NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The North Florida men's soccer team scored three second half goals en route to a 3-0 win over defending regular season champion, Lipscomb (3-6-1, 1-1 A-Sun). The Ospreys have now won back-to-back games, improving to 5-5 and 1-0 in Atlantic Sun Conference play.
 
Freshman Josh Castellanos scored for the second-straight game and broke a scoreless tie in the 61^st minute. The eventual game-winner was setup by senior Alex Morrell who gave the opportunity for Castellanos to fire a shot to the upper left corner of the goal.
 
"I couldn't be more proud of our effort, to get a conference win on the road is huge for us," said Head Coach Derek Marinatos. "After missing a few chances in the first half of play, we showed some patience in the first third of the second half, which led to Josh's (Castellanos) goal."
 
The North Florida defense was superb especially over the final 30 minutes of the game. After a passive approach in the first half, the Lipscomb offense kicked it into gear after falling behind. Goalkeeper Kyle Nasta was credited with his first shutout of the season and the seventh of his career. He made only two saves but punched out several crosses that made it deep into the Osprey zone.
 
The Ospreys took advantage of some chippy play in the final 10 minutes of the game and netted two more scores. Morrell was taken down in the box and despite the foul actually had his shot trickle in the net. The goal did not count and a subsequent red card was issued to Lipscomb's Cole Brown. Marinatos elected Helge Pietchmann to take the penalty kick and the senior converted the chance to give the Ospreys a 2-0 lead. Pietschmann is now 2-for-2 this season and 3-for-3 in his career on PK's.
 
Morrell orchestrated the Ospreys third goal on a slick, lead pass to a wide open Aidan D'Mello just 1:59 later in the 87th minute. The sophomore beat the Lipscomb goalkeeper to the left side of the net for his first collegiate goal. The two-assist game for Morrell was the second of his career as he moves into the team lead with seven points. Morrell elevated into ninth place all-time on the program's assist list with 15.
 
The victory for the Ospreys gives them a 6-5-1 advantage in the all-time series against Lipscomb since the first ever meeting in 2005. Outcomes in the Music City have been favorable for North Florida in the past as it improves to 4-2-1.
 
The conference-opening victory is the first since 2008 for the Ospreys. Only Florida Gulf Coast and North Florida remain unblemished after the first week of conference play. The battle of unbeaten will commence this Saturday at 7:00 at Hodges Stadium.