Saint Francis Men’s Soccer Visits Howard Seeking to Stay Unbeaten in NEC Play

Men's Soccer | 10/18/2025 10:02:00 AM

The Red Flash enter the matchup atop the NEC standings, riding a five-game winning streak and remaining unbeaten in conference play.

Saint Francis is 2-0 on the road in NEC play this season and looks to continue its success away from home.

THE WORD ON THE BISON
Howard enters Sunday's matchup with a 3–9–1 overall record and a 2–3 mark in NEC play. The Bison come into the game riding a two-match winning streak following a 4–1 victory over Chicago State, securing their second conference win of the season and their first NEC home victory.

Howard has found the back of the net 12 times in 13 matches. Daniil Kaban leads the way with four goals and one assist for nine points, while Ian Campbell has added two goals. Naim Robinson remains a key playmaker with one goal and two assists, Roman Stallings has contributed two goals, and Zach Simmons has tallied three points on the season.

In goal, Ireal Wyze-Daly has started seven matches, making 36 saves with a .706 save percentage and a 2.14 goals-against average. Liam Keiller has appeared in six matches, recording 34 saves with a .667 save percentage and a 2.83 goals-against average.

LAST TIME OUT
Saint Francis men's soccer kept its winning streak alive in dominant fashion, earning a 5–1 home victory over New Haven on Thursday afternoon at Stokes Soccerplex. The win marked the Red Flash's fifth straight overall and extended their unbeaten run in NEC play.

The Red Flash wasted no time taking control, striking first in the 21st minute when a free kick from Alex De Nittis led to an own goal that opened the scoring. De Nittis doubled the lead eight minutes later, converting a penalty to send Saint Francis into halftime up 2–0.

In the second half, Saint Francis continued to roll. Julian Quiroga had a clever setup that led to a backheel assist from De Nittis in the 69th minute, allowing Álvaro Planas to finish for a 3–0 advantage. Just two minutes later, Planas struck again off a long ball from Nathan Katari to make it 4–0.

New Haven pulled one back in the 76th minute, but De Nittis sealed the result less than a minute later with his second goal of the day after forcing a turnover and finishing cleanly to close out the 5–1 victory.

Goalkeeper Diego Garciarena set a new career high with seven saves, including several key stops in both halves to keep the Chargers at bay. De Nittis led the way offensively with five points (two goals, one assist), while Planas added his third and fourth goals of the season.

The win improved Saint Francis to 5–0–0 in its last five matches, continuing its strong form heading into Sunday's NEC road test at Howard.

NEXT TIME OUT
Saint Francis men's soccer returns home to Stokes Soccerplex on Sunday, Oct. 26, to host FDU at 3:00 p.m. in NEC action.

The Red Flash will look to build on their momentum and improve upon their perfect 3–0 home record in conference play this season.

NEC HONORS
Jonah Wolf was recognized as an NEC Prime Performer of the Week on Sept. 15. Wolf turned in a standout performance in Saint Francis' 3–3 draw at Loyola Maryland, recording his first career goal and adding an assist.

Álvaro Planas was recognized as an NEC Prime Performer of the Week on Sept. 29. Planas delivered a clutch performance in Saint Francis' 2–1 road win at Le Moyne, recording the game-winning goal and assisting Red Flash's first score to help secure the conference-opening victory.

Freshman forward Thero Mitchell III was named NEC Co-Player of the Week, Rookie of the Week, and a Prime Performer for the week of Oct. 6. Mitchell has been a key offensive presence for the Red Flash, scoring in back-to-back conference matches to help Saint Francis remain unbeaten in league play through three games.

Saint Francis goalkeeper Diego Garciarena was recognized by the NEC for the week of Oct. 13 following his shutout performance in a 2–0 road win over Chicago State. The junior continues to be a steady presence for the Red Flash, anchoring a defense that has delivered multiple strong outings in recent weeks.

PRESEASON POLL
Saint Francis men's soccer was picked fifth in the NEC Preseason Poll. Mercyhurst, which won the NEC regular season, and LIU, which won the NEC Tournament, have been selected as co-preseason favorites after LIU earned three first-place votes and Mercyhurst garnered five. FDU picked up the remaining two top votes, while Le Moyne, Saint Francis, Stonehill, New Haven, Howard, Chicago State, and CCSU rounded out the poll. Mercyhurst and New Haven are both ineligible for the postseason.

INTERNATIONAL FLARE
Head coach Mads Kaiser has nine players that have come from outside the United States: Volkan Celikkol (Turkey), Alex De Nittis(Germany), Harry Elmore (England), Alejandro Escobar (Columbia), Diego Garciarena (Paraguay), Álvaro Planas (Spain), Julian Quiroga(Bolivia), Harvey Skurek (England), Mika Wernicke (Germany) and Jonah Wolf (Germany).

ABOUT THE COACH
Mads Kaiser begins his third season as the Red Flash men's soccer head coach. In his first season, Saint Francis was the only NCAA Division I team to finish undefeated with a 7-0-8 record and won the NEC regular season. Saint Francis is 14-7-10 overall and 10-2-3 in NEC play. The Red Flash hosted an NEC Semifinals Game in his first two years. He was an assistant in Loretto for two seasons prior to his elevation as head coach.

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