Freshman
JJ Grimaldo scored a pair of goals to lift the No. 5-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College men's soccer team to a 5-1 victory against the University of Northwestern Ohio in the Dalton Classic on Thursday evening in Dalton, Georgia.
GGC (2-0-0) got three goals from reserve players across the final 20 minutes of the first half.
Grimaldo found the back of the net in the 29th and 40th minutes to break open a 1-1 contest. He entered the match during the 25th minute and immediately made an impact by capitalizing on his first scoring chance, drilling a shot from the top of the 18-yard box into the lower left corner of the goal. Junior
Djordje Djurasinovic delivered a pass from the right edge of the box to create the match-deciding goal.
A few minutes later, Grimaldo converted again from inside the same box in front of the opposing goal to beat the Northwestern Ohio (0-3-0) goalkeeper after a crossing pass from the left side of the pitch by junior
Dylan Cedeno.
GGC tallied another goal in the later stages of the first half as sophomore
Jean Malilo curved a shot from 12 yards away inside the right goal post for his first career tally. Cedeno once again contributed to the goal.
The team jumped out to a quick 1-0 advantage in the fourth minute when sophomore
Ousmane Fall scored his team-leading fourth goal of the season. Senior goalkeeper
Dagoberto Romero passed the ball past midfield on a quick transition to a hustling Fall behind the Racers' defensive backline for a one-on-one scoring opportunity.
In the second half, senior
Francisco Osorio successfully converted a penalty kick in the 60th minute to stretch the lead to 5-1.
The Grizzlies placed 11 of their 20 shots on goal in Thursday's triumph, with Fall having a team-high four attempts. Cedeno, Grimaldo and Malilo each recorded three shots off the bench. GGC outshot Northwestern Ohio by a 20-7 margin.
Romero made two saves and recorded an assist from the goalkeeper position. He picked up his first victory since the 2024 season.
Coach's Corner
"That's the type of response you have to have (after allowing the match-tying goal, at 1-1). However, we need to fix why we keep putting ourselves in those situations. As a coach you always focus on areas needing improvement, but our offensive attacking prowess is something to be proud of right now. Reserves JJ (Grimaldo), Jean (Malilo) and Dylan (Cedeno) brought a different energy to our play," said Head Coach
Steve DeCou.
Turning Point
The Grizzlies' reserve players stepped up in a big way across the final 20 minutes of the first half, scoring three goals and building a 4-1 advantage in the match. Freshman
JJ Grimaldo found the back of the net in the 29th and 40th minutes. Sophomore
Jean Malilo buried a shot into the net from the middle of the 18-yard box during the 41st minute. Junior
Dylan Cedeno contributed two assists.
Goals
4' –
Ousmane Fall, GGC (
Dagoberto Romero)
25' – Raul Oliu, UNOH (Sunao Midorikawa)
29' –
JJ Grimaldo, GGC (
Djordje Djurasinovic)
40' –
JJ Grimaldo, GGC (
Dylan Cedeno)
41' –
Jean Malilo, GGC (Dyan Cedeno)
Inside The Numbers
- The Grizzlies outshot Northwestern Ohio by a 20-7 margin
- Freshman JJ Grimaldo scored the first two goals of his collegiate career on Thursday
- Sophomore Ousmane Fall tallied his fourth goal through the first two matches of the season
- GGC attempted six corner kicks across the 90 minutes of action
News & Notes
- GGC improves to 2-0-0 on the season; Northwestern Ohio drops to 0-3-0 this fall
- The Grizzlies were ranked No. 5 in the NAIA Preseason Top 25 poll
- Thursday's victory evens the all-time series with Northwestern Ohio at 1-1-2
- The team is 22-7-2 all-time in neutral-site matches, including a 6-0-1 mark at the Dalton Classic over the last four seasons
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to play its home opener on Monday, August 31, against Southeastern University (Florida) in the Green Out Game at the Grizzly Soccer Complex, starting at 1 p.m.
