GLASSBORO, N.J. - The TCNJ men's soccer team saw its cinderella run come to a close in the NJAC Championship Saturday night, falling 1-0 to host and third-seeded Rowan.
 
Both sides created chances in the opening 20 minutes of Saturday's final, with Matias Hornos and Matt Will registering a pair of shots on goal while Sean Najdzinowicz was forced to make a save of his own before the Profs (15-3-4) took control. The Lions (11-5-5) handled the pressure well initially, but it was Rowan scoring on their fourth corner in the span of six minutes to take the 1-0 lead at the 31:10 mark.
 
Manny Thacher nearly had a response four minutes later, but saw his effort headed off the goal line by a Profs defender to keep TCNJ off the board. On the other end it was Najdzinowicz coming up massively against NJAC Player of the Year Johnny Troiano, making a kicksave in a one-on-one in the waning seconds of the half to keep the damage to one at the break.
 
After an even opening 20 minutes of the second half, it was TCNJ's turn to up the pressure in search of an equalizer. Unfortunately for the Lions, none of their nine shots in the ensuing 25 minutes found their way past the Profs' Travis Holiday. A pair of curling shots from Massimo Rodio and Hornos in particular seemed poised for the corner, but in the end it was Rowan's lone goal serving as the difference in a tightly-contested, 1-0 loss for TCNJ.
 
The Lions' historic 2025 campaign comes to a close with a record of 11-5-5 – TCNJ's most wins in a season since 2013 – and the program's first trip to the NJAC Championship since 2010.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Lions were narrowly outshot 22-20 in shots and 7-5 in shots on goal.
• The Profs took 11 corners to TCNJ's four.
• Hornos led the Lions in both shots (5) and shots on goal (2).
• Najdzinowicz made six saves in the loss, pushing his season total to 62.

NOTES

• Rodio enjoyed a breakout year in his final season in Ewing, scoring four goals and tacking on two assists for a career-best 10 points.
• J.J. Zaun caps off his career with 74 appearances, including 59 starts at defensive mid.
• Najdzinowicz finishes his freshman season with a goals against average of .80, the eighth-best mark in a single season in program history.
• Meder's 2025 campaign was one of the best in program history, with the junior ranking tied for 10th for goals (13) and tied for fourth in assists (11) in a single season. He is the first player to have at least 10 goals and 10 assists in the same season since 1997.