ORLANDO, Fla. - [MSOC Tournament Page] - For the second consecutive season, #2 Lynn University will battle #4 Rollins College in the SSC Men's Tournament Championship Game presented by Pollo Campero. The match will be played at 2:00 PM on Sunday, November 16th, at Bobby Campbell Stadium in Boca Raton.
Fans can watch the championship on the SSC Digital Network.
HOW THEY GOT HERE…
One year after winning the program's fourth national championship, the Lynn Fighting Knights (12-2-2, 7-2-1, 22 pts) find themselves defending their 2024 SSC Tournament crown. Lynn finished second in the SSC during the regular season, averaging 2.25 goals per game (best in the conference) and just 0.94 goals against (2nd-best).
The Fighting Knights had no trouble in the quarterfinals, defeating #7 Saint Leo 3-1 behind a hat-trick from Martijn Smith [Box Score]. In the semifinals against #3 Florida Tech, the Fighting Knights fell behind 1-0 in the 28th minute. Despite 17 shots in regulation, it took Lynn until the 85th minute to tie the game, when Robin Muenst found the back of the net off a pass from Luan Barroso Rennstich. After two scoreless overtime periods, Lynn defeated Florida Tech 5-4 in penalty kicks to advance to the championship game [Box Score].
Rollins (10-3-5, 5-2-3, 18 pts) finished tied for third with Florida Tech in the SSC standings, ultimately grabbing the fourth seed in the SSC Tournament.
In the quarterfinals, the Tars needed overtime to advance past #5 Nova Southeastern 2-1. Zico Groenveld scored the game-winner in the extra session off passes from Finlay Prain and Jaden Splunge [Box Score]. In the semifinals, Rollins battled #1 Palm Beach Atlantic, the SSC regular-season champions. Tin Vastic scored first to give the Sailfish a 1-0 lead before halftime. In the 62nd minute, Kaden Foreman found Hayden Judge, who scored to knot the game at 1-1. Less than 10 minutes later, Groenveld netted the game-winner off a pass from Justin Nelson to help the Tars pull the upset [Box Score]
THIS SEASON...
On October 18th, Rollins won a 4-3 thriller over Lynn in Boca Raton. The Tars' Jordan Proulx got the scoring started in the 27th minute off a pass from Pablo Herrero. Lynn answered with back-to-back goals from Dominik N'gatie and Fabian Vyhnalek to take a 2-1 lead in the 68th minute. Rollins answered almost immediately, as Tim Arnold scored the game-tying goal in the 69th minute, then found the back of the net in the 73rd to give the Tars a 3-2 lead. Diego Barcelos added a fourth Rollins goal in the 85th minute, and while N'gatie scored his second goal of the game just minutes later, it was too little too late for the Fighting Knights [Box Score].
PLAYERS TO WATCH...
For Lynn…The Fighting Knights had nine players earn All-SSC honors. This includes Offensive Player of the Year, N'gatie, and Freshman of the Year, Thiago De Carvalho. N'gatie earned First Team All-SSC honors along with Muenst. Lynn had five Second Team selections, including Vyhnalek, Rennstich, Marc Ehmann, Anton Mand, and goalkeeper Luca Clavero. Fynn Friedrichs was the sole Third Team selection for the Fighting Knights.
For Rollins...Four Tars were honored with All-SSC selections. Yousef Shakweer and Judge were named to the First Team, while Nelson and Foreman earned Second Team honors.
SEE ALSO: 2025 All-SSC Men's Soccer Team Announced
RECENT MATCHUP & TOURNAMENT HISTORY...
The Fighting Knights hold a 22-9-2 record against the Tars. In the last 10 matchups, the Fighting Knights have a record of 7-3. These two teams met in last year's SSC Tournament final, with the Fighting Knights winning 2-0.
The Fighting Knights have appeared in nine SSC title games. They hold a record of 7-2 in such contests. They won their first SSC Tournament title in 2003 and their most recent in 2024.
The Tars have won five SSC Tournament titles. Their first came back in 1981, and their most recent was won in 2015. The Tars hold a 5-5 record in SSC title games.