MINNEAPOLIS -- Scoring its most goals in a game since the 2011 season, the Augsburg University men's soccer team opened the home portion of its 2018 schedule with a 7-0 win over Crown College in nonconference action on Thursday evening.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 7, Crown 0
LOCATION: Edor Nelson Field, Minneapolis
RECORDS: Augsburg 2-0-0 overall, Crown 0-3-0 overall

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Augsburg led for all but the opening 130 seconds of the game, scoring five goals in the first half. Augsburg outshot Crown by a 19-6 margin and scored on seven of its 10 shots on-goal in the game.
• Nick Zuchowski (FY, Wales, Wis./Kettle Moraine HS) scored two goals in the first half and added an assist to lead the Auggies. Eduardo Gomez (SO, Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy HS) claimed a goal with two assists, and Emmanuel Egbujor (SR, Brooklyn Park, Minn./Champlin Park HS) had a goal and an assist.
• Kouseng Yang (SR, Hugo, Minn./White Bear Lake HS) opened the scoring for the Auggies just 2:10 into play, scoring his first collegiate goal on a blast from distance following a punch-out on a corner kick. Zuchowski scored his first goal in the 17th minute, taking a feed from Egbujor, eluding a defender and depositing the ball in the net.
• Daniel Hedstrom (JR, Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS) scored his second goal in as many games in the 32nd minute, scoring off a Zuchowski free kick. Zuchowski claimed his second goal seven minutes later, scoring off a deft touch in front from a cross from Gomez and a pass in the six-yard box by Christian Metzger (SR, Savage, Minn./Prior Lake HS). Gomez also assisted on the last goal of the first half, as Tyler Johnson (FY, Maplewood, Minn./Como Park HS) scored on a header off a Gomez corner kick.
• Egbujor and Nick Vergara (JR, Aurora, Colo./Eaglecrest HS) combined for a goal in the 51st minute, and Gomez scored off a long feed from Metzger in the 67th minute to cap the scoring.
• Zachary Berg (FY, Lakeville, Minn./Farmington HS) and Ethan Derks (FY, Savage, Minn./Prior Lake HS) combined for the shutout win in goal, with each goalkeeper claiming one save in 45 minutes of play.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
• Augsburg's seven goals were its most scored in a game since a 7-1 win over Bethel on Sept. 14, 2011.
• Augsburg's five goals scored in the first half were also its most in an opening stanza since the 2011 Bethel contest.

FOR THE FOES
• Eli Etzel had two saves in 38 minutes in goal, with Foster Browning recording one save in 52 minutes of relief.
• Deven Cairns and Josh Samsa had shots on-goal for the Storm in the game.

QUOTES FROM AUGSBURG HEAD COACH GREG HOLKER
• "It always feels good to find the back of the net seven times, and to be as efficient as we were when we went forward. We scored three from eight real set-piece chances, bringing our tally to five set-piece goals in two games -- one short of our 2017 total. That's a positive as we move forward, for sure."
• "Koo's goal to start us off was exactly what we were looking for. He hit that from 25 yards out and just slammed it, bar down. He's been one of our steadiest players this year and his leadership is priceless out there. Even more exciting is that he is still learning and growing each day -- I really enjoy watching him play."
• " Zuchowski has been everything we imaged he would be, as he hit for a brace in his home debut. His holdup play is unpredictable for opponents and really important to the way we play."
• "I thought Manni was energizing tonight. His assist to Zuchowski came from persistence over 60 yards and his goal was stunning as he megged the defender while spinning off an entry ball before toe poking it into the far corner. Pure class."
• "Now it's about getting better at recovering and getting rest with a game tomorrow night vs. UM-Morris. We did not recover well last weekend and got lucky on Sunday --hopefully we learned a lesson without suffering a real consequence."

UP NEXT
• Augsburg has a short rest before another nonconference game, hosting Minnesota Morris on Friday (9/7) at 7:30 p.m. at Edor Nelson Field.