CHARLESTON, W. Va. – The #9 seeded Mercy University Men's Soccer Team faces #8 seeded Franklin Pierce University in the First Round of the 2026 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship on Friday, November 13th at 3 p.m. at University of Charleston. The winner of Friday's game will play at No. 1 seeded University of Charleston on Sunday, November 15th at 3 p.m.
Who, When and Where
First Round
Date/Time: Friday, November 13th 3 p.m.
Records: #9 Mercy (12-5-3), #8 Franklin Pierce (9-5-4)
Location: Charleston, W. Va. (Welch Athletic Complex)
Second Round
Date/Time: Sunday, November 15th 3 p.m.
Records: Winner #8 Franklin Pierce/#9 Mercy at #1 Charleston (16-2-1)
Location: Charleston, W. Va. (Welch Athletic Complex)
Tickets
All Games
$15 – Adults
$5 – Students w/ID, Senior Citizens and Children, ages 2-12
Children under the age of 2 shall be admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult.
Last Meeting vs. Franklin Pierce
Mercy earned a 2-1 win over Franklin Pierce on September 12, 2019.
Last Meeting vs. Charleston
Mercy dropped a 5-0 decision at Charleston on November 23, 2019.
Scouting the Mavericks
The Mavericks are coming off a 2-1 loss at St. Thomas Aquinas in the ECC Championship Semifinals on November 1st. Mercy was led by freshman Marvin Spets who scored a goal. Mercy is receiving votes nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Mavericks have qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022 and for the fourth time in eight seasons under Head Coach Pedro Velazquez. Mercy is making their sixth NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. The Mavericks look to win their first NCAA Tournament game since 2018. Mercy qualified for the ECC Championship for the fifth straight season and eighth time in 10 seasons. The Mavericks advanced to the ECC Championship Semifinals for the third time in four seasons. Senior Jacob Lund-Iversen was named ECC Offensive Player of the Year and Lund-Iversen and seniors John Hollis and Pau Ramon were named First Team All-ECC and juniors Joel Martinez and Herman Borke and graduate student Sean Green received Third Team All-ECC. Velazquez recorded his 100th career win against AIC on September 16th. Velazquez became the all-time winningest coach in program history with his 107th career against Queens on October 29th.
The Mavericks have been led by Lund-Iversen who has a team-high 33 points on 13 goals and seven assists. He leads the ECC in points and goals. De Roque Zazón has three goals and Hauge has two goals. Senior John Hollis has a team-high 15 assists with four goals and junior Herman Borke has three assists. Hollis leads Division II in assists and has set a new single-season school record for assists. Senior Diego Guzmán has three assists and juniors Juan Gonzalez and Marcos Landivar have two assists. Dutilh and Ramon both have two goals and an assist and Lysoe has three goals. Martinez has four goals and Wilson-Wright has two goals and two assists. Spets has three goals and three assists and graduate student Sean Green is 8-4-2 in goal with 61 saves, a .813 save percentage and 0.96 goals-against average. Cooke is 4-1-1 with 23 saves, a .767 save percentage and 1.30 goals-against average.
Mercy opened the 2026 season looking to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in eight seasons and qualify for the ECC Championship for the eighth time in nine seasons under Head Coach Pedro Velazquez. The Mavericks went 7-6-5 last season, qualifying for the ECC Championship. Mercy was picked third in the ECC Preseason Poll. Velazquez and the Mavericks look to win their first ECC Championship and qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022. Leading the returners for Velazquez is senior Mario de Roque Zazón who was named Second Team All-ECC last season after playing in 18 games with three goals, five assists, and 11 points. Senior Pau Ramon returns after receiving Third Team All-ECC honors in 2025 after starting all 18 games with three goals, one assist, and seven points. Junior Santiago Dutilh and senior John Hollis return after combining for four goals and four assists a year ago and junior Herman Borke is back after scoring one goal last season. Junior Marcos Landivar had one assist in 10 games last season and junior Juan Gonzalez returns after starting all 18 games last season on defense for the Mavericks. Senior Diego Guzmán and sophomore Erlend Skalstad also return after playing all 18 games last season and graduate students Mathias Joergenrud and Charles Lorenz, juniors Philip Hauge, Nanakofi Boadu, Caleb James, and Estefano Marchiori, and sophomores Henrik Bratli Aanensen, Petter Sommerli Lind, Nicolai Lysoe, and Christopher Nicolas-Martinez also return.
Velazquez also welcomes nine transfers and three freshmen to the team ahead of the 2026 season. Graduate student Sean Green joins Mercy from Lees-McRae College where he went 5-6-4 in goal with 61 saves, a .813 save percentage and 0.92 goals-against average in 2025. Junior Fredrik Balmforth joins the team from D'Youville University where he played in 29 games with two goals in two seasons. Senior Jacob Darwesh Lund-Iversen transfers from Maryville University where he played in 21 games with five goals and two assists in 2025. Junior Nicholas Tellez transfers in from Herkimer Community College and junior Aalon Wilson-Wright comes from Tiffin University where he played in 16 games and scored two goals in 2025. Junior Joel Martinez played at Mount Aloysius College where he recorded 12 goals and 12 assists in 34 games in two seasons. Junior Liam Brandt played two years at Nazareth University and junior Harry Cooke joins Mercy after two seasons at D'Youville. Freshman Dean Yamin started his career at Pace University before coming to Mercy.
The Mavericks also welcome freshmen Marvin Spets, Vicente Klett and Francisco Sanhueza who look to contribute immediately.
Hollis, Guzmán, and Hauge will serve as captains for the Mavericks this season.
Scouting the Ravens
Franklin Pierce is coming off a 3-2 loss at Southern New Hampshire in the NE10 Championship Semifinals on November 4th. The Ravens were picked third in the NE10 Preseason Poll after going 12-4-4 last season, winning the NE10 Championship, and advancing to the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament. Franklin Pierce is currently ranked No. 22 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Ravens are making their seventh straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Franklin Pierce has won three National Championships and most recently won back-to-back National Championships in 2022 & 2023. The Ravens are led by NE10 Player of the Year Guillermo Rios who has a team-high 17 goals and 34 points. Third Team All-NE10 selection Dani Almeida is second on the team with 18 points on eight goals and two assists and Adolfo Pino has a team-high nine assists. Toby Lewis is 8-5-3 in goal with 43 saves, a .632 save percentage and 1.49 goals-against average. James Mitchell and Joaco Lauria were named First Team All-NE10.
Scouting the Golden Eagles
Charleston defeated Davis & Elkins in penalty kicks on Sunday to secure the Mountain East Conference Championship. The Golden Eagles were picked first in the MEC South Division Preseason Poll after going 17-1-4 last season, winning the MEC Championship, and advancing to the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament. Charleston is ranked No. 2 nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Golden Eagles are making their 12th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Charleston has won two National Championships (2017 & 2019). The Golden Eagles are led by Martin Echarren who has a team-high 27 points on 12 goals and three assists. Caio Moraes and Tomas Petrungaro both have seven goals and six assists and Samuel Marquez has a team-high nine assists with one goal. Luka Felix is 14-2-1 in goal with 22 saves, a .667 save percentage and 0.64 goals-against average. Moraes, Jose Suarez Monaco, Jeremy Koppe, and McKenzie Mason were named First Team All-MEC and Echarren, Tomas Petrungaro, Pedro Abrizu, Marquez, and Mattia Marini were named Second Team All-MEC.
