Sharks Eliminated From Playoffs After Double Overtime Loss In Orlando

The Miami Dade College men’s soccer team’s season ended after a dramatic double overtime 2-1 loss to Eastern Florida State College in Orlando at the Florida College System Athletic Association Division I Men’s Soccer Championship. 

Forward Mario Bardi gave MDC the momentum early, putting the Sharks up 1-0 at the 32-minute mark. However, the Titans Jacopo Caprile tied the score just before halftime. 

“We played very well and I felt we dominated that half. Obviously, to concede a goal in the last two minutes of the half was a killer,” said Sharks Head Coach Giuseppe DePalo. “It’s psychologically very difficult when you feel you’ve played, you’ve performed well and dominated, and then you find yourself not in the lead any longer. That was psychologically a blow.”

The second half was extremely physical. Both teams had a combined seven yellow cards. Sharks goalkeeper Samuel Cavo finished the game with 11 saves, but EFSC defender Tarik Ferraz Freire scored at the 102-minute mark in what became the game-deciding goal. 

“That was actually a crazy game, probably the best game I’ve ever been [in],” said Sharks midfielder Nico Preciado. “There were a lot of fans watching, and it was a very intense game. It was physical.”

Miami Dade College finished the season with a 6-11-2 record. The team was in a bevy of tight contests this season, losing nine games by one goal, including their last three matches.  

“We’ve come really close in a lot of games but haven’t always found a way to finish,” DePalo said before their final game this season. “We’ve lost some tight matches that could’ve gone either way. But the second half of the year, we’ve been much better.” 

The Sharks feeble offensive output this year contributed to their lack of wins. Before the season started, they parted ways with their top offensive player, forward Edoardo Duchini, who was tabbed the Conference Player of the Year and led the squad with 14 goals last season. 

“It was a discipline issue and we decided it was our choice to move forward without him,” DePalo said about Duchini’s dismissal from the team.

The team’s top three goal scorers, midfielder Javier Prieto and defenders Jeremy Leviver and Cheick Dounkasse, all had four goals each. Combined, the trio has 12 goals, two less than Duchini had last year.

In addition, forward Facundo Ochoa has had a substantial offensive drop off. He had two goals, compared to the 13 he notched last year.

The Sharks also suffered serious injuries to two key freshmen this season. Midfielder Emmanuel Serra broke his wrist in the preseason, keeping him sidelined for 12 games—more than half the year—and forward Carl Laurent missed two months due to tendinitis in his ankle.

However, other players picked up the slack. Cavo led the team on the defensive end with 82 saves in 16 games. Freshmen Nico Preciado, Daniele Malanga, Matteo DePalo and Carl Laurent also filled in admirably. Preciado had three goals and one assist, Malanga had two goals and two assists, DePalo started 15 games and Laurent added two goals. 

Malanga, Leviver and DePalo were selected to the Division I All-FCSAA first-team.  

At the end of the season, Giuseppe DePalo showed appreciation for the players who restarted the men’s soccer program at MDC two years ago and kept his eye on the future.

“These guys always kept believing, ‘hey, let’s get in the playoffs’ and we got there,” he said. “It was frustrating in extra time going out like we went out. But the future is bright.”

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