Syracuse wins first NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship in program history

The Syracuse Orange are NCAA Men’s Soccer National Champions. ‘Cuse won a penalty kick shootout, 7-6, over Indiana to claim the first national championship in program history.

The shootout was tied at 4-4 after the first round of five, sending it to sudden victory. Both teams converted on their sixth attempts before Syracuse goalkeeper Russell Shealy made a save on Maouloune Goumballe’s shot, giving the Orange a chance for victory. Senior captain Amferny Sinclair stepped to the spot and buried his PK, giving Syracuse the national title.

The Orange, which never trailed in the match, took the lead in the 24th minute when Nathan Opoku got around multiple defenders and put his shot into the top left corner of the net. It marked the first goal against Indiana in the NCAA Tournament.

The Hoosiers scored the equalizer in the 32nd minute on a goal by Patrick Mcdonald. Syracuse answered 86 seconds later. Opoku battled a pair of defenders on the left side of the box before delivering a pass to Curt Calov, who took a touch and then put his shot past IU goalkeeper JT Harms to put the Orange back on top, 2-1.

The score stayed that way until the 80th minute when Herbert Endeley got his shot past a diving Shealy to even things up at 2-2. Neither team could capitalize on their opportunities in the final 20 minutes to force overtime.

The Orange outshot the Hoosiers, 5-3, in the two 10-minute extra sessions, getting two shots on frame, but Harms stopped both tries as the game went to a penalty kick shootout.

Shealy was named the 2022 Men’s College Cup Defensive Most Outstanding Player, while Opoku earned Most Outstanding Offensive Player. They were joined on the All-Tournament Team by Levonte Johnson, Curt Calov, Christian Curti and Jeorgio Kocevski.

The victory marks the 80th national championship in Syracuse Athletics’ history – 31 team titles and 49 individual championships. It is the 15th team title since the establishment of NCAA Championships, with men’s lacrosse (11), field hockey, men’s basketball, men’s cross country, and now men’s soccer hoisting NCAA Championship trophies.

Syracuse caps its dream season with its first ever national championship, going 19-2-4. The 19 wins are the most in a single season in school history. Syracuse is the fourth ever ACC program to win its regular season division, conference tournament and NCAA National Championship in a single-season.