FLORENCE, S.C. – On the opening day of the 2026 men's soccer season, the No. 15 Flagler men's soccer team (0-0-1) used a late equalizer to earn a 1-1 draw at Francis Marion (0-0-1). Senior
Finn Weigelt found the back of the net on a beautiful diving header in the 84
th minute.
SCORING SUMMARY
53' – Francis Marion – Victor Baron da Silva (Assist Volkan Celikkol, Filippo Noseda)
84' – Flagler –
Finn Weigelt (Assist
Henry Okenla)
TURNING POINT
Following a scoreless and physical first half, Francis Marion cashed in at the 53
rd minute off their ninth free kick opportunity. Just outside the right side of the box, the Patriots played it to the top of the box, finding Volkan Celikkol who chipped it into the box. The chip found the head of Victor Baron da Silva who sent it over the head of Flagler goalkeeper
Ryan Rivas into the top left corner of the goal.
The Saints wouldn't back down as a late second yellow card sent a Francis Marion defender off, which forced the Patriots to play with 10 players. Flagler didn't waste time capitalizing on that as a deep ball was sent to the right corner, finding
Henry Okenla in stride. The junior sent a cross into the box and found a diving
Finn Weigelt who put away the equalizer in the 84
th minute.
KEY STATS & NOTES
- Senior Finn Weigelt came off the bench and buried the equalizer for his 11th career goal, and first of the new season. The Berlin, Germany native finished with a game-high four shots and two shots on goal.
- Henry Okenla distributed his second career assist and added two shots across 75 minutes of action.
- Daniel Becerra, Tim Wahlborg, and Will Cain added a shot on the night, including shots on target from Becerra and Wahlborg.
- Defenders Daniel Becerra and Filip Hornburg turned in 90-minute performances in the season opener.
- Flagler goalkeeper Ryan Rivas picked up four saves as the Patriots ripped nine shots on the night.
- Both offenses finished the night with nine shots, including five on frame.
- The physical opener saw 40 fouls called and 10 yellow cards issued between both teams.
- With the draw, Flagler moved to 9-6-3 all-time against Francis Marion.
UP NEXT
Flagler will remain on the road as the Saints travel to No. 2 Rollins for a midweek battle on Tuesday, September 1
st. Kick off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. and the game will be streamed on Sunshine State Digital Network.
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