ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Rounding out a two game trip to Florida, Clayton State (0-4, 0-0 PBC) could not withstand a sustained offensive push from Eckerd (4-0, 0-0 SSC) as they fell 4-1 in an NCAA Division II men's soccer game on Sunday, September 11.
The Tritons got on the board first as Matheus Assumpcao took a pass from Jordan Lee and buried it into the back of the net for a 1-0 advantage just 1:24 into the game. Just under 18 minutes later they would add to that lead as it would be Assumpcao that assisted on a score by Robert Labus at 19:05.
Up 2-0, EC would tack on another score before the half as Westleigh Rush found the back of the net off of a pass from Juan David Tejada, burying it into the top left corner at the 30:24 mark.
Following the break, it would be Assumpcao again as he took it himself at 62:39 for a 4-0 lead. Senior forward
Bilal Nakhli (Paris, France) would break up the shutout for the Lakers, however, as he registered his first goal of the year in the 87
th minute. Picking up a ball that was cleared from the corner to beyond the 18-meter, Nakhli put the ball into the top right corner to reach the final margin of 4-1.
Assumpcao led the Tritons with a pair of goals and an assist while Rush and Labus each notched solo scores. Meanwhile, Lee and Tejada had an assist each. In net, Alex Gott played all 90 minutes, allowing just the one goal and making a pair of saves to move to 4-0.
Nakhli delivered the lone offense for the Lakers with his score, notching two of the team's five shots. Freshman midfielder
Will Summerfield (Bedford, England) also had two shots and graduate forward
Iain Smith (Suwanee, Ga.) had the other.
Senior goalkeeper
Oliver Pannell (Nottingham, England) played the first half, surrendering three goals while making five saves to fall to 0-4. Freshman goalkeeper
Leuri Fraire (Dalton, Ga.) saw his first action, playing the second half and making seven saves against one goal allowed.
The Lakers wrap up three straight games on the road with a non-region contest at Auburn-Montgomery on Wednesday, September 14. Game time is set for 7 p.m. in Montgomery, Alabama.
NOTES
Clayton State was outshot 30-5 on the day … the Lakers are now 1-2-1 in five all-time meetings with the Tritons dating back to the first meeting on September 4, 2005.
