Eastern Florida State Beats Daytona State 4-0 for FCSAA Men’s Soccer Title

Eastern Florida State College’s 4-0 win over top-ranked Daytona State College gave the Titans their fifth FCSAA tournament title and their second in three years. The result also ended Daytona State’s unbeaten season, making the championship more than a repeat of familiar success: Eastern Florida beat the team at the top of the ranking and did so without conceding a goal. A four-goal margin in a final is emphatic. It suggests the Titans handled both the occasion and the opponent’s standing without letting either dictate the match.

The No. 5 Titans broke through just before halftime, a point in the game when a goal can change the terms of the second half. With 56 seconds left, Rio Narita sent a corner kick into the box, and Fidel Gil headed it in. Set pieces often offer a direct route to a scoring chance when open play is tight; here, the corner gave Eastern Florida the lead at a moment when Daytona State had little time to answer before the break. That timing mattered. The Titans could return to the field with a cushion, while their opponent had to find a way back into the match.

Henry Crosthwaite made that task harder early in the second half, scoring from a free kick outside the box. The goal came from a different kind of set piece, giving the Titans a second route to the scoreboard. Two goals from dead-ball situations can reflect preparation and execution, though the available details don’t establish how much of the match was decided by tactics or by individual skill. What’s clear is that Eastern Florida converted its chances and built a lead Daytona State couldn’t overcome.

Crosthwaite earns tournament honor

Crosthwaite was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, recognition that followed his goal in the final and his contribution across training and matches. Coach Bart Sasnett pointed to the midfielder’s work ethic and high soccer IQ. Those qualities can be difficult to capture in a scoreline, but they help explain why a player’s influence may extend beyond the moments that end in a goal.

Sasnett described a team that, in his view, played to its strengths across the field. “We talked about how we are going to have to play our best bit of soccer, we thought we were the better ball club and in the end we prevailed,” Sasnett said. “We did good offensively, our midfield was very good, our defense was stellar and our goalkeeping was unbelievable.” His assessment is broad, but the 4-0 score gives it a clear outcome: Eastern Florida scored in multiple phases of the match and kept Daytona State off the board. The clean sheet is part of the story, not a footnote.

Alvin Ssekamate added the third goal with 14 minutes remaining, finishing a pass from Alfredo Adrian Chan. Narita then scored again with 4:39 left to complete the result. The late goals turned a two-goal advantage into a decisive margin. That’s the part that makes the score especially persuasive: Eastern Florida didn’t simply protect its lead; it kept creating and finishing chances as the clock ran down.

This is more significant than it looks. Winning a tournament final against the top-ranked side is one achievement; doing it by four goals, while handing that opponent its first loss of the season, gives the Titans a strong performance to carry into their next competition. And yet a championship result doesn’t guarantee the same conditions in the next match. The East District tournament will bring a new opponent and a fresh test of whether Eastern Florida can sustain the balance Sasnett praised.

A title built on a longer program history

Sasnett framed the championship as part of a tradition rather than a standalone milestone. “This program is a storied one with a lot of FCSAA championships and we are just following suit with what the school has built. I am honored to be a part of it,” he said. The title is Eastern Florida’s fifth FCSAA tournament win, while the second championship in three years gives the program a recent marker of success as well. Sustaining that record requires more than one strong final; it depends on a team being able to prepare, compete and advance through the tournament.

Here's the thing: tradition can set expectations, but it can’t score the next goal. The immediate value of this win is that the Titans have shown they can deliver in a high-stakes match against a highly ranked opponent. If you're working in this space, the useful signal is the combination of a shutout and four goals from several contributors—not a claim that one result settles what comes next. The semifinal will offer the next measure.

Next stop: the NJCAA East District Tournament

Eastern Florida State advances to the NJCAA Division I East District Tournament at USC Sumter next weekend. The Titans are scheduled to play the semifinal at 2 p.m. Friday, with the championship set for noon Saturday. The schedule leaves little room for a long pause after the FCSAA title: the team will need to shift its attention to the next tournament and prepare for a different opponent. The source doesn’t identify that semifinal opponent, so the matchup itself remains an open question.

For Eastern Florida, the immediate objective is straightforward: turn the state tournament win into another advance. The final offered evidence of strong finishing, midfield play, defense and goalkeeping, according to Sasnett, while the scoring record shows four goals from three players. A short turnaround will test whether those strengths carry over. A title already secured. Another opportunity ahead.