Box Score ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - For the most part this season, the Eckerd College men's soccer team has made it a habit of controlling the possession of games.
What may have gone a bit unheralded, though, is the Triton defense. After tonight's performance, there should be no question as to how effective the back line is.
Eckerd (4-0-1, 1-0-1) got another brilliant performance from sophomore keeper
Alex Gott and a key defensive play from
Antonio Alvarez on its way to a 2-0 win over visiting Florida Southern on Wednesday night at the Turley Athletic Complex.
The Tritons entered the night ranking 10th in NCAA Division II in goals allowed average, and the defense showed why it is such a difficult unit on which to score.
"I'm very happy with our performance defensively," said Eckerd head coach
Cristian Neagu. "We had another great performance from
Alex Gott in goal."
A great performance indeed. Gott stopped six shots in all - two from near point-blank range - as Eckerd pitched its third shutout in five matches this season.
Another big play came from Alvarez in the 75th minute when Alexi Cortez got behind the defense on the right side and fired a shot to the far post that was outside the reach of Gott. Alvarez, though, had already placed himself in perfect position on the line and was able to clear the ball away to keep the clean sheet in tact.
It was defensive plays like those that helped Eckerd extend its unbeaten streak to five games despite being outshot, 16-6. But the most important thing is turning shots into goals, and once again, the Tritons did it with efficiency.
EC got on the board in the 23rd minute on only its second shot of the match.
Jordan Lee played the ball low on a corner kick to the top of the box to find
Westleigh Rush alone. Rush ripped a shot that deflected off a defender and into the upper right corner for his team-leading fourth goal of the year.
The Tritons scored again in the 65th minute when
Matheus Assumpcao kept pace with Rush for the team lead in goals and caught FSC keeper Cole Clingerman off his line with a well-placed strike from distance that slipped in just underneath the crossbar. The play happened with such speed that Clingerman was unable to react before the ball was in the net.
From there, the defense did its job as the Tritons have gotten off to the best start in program history since 2007 when the team opened the year 5-0.
"The game on Saturday [against Florida Tech] took a lot of our energy level," Neagu said. "Tonight was a great win against a very good team. It wasn't the prettiest one, but I am pleased with the effort."
The Tritons are back on the road on Saturday as they travel to provisional SSC member Embry-Riddle (Fla.) for a 7:00 PM contest.
