Men's Soccer Hosts UNF Thursday In NCAA Tournament First Round

Thursday, November 20

6 PM

North Carolina

North Florida

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Men's Soccer Hosts UNF Thursday In NCAA Tournament First Round

November 17, 2025 | Men's Soccer

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The University of North Carolina men's soccer team will take on North Florida in the first round of the NCAA Championship at Dorrance Field on Thursday at 6 p.m. This is the 32nd time Carolina will play in the championship tournament and the sixth consecutive season. It's also the 14th time in Carlos Somoano's 15 seasons as head coach that UNC has qualified for the NCAA event.

The Heels enter the NCAA Championship at 9-5-4 after bowing out of the ACC Tournament in the quarterfinals. Carolina went 2-2-4 in ACC play and defeated Notre Dame in the first round of the conference championship. It finished the year at No. 28 in the RPI. North Florida finished the year at 12-5-1 and won the ASUN Championship.

Tickets for Thursday's match are on sale at GoHeels.com/Tickets. Students will be able to attend the match for FREE!

Tar Heel Tidbits

Carolina is playing in the NCAA Championship for the 32nd time and has a record of 43-25-12 in tournament games. It is the 14th time in head coach Carlos Somoano's 15 years that the Heels have been selected for the tournament.
This will be the second all-time match-up between Carolina and North Florida. The Heels defeated the Ospreys 2-1 during the 2015 regular season.
Head Coach Carlos Somoano is in his 15th season at the helm of Carolina soccer (24th overall). He holds a career record of 185-68-53.
Carolina finished the season at No. 28 in the RPI. UNF comes in at No. 50.
GK Andrew Cordes has posted a 0.778 goals against average (28th NCAA/2nd ACC) and a .759 save percentage (3rd ACC) this season. He has eight clean sheets on the season (18th NCAA/3rd ACC) and 28 for his career.
Nacho Abeal currently leads the team in goals (6), assists (9) and points (21). He ranks 10th nationally and is tied for the ACC lead with his nine assists. Abeal was ranked No. 26 in TopDrawerSoccer's Midseason Top 100.
Gabriel Bracken Serra is tied for second on the team in goals (5) and ranks second in points (14). He also has four assists on the season.
Luca Nikolai was ranked No. 8 in TopDrawerSoccer's Midseason Top 100 He's tallied three goals, including a brace at Lipscomb, and six assists this season. His 12 points ranks third on the team.
Dan Klink has scored five goals in his first collegiate season, which is tied for second on the team. Each of his goals has been with his head.

2025 NCAA DI men's soccer tournament schedule

First Round: Thursday, Nov. 20
Second Round: Sunday, Nov. 23
Third Round: Saturday or Sunday, Nov. 29 or Nov. 30
Quarterfinals: Friday or Saturday, Dec. 5 or Dec. 6
Men's College Cup:
- Semifinals: Friday, Dec. 12
- Finals: Monday, Dec. 15