Hall of Fame
Florida Tech's 1988 Men's Soccer Team was inducted into the Florida Tech Sports Hall of Fame in the Class of 2008. Under Coach Rick Stottler's leadership, this team made history as the program's first NCAA Division II National Champions, finishing the season with an impressive record of 15-6-0.
After Coach Stottler's two seasons, in which he recorded 11 wins each and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in his second year, he set his sights on leading the team all the way. The Panthers earned the right to host the quarterfinals against Gannon for another first for the program. Florida Tech handled the Golden Knights in a 1-0 victory.
In the semifinals, the Panthers again won 1-0 against Southern Connecticut State in Northridge, California, setting the stage for the National Championship game.
Florida Tech faced Cal State Northridge and needed plenty of offense against an offense that scored eight goals in the previous three NCAA Tournament games. The Panthers found the back of the net first as Fitzgerald Haig took a rebound from five yards out to give Florida Tech the early 1-0 lead. CSUN tied it up with a goal by Scott Piri at 17:39, but Robin Chan was able to take back the lead five minutes later with a goal from 25 yards out. Northridge once again tied it up, this time off a penalty kick with less than a minute remaining in the first half. The winning goal came at 47:11, two minutes into the second half, when Edward Grosso scored off a corner kick from the right side by Steve Freeman. Grosso found himself alone in front of the goal and headed the ball into the left side of the net.
Roster: Andy Smith, Ian McNally, Alex Skodnick, William Twaite, Gary Eyles, William Hill, Robin Chan, Chris Payne, Fitzgerald "Fidgi" Haig, Steve Freeman, Bino Campanini, Chris Smilas, Kip Ortiz, David Jackson, Todd Hubmer, Baldur Bragason, Martin Gordon.
Head Coach: Rick Stottler
