Box Score LAWRENCEVILLE – Jon Conner enjoyed yet another strong day for the Georgia Gwinnett men's soccer team on Saturday as the Grizzlies dispatched visiting Florida National in 3-1 fashion at Grizzly Soccer Complex.
Conner, a sophomore out of nearby Loganville, picked up a goal and an assist in the contest, and he's now logged at least one goal or assist in six consecutive matches. Saturday's match marked the third consecutive that he's found the back of the net, and he is now tied for the team lead in goals with five on the season.
"Jon's in good form right now, and that's exactly what we need from our strikers," GGC head coach Steve DeCou said. "He's very athletic and that can give a lot of teams problems when we play them. He gave us everything that we asked for today."
While Florida National appeared to get the better of the possession for chunks of the opening stanza, the visitors from Hialeah weren't able to put together many real scoring chances, and they paid the cost for it in the 27th minute as Conner picked out Martin Lugo on a breakaway for the day's first goal.
Lugo, who ranks second on the team with four goals on the year, now stands just two shy of tying former Grizzly Tom Butler's school record total of 28.
The game would go to the half with the Grizzlies up 1-0, but it wouldn't take long after the break for the Green and Gray to double the advantage as Matti Puranen got on the end of a Jack Gurr corner in the 50th minute.
Gabriel Miranda cut the lead in half just eight minutes later with a well-taken strike from the edge of the box, but it would be Conner who sealed the victory in the 68th to make it 3-1.
On the day, GGC outshot the Conquistadors 13-8, and Grizzly goalkeeper Lewis Sharpe proved up to the task more often than not, finishing the day with three saves.
NOTES: GGC is 3-2 all-time vs. schools from the state of Florida … Saturday was the first-ever meeting between the Grizzlies and Conquistadors … The win ended a three-match home winless streak for GGC, which was the longest in school history … The Grizzlies are 16-2-1 all-time in the month of October.
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