The Georgia Gwinnett College men's soccer team scored six goals in a victory for the second straight match. This time the No. 16-ranked Grizzlies closed out the regular season with a 6-3 Senior Day win against Florida College on Saturday at the Grizzly Soccer Complex.
The Grizzlies enter postseason play with a 9-4-1 record.
Seniors rose to the occasion to account for half of the team's goal.
Krishna Clarke led the effort with two goals, while classmate
Alex Rivera scored his first collegiate goal in the home match.
Rivera got GGC on the scoreboard in the 29th minute by drilling a ball into the back of the net from 25 yards away from the opposing goal.
Florida College (4-9-1) would square the match in the 42nd minute on a goal from Romario Woolley.
However, 50 seconds later Clarke headed in a goal to once again to give the Grizzlies the lead, 2-1. The goal was set up by junior
Juan Cruz Parisi Sitjar delivering a crossing pass from the right side of the pitch.
Two minutes later, sophomore
Mawia Haroun scored his second goal of the season to give the hosts a 3-1 halftime advantage.
Freshman
Jack Brown extended GGC's lead to 4-1 in the 55th minute with his fourth goal of the season.
The match ended with a flurry of activity resulting in four goals being scored over the final 10 minutes. Florida College's Krist Berisha buried a penalty kick in the 81st minute to trim the deficit to 4-2. But the Grizzlies responded with sophomore
Milton Alfaro scoring 22 seconds later for GGC's fifth goal of the match.
Berisha would successfully convert another penalty kick in the 83rd minute before Clarke scored his second goal of the match.
The Grizzlies outshot Florida College by a 18-7 margin, including a 12-4 edge in shots on goal.
The program's fifth-year seniors Clarke and Rivera were honored in a pregame ceremony.
"It was a great day for our seniors. This is a day where you want to send them out with a victory. We played today not only for ourselves, but also for those two who have contributed so much to our program. We wanted to win for them," said Head Coach
Steve DeCou.
Coach's Corner
"Our offense is clicking right now (six goals in consecutive matches to end regular season). We are scoring goals and creating chances. Credit to Florida College for never stopping and converting two penalty kicks. That's something that can be corrected on our end. I'm very pleased with how we responded to adversity today by scoring quickly whenever they (Florida College) did," said Head Coach
Steve DeCou.
Turning Point
Senior
Krishna Clarke helped the Grizzlies provide an answer after Florida College scored in the 42nd minute to tie the match at 1-1. Fifty second later Clarke found the back of the net to put the hosts back on top 2-1. Then sophomore
Mawia Haroun scored in the 44th minute to give the team a 3-1 halftime advantage.
Goals
29' –
Alex Rivera, GGC (unassisted)
42' – Romario Woolley, FC (Rafael Magacho)
42' –
Krishna Clarke, GGC (
Juan Cruz Parisi Sitjar)
44' –
Mawia Haroun, GGC (
Diego Milessi)
55' –
Jack Brown, GGC (
Marco Panaccione,
Ivano Carrieri)
81' – Krist Berisha, FC (Penalty kick)
82' –
Milton Alfaro, GGC (unassisted)
83' – Kris Berisha, FC (Penalty kick)
90' –
Krishna Clarke, GGC (unassisted)
Inside The Numbers
- GGC outshot the Falcons by an 18-7 margin, including a 12-4 edge in shots on goal
- The Grizzlies attempted five corner kicks on Saturday
- Freshman Jack Brown tied for match-high honors with three shots
- Senior Krishna Clarke scored his 23rd and 24th career goals
News & Notes
- GGC improves to 9-4-1 on the season, while Florida College drops to 5-9-1 this fall
- Georgia Gwinnett College was ranked No. 16 in the latest NAIA Top 25 poll
- The Grizzlies have won all four matches in the series with Florida College
- The men's soccer program honored seniors Krishna Clarke and Alex Rivera during Senior Day pregame festivities
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to host the Continental Athletic Conference soccer championship tournament November 12-13 at the Grizzly Soccer Complex.
