MORROW, Ga. – In their final non-conference action Clayton State (6-2-1, 2-1-0 PBC) erupted for four second half goals and took down Emmanuel (3-3-2, 2-2-2 CC) 4-1 in an NCAA Division II men's soccer game on Monday, October 5.
 
Both teams would have their opportunities over the first 39 minutes as the Lakers fired off 10 shots while EC notched six. It would be the Lions seventh shot, however, that would find the back of the net as Mark Shrosbree converted a header at the 39:44 mark. Clayton State would manage three shots over the final 2:12 but that one goal margin would hold up through halftime.
 
After 13 shots in the first half with no conversions, the Lakers would break through in the same way they won their last time out – with a penalty kick by senior midfielder Avery Shepard (Kennesaw, Ga.). EC committed a foul in the box at the 55:41 mark and Shepard would bury the free attempt into the back right corner of the goal for the equalizer.
 
It would not remain 1-1 for that long as Clayton State struck again in the 70^th minute. On an offensive push, senior midfielder Jonny Evans (Seaham, England) chased down a ball in the far right corner, just keeping it in. He would find junior forward Bilal Nakhli (Paris, France) charging in and put the ball right at his feet. From there, Nakhli drilled a hard line drive into the back and upper right portion of the goal for a 2-1 advantage at 69:23.
 
Just over six minutes later, graduate forward Iain Smith (Suwanee, Ga.) would serve a ball near the endline on the right side of the goal. On the receiving end of that pass, directly in front of the net, was Shepard, who wasted no time in putting into the back left corner to stretch the lead to 3-1 at 75:28.
 
With one assist already, Smith would deliver as impressive a pass as it was a goal for sophomore defender Aleksi Tuominen (Helsinki, Finland). From 35 yards out on the right side, Smith lofted a pass to the deep left corner, finding Tuominen on the fly, who jumped and kicked the ball out of the air and into the back right corner of the goal to reach the final margin of 4-1.
 
Shrosbree would notch the only offense for the Lions with his first half goal while Deibyd Contreras and Blair Springhall each notched a pair of shots. In net, Ryan Brose made eight saves and allowed all four goals to suffer the loss and fall to 1-3 on the year.
 
Leading the offensive charge for the Lakers was Shepard with a pair of scores to bring his season total to a league-leading eight goals and 17 points. He was joined by Iain Smith with two assists and solo goals from Tuominen and Nakhli. Evans would add the only other offense with his assist on the go-ahead goal.
 
Defensively, senior goalkeeper Viltsu Tuumi (Pori, Finland) was on point, making seven saves for the fifth time in six games this season. He allowed just the one goal in 90 minutes of action to collect the win and move to 4-1.
 
The Lakers are back in action on Saturday, October 10 when they head to Greenwood, S.C. to take on undefeated Lander (7-0, 2-0 PBC). Game time is set for 3:30 p.m.