Hofstra, Charleston Advance To 2026 CAA Men's Soccer Championship Game
RICHMOND, Va. – The 2026 CAA Men's Soccer Championship game is set, as No. 2 Hofstra (11-4-4) and No. 3 Charleston (9-4-5) punched their tickets to the title match with semifinal victories on the road on Sunday afternoon.
CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
Game 1: No. 2 Hofstra 2, No. 1 Stony Brook 1
Box Score
Second-seeded Hofstra (11-4-4) advanced to the finals of the CAA Men’s Soccer Championship for the sixth time in the past seven years after edging No. 1 Stony Brook (9-2-6), 1-0, in semifinal action at LaValle Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The Pride will represent the North Division in the title match next weekend, marking their 13th appearance in the CAA Championship game in program history.
Hofstra scored the only goal of the game just 5:15 into the contest. Henri Poll sent a long pass ahead to Lewis Matton, who beat his defender to the ball and then slotted a shot past charging goalkeeper Heidar Hermannsson for his third goal of the season.
Stony Brook responded with back-to-back scoring opportunities in the eighth minute, but Hofstra goalkeeper Milo Risenhoover turned away attempts from Kristoffer Aarflot and Nelson Reynoso to keep the Seawolves off the board. Risenhoover continued to come up big in the 18th minute, denying another attempt from Reynoso as the Pride took a 1-0 edge into halftime.
The second half saw limited offensive opportunities for both sides, with Hofstra nearly adding to its lead in the 63rd minute. After a shot from Pietro Santi was blocked, Marc Perkuhn had an attempt cleared by a team save before Axel Ruben followed with another opportunity. However, Hermannsson came through with another stop to keep Stony Brook within striking distance. The Seawolves' goalkeeper finished the contest with six saves.
As time wound down, Stony Brook continued to search for an equalizer, generating opportunities from Justin Jean-Louis, Finlay Oliver and Kristoffer Aarflot. The Seawolves put another attempt on target in the 84th minute when Olsen Aluc fired toward the bottom-left corner, but Risenhoover made the save to preserve Hofstra's lead. The Pride's defense held firm over the final minutes as Risenhoover finished with four saves to record his seventh shutout.
Game 2: No. 3 Charleston 2, No. 1 UNCW 1
Box Score
No. 3 Charleston (9-4-5) stunned top-seeded UNCW (11-3-2), 2-1, on Sunday at UNCW Soccer Stadium to advance to the CAA Men’s Soccer Championship game for the first time in school history.
The CAA South Division semifinal saw both teams come out firing, as Charleston and UNCW combined for three goals in the opening 17 minutes. The Cougars struck first just two minutes into the match when Lennon Gill lofted a ball into the box that was headed to the right side by Matt Lenert. A streaking Stian Bendvold found the back of the net from eight yards out to give Charleston an early 1-0 advantage.
UNCW responded in the 14th minute when Bryan Miralrio sent a beautiful cross to the middle of the box where CAA Rookie of the Year Cameron Keay finished from 10 yards out to even the match at 1-1. It was Keay’s team-leading ninth goal of the season.
Charleston regained the lead in the 17th minute when Gill fired a shot from 25 yards to the top-right corner, putting the Cougars ahead, 2-1. It was Gill’s second goal of the season.
Both sides continued to generate opportunities as the half progressed, with Gill forcing a save from UNCW goalkeeper Alex Kron in the 29th minute. UNCW looked to find the back of the net late in the half, creating chances through Keay, Kristjan Kristjansson and Miralrio, but Charleston goalkeeper Charlie Duske came up with two key saves in the final five minutes to preserve the Cougars' 2-1 advantage heading into halftime.
The Seahawks created several opportunities early in the second half, including back-to-back shots from Kiean Radke and Osei Gyamfi in the opening two minutes. Duske later denied Gyamfi in the 56th minute, while Kron made consecutive saves on Lenert and Arnau Olle to keep the deficit at one.
UNCW finished with a 22-10 shot advantage and an 8-1 edge in corner kicks but was unable to equalize as Duske made four saves.
Charleston will travel to Hofstra for the CAA championship game at 5 p.m. on Saturday, November 14.
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