Men's Soccer Wins Fourth Straight, Defeats Elms Wednesday Night

WEST HARTFORD, Conn – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's soccer team continued its winning ways, securing victory in their fourth straight match after defeating Elms College (Elms), 3-1, during Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play Wednesday night at the USJ Soccer Field in West Hartford, Conn. With the result, the Blue Jays move to 4-3-1 on the year and 3-0-1 in GNAC play, while the Blazers move to 3-5-0 overall and 2-3-0 in the conference.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• The Blue Jays wasted little time opening up the scoring, as freshman midfielder Landon Coelho (Naugatuck, Conn) picked out a perfect cross off a free kick onto the head freshman forward Damir Cirikovic (Southington, Conn) who guided the ball into the net, establishing a 1-0 USJ lead at the 6:59 mark.
• Freshman midfielder Mario Milardo (Middletown, Conn) then granted USJ a perfect chance to extend the edge, driving along the endline before being taken down by an Elms defender inside the penalty area awarding the Blue Jays a penalty kick. Graduate student forward Henry McGarrah V (Hartford, Conn) stepped up to take the spot kick, firing a shot off the left post and into the net, increasing the lead to 2-0 with 21:25 on the clock.
• Elms cut the deficit to 2-1 with 35:25 on the clock, when senior forward Wai Kyaw (West Springfield, Mass.) saw his shot from the top of the box deflect off a USJ defender and go into the net. The score would hold for the remainder of the half, as the Blue Jays held the lead at the break.
• The Blazers tested the USJ backline early in the second half, but it would be the Blue Jays who generated the first clear cut opportunity, winning another penalty kick at the 59:17 mark. Milardo would take the spot kick, but his effort was saved by Elms senior keeper Aiden Berube (Chicopee, MA), preserving the 2-1 score.
• The Blue Jays continued to push for an assurance goal and were rewarded with five minutes remaining. Coelho whipped in a perfect cross to the far post during a corner kick, which Cirikovic headed across to Dane Stephens (Linstead, Jamaica) who tapped the ball into the net, increasing the gap to 3-1.
• USJ held off the Blazers for the remainder of the match, securing a 3-1 victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Coelho recorded his first career points after dishing out two assists.
• McGarrah V netted his fifth goal of the year, while Stephens scored his fourth and Cirikovic recorded his second.
• Cirikovic also tallied his first career assist.
• Freshman netminder Will Slayton (Manchester, Conn.) played all 90 minutes in goal for USJ, picking up the win (2-1-1) after recording two saves.
• The Blue Jays held a significant advantage in shots, outshooting the Blazers 21-6.
• USJ also had the edge in corner kicks, 8-3.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays head back on the road for a quick two-game road trip, starting with a stop at Regis College on Saturday, September 28. Opening kickoff against the Pride at Regis Stadium in Weston, Mass., is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.

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