LAKELAND, Fla. – Southeastern men's soccer extended their win streak to six last week with a pair of conference shutouts. On Wednesday evening, they torched Warner 6-0 then slid by Webber 1-0 on Saturday.
It was a true team effort against the Royals of Warner as six different players were responsible for each of six goals. Junior defender
Kendall Crouse kicked things off, netting his first of the season for the game winner in the 24
th minute with an assist from
Luke Marchesani.
The score remained 1-0 through halftime until Marchesani, a freshman from Colorado Springs, secured the two point buffer with his first goal of the season in the 59
th minute. This time, the service was from
Camilo Mejia.
Goals three through six were scored within a 10 minute time frame.
Nick Wilson (73'),
Corey Mills (74'),
Gerritson Craane (78') and
Ikenna Abika (83') were the culprits.
"Going into the game I knew it would be very tough," said Coach
Clay Roberts. "I'm proud of our team in the way that we controlled the tempo of the game. When we can dictate the flow of the game we will find ourselves in good goal scoring positions because of our movements."
The scene in Babson Park on Saturday was much different as the Fire scored just one goal on the Webber Warriors. Senior
Ashton Hicks netted the lone goal of the match in the 16
th minute assisted by
Jonathan Jimenez.
"We knew that Webber had so much talent and we were going to have to be very urgent offensively to produce an early goal," said Roberts. "Ashton scored a phenomenal goal and sometimes one is enough. The team was very organized and disciplined throughout the second half to maintain yet another shutout."
Combined, the Fire outshot last week's Sun Conference opponents 37-15 and freshman keeper
Jorge Navarrete, the reigning NAIA defenseman of the week, recorded a total of seven saves for his fifth and sixth shutouts of the season.
UP NEXT:Home vs. Ave Maria University (TSC) on Wednesday at 7 p.m.Last Year: 1-14, 0-10 TSC
This Year: 1-13, 0-8 TSC…Most recently fell to Warner 2-1…Freshman forward Fabrizio Bucco leads the team with nine goals and 19 points
Previous Meeting: Lost to SEU 2-0 on October 29, 2014
Quoted: "We will be playing for the opportunity to finish 8-1 in the conference, receive the #1 seed in the conference tournament, host the conference tournament, and be crowned regular season champs. This is the biggest game of the year in regard to reaching the goals that we set forth at the beginning of the season. Ave Maria is a very talented team and we're going to have to bring our best effort. If we can continue our defensive effort and keep them off the scoreboard, I believe that the team will transition well and create goal scoring opportunities." – Coach
Clay Roberts Home vs. Florida College (Senior Day) on Friday at 7 p.m.This Year: 12-4…Most recently lost to Webber 3-2 in OT…Currently ranked fifth in the USCAA standings…Average 4.6 goals per game…Senior forward Tanner Richardson leads the team with 16 goals.
Previous Meeting: Lost to SEU 6-0 on August 30, 2014
Quoted: "We will be celebrating our seniors on Friday that have been instrumental in the development of our culture and success here at SEU. Florida College is a talented team that plays a great brand of soccer. We'll need to limit the mistakes in the midfield and keep the game tempo high. If we can do that, I believe we are going to be in a good position to finish off the regular season." – Coach
Clay Roberts For all things Fire men's soccer, including updates throughout the week, be sure to follow @SEUFireMSoccer on Twitter.
