Owls Roll Past Mercer in Season Opener

Thursday, August 20

Macon, Ga.

7 p.m.

Florida Atlantic

1-0-0, 0-0-0

Mercer

0-1-0, 0-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Fla. Atlantic	2	1	3
Mercer	0	0	0

8/20/2026 10:06:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

MACON, Ga. – Florida Atlantic men's soccer opened its 2026 account on Thursday night with a 3-0 road victory over Mercer. The Owls have not lost a season opener since 2018.

It took just 10 minutes for Michel Tentchou to register the season's first goal. On a give-and-go with DJ Koulai, Tentchou slotted home from just outside the six-yard box. 10 minutes later, Xavi Csato doubled the lead. The Stuart, Florida native fired off a long-range right-footed strike that tucked into the top corner for his first goal as an Owl.

Mercer had nine shot attempts in the first half, but none troubled goalkeeper Alfred Mikkelsen. The Owls went into halftime in control, up 2-0.

The defense continued to dig in in the second half, stifling Mercer's attack. The Owls would hit on the counter in the 73rd minute to seal the victory. Koulai took on a defender 1v1 and sent a pass into the six-yard box. Francesco Aiello redirected it into the path of David Jesus, who converted the finish for his first career goal and a 3-0 FAU lead.

Mikkelsen finished with three saves for his seventh career clean sheet. Both teams recorded 13 shot attempts, but the Owls had the edge in shots on target, 6-4.

Jesus and Koulai each finished with multi-point games. In addition to his first goal, Jesus assisted on Csato's first-half strike. Koulai logged a pair of assists.

Up next, the Owls (1-0) return to Paradise for a matchup with UCF (1-0) on Sunday night. Kickoff at the FAU Soccer Stadium is set for 6:05 p.m. on ESPN+.