The Queensborough Men's Soccer team won the 2021 CUNYAC Men's Soccer Championship with a 3-0 victory over Bronx Community College at the Metropolitan Oval in Maspeth, New York on Monday night. The title is the Tigers 5th CUNYAC Championship in the past 8 seasons, and the first since 2018.

The match started with a flurry of shots by the Broncos, which included a penalty shot that was stopped on a great save by Michael Medrano. The Broncos did not let up though, as they controlled the first half with consistent ball possession and pressure throughout the first half. The Tigers would come up with a huge scoring opportunity late in the first half, but a tap-in attempt by Romane Forrester would go wide, and keep the match scoreless. The score would remain tied 0-0 at the half, despite a Bronx dominated first 45 minutes. 

In the second half, the momentum seemed to change rather quickly, with the Tigers controlling the ball and creating scoring opportunities early on. In the 53rd minute, the Tigers would get on the board with what proved to be the game winning goal, on a beautiful direct kick goal by freshman midfielder, John Pavana, who would place the ball right over the wall and just over the outstretched arms of the Bronx goalie for the score. Shortly after that, a random deflection by a Bronx defender would end up in the back of the Broncos net to quickly make the score 2-0. With momentum clearly with the Tigers, John Pavana would then strike again with a brilliant assist on another direct kick, that Junior Guaman would put in the back of the net on a header to make the score 3-0, Tigers. That flurry of goals would take place in a matter of 14 minutes, and would be all the scoring the Tigers would need to secure the victory.

Freshman midfielder, John Pavana, would be named the Most Valuable Player for his game winning goal and assist on the evening.

Queensborough Director of Athletics, Jon Hochberg added, "I'm so proud of our student-athletes and coaches. With all of the protocols, mandates, and daily screenings in place just to be able to even have a season, they've done everything right and have never complained about anything. It's a resilient group who has just kept showing up everyday and has gotten better and better throughout the season. They've conducted themselves like champions, and it's fitting that they have the hardware to prove it."

The Tigers will now await the final seedings for the upcoming Region XV Tournament, which is scheduled to begin this Saturday, October 23rd.



Highlight video courtesy of Linacre Media


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