Men’s soccer stuns No. 1 seed Campbell to win A-Sun Championship

Men’s soccer stuns No. 1 seed Campbell to win A-Sun Championship

Trailing 3-1 in the second half, the JU men’s soccer team scored three unanswered goals to down No. 1 seed Campbell, 4-3, to win the Atlantic Sun Tournament Championship in Buies Creek, N.C. on Saturday afternoon.

Senior midfielder Ramak Niakan Safi scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute to give the Dolphins (11-8-1) an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament and redeem last season’s championship match loss to the Camels (14-6) in penalty kicks.

The Dolphins also outshot the Camels in the second half, 10-0, and held their opponent to three shots the entire match to win the conference title.

"I’m at a loss for words," said JU head coach Mike Johnson. "I’m so proud of the guys because they fought their way to this championship. We could have easily given up at halftime, but our guys found a way to win.

"Our goal this season was to redeem ourselves from last year’s loss and we definitely achieved it. I give credit to the Campbell team because they were a very talented and well-coached team. We will enjoy this win this weekend and then starting working for our opponent in the NCAA Tournament."

Niakan Safi gave the Dolphins a 1-0 lead in the 12th minute of the match in the top of the box from an assist by senior forward Sebastian Lindholm.

After the JU goal, Campbell exploded with scored three goals on three shots to take a 3-1 advantaged.

In the 18th minute, Josue Soto scored on a penalty kick to even the match for the Camels. He delivered a pass to Richard Jata, who flicked it in the back of the goal to give the Camels a one goal lead in the 32nd-minute.

Jata scored again less then nine minutes later from 35-yard out to end Campbell scoring in the first half.

In the second half, sophomore forward Tony Taylor cut the JU deficit to a goal by scoring in the 57th minute on assist by sophomore midfielder Nedim Hrustic.

The Dolphins tied the match in the 75th minute when freshman midfielder scored his third goal of the tournament in the right of the box on combined assists by Lindholm and junior midfielder Jonathan Jackson.

With less than a two minutes remaining, Niakan Safi scored on a counter attack from a pass by Taylor to give JU the title and its first win against Campbell since 2002.

The Dolphins will learn where they heading in the NCAA Tournament on Monday on ESPN News at 6 p.m. The first round of the NCAA Tournament will start on Friday, Nov. 21.