MINNEAPOLIS — Scoring six goals in the second half, the Augsburg University men's soccer team scored a 7-0 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over Saint Mary's University on Tuesday at Edor Nelson Field. The seven goals were the most Augsburg has scored against an MIAC opponent since a 7-1 home win over Bethel on Sept. 18, 2018.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 7, Saint Mary's 0
LOCATION: Edor Nelson Field, Minneapolis
RECORDS: Augsburg 2-0-4 overall (1-0-1 MIAC), Saint Mary's 0-5-1 overall (0-2-0 MIAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Auggies finished with a 22-9 advantage in shots and a 12-2 edge in shots on goal. Augsburg more than doubled its goal total for the season with its seven-goal output. Augsburg has now outscored its opponents by a 12-4 margin this season.
Eric Riera put the Auggies in front in the 17th minute, finishing off an assist from
Jackson Nichols-Lindsey for a 1-0 lead. Earlier, the Auggies faced a Cardinals push that included two corner kicks and shots around the box, with
Finnur Mercier saving Caleb Gilbert's attempt in the 15th minute before the Auggies answered through Riera. Mercier added another save on Josh Pannkuk in the 21st minute, and the Auggies then pushed for a second goal with two
Liam Paradiso shots, a
Cole Pettit attempt after a corner kick, and a
Christopher Plaza Alvarado shot in the 37th minute. The half also included a physical stretch with several fouls from both teams, but the Auggies kept Saint Mary's off the board and went into halftime ahead 1-0.
The Auggies broke open a 1-0 match in the second half, scoring six times and finishing the game with a 7-0 win. The Auggies pressed immediately after halftime, getting saves forced by
Asher Johnson and
Eric Riera around a pair of early corner kicks before Nichols-Lindsey scored from Johnson's assist at 50:45 to make it 2-0. Paradiso added goals in the 56th and 64th minutes, first from
Caleb Ibarra and Plaza Alvarado and then from Riera, while the Auggies also generated additional looks from Ibarra and Riera during that stretch. After a more physical run of play, the Auggies added three goals in less than four minutes, with Pettit scoring from
Gideon Lubin at 75:43, Johnson finishing from
Dailan Bangu at 77:01 and Bangu scoring from
Asher Christus at 79:28. Saint Mary's recorded three second-half shots and one corner kick, but the Auggies kept the Cardinals off the scoreboard through the final whistle.
Paradiso scored twice for his first collegiate multi-goal game, and led the Auggies with four points while taking four shots.
Eric Riera recorded a goal and an assist.
Asher Johnson added a goal and an assist and put both of his shots on goal. Nichols-Lindsey finished with a goal and an assist on his only shot.
QUOTES FROM AUGSBURG COACH GREG HOLKER
"Any time you get three points in the MIAC it's a good night. When you finally break the dam and unleash seven goals, it's a really good night."
"In the first 25 minutes, we did what we hoped to do in the game, but for some reason went away from it and the game leveled out. The good news is that we were able to reflect at halftime and get back on track with what was successful to start the second half. Then we finally scored a set piece. From then on, we were able to play every eligible player and get goal contributions from a variety of players. I love that
Asher Christus grabbed an assist one minute into his stint -- what a finish from Dailan.
"There are still a few things to iron out this week before we head down to face the No. 1 team in the nation in St. Olaf. We've had some exciting games with the Oles these last few years, and I hope Saturday is another iteration of that. They are an outstanding team, one I've enjoyed watching the past few years. As much as we respect what they've done and what they do, we believe we have something in our squad as well and look forward to testing ourselves against them this weekend."
UP NEXT
The Auggies travel to Northfield, Minn., to face St. Olaf College, the No. 1-ranked team nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Division III poll, on Saturday, Sept. 26, at 3:30 p.m.
