. FDU would finish the match with five goals, a 5-1 victory on the banks of the Hackensack.

Inside the Box Score 

• Seth Roland's Knights out-shot Howard 21-6 (12-5 on-target)
• Junior goalkeeper Vinícius Cadengue earned his fourth start of the season and logged four saves, stopping all but one of the Bison's shots on goal.
• Arribas finished a perfect four-for-four in terms of shots with all four of his blasts coming on-target, including the 31' score.
• Cadengue was the only Knight to play the entire 90 minutes of gameplay.

Coach Roland's Thoughts

"It was a good night all around. We clinched a playoff spot, honored the seniors - and they all played well. Rocky and Train [Adrian Barajas], who are fifth-year seniors, best friends and roommates, each scored a goal. D'Shon [DeGannes], a guy that everyone loves, did a great job in the midfield. It was a perfect Senior Day celebration."

What's Next

Roland's side closes out the 2021 regular season on the road at Mount St. Mary's on Sunday, November 7, at 1 p.m. live from Emmitsburg, Md. on NEC Front Row and the Knights look to get set for the 2021 Northeast Conference Men's Soccer Tournament which is set to begin on Friday, November 12, at the highest seed.

The 2021 men's soccer season is presented by Bogota Savings Bank.