The first two games of the PBC men's soccer tournament were completed on Monday with North Georgia and Flagler claiming wins. The two will meet Clayton State and Lander starting this Friday in Morrow, Ga.
Walsh's Overtime Winner Sends Nighthawks to PBC Semifinals
DAHLONEGA — An overtime battle ended with the University of North Georgia men's soccer team as victors, picking up a 2-1 win after 110 minutes of action. It was a physical game throughout as the Nighthawks fought through tired legs, using just two subs in the game and overcoming an early 1-0 deficit.
Aram Lara was a significant contributor to the UNG attack, logging four shots, three on goal, answering a 15th-minute goal by Jack Malleret (GSW) in the 36th minute, and finding the equalizer to tie the game at 1-1. North Georgia controlled much of the game, but a relentless Hurricane backline held firm for the remainder of the game as the Nighthawks logged 22 shots in regulation in contrast to seven by GSW.
After many close calls at the end of the second half, North Georgia found the game-winning goal in the 95th minute as Michael Walsh gave the crowd a burst of energy, scoring his sixth goal of the season off an assist from Max Garnett.
After the first ten-minute overtime period, UNG held a 2-1 lead, needing to hold on for ten more minutes to move onto the PBC Semifinals. The back line for North Georgia was determined, holding Georgia Southwestern to just two shots after the Hurricanes began to push for the equalizer in hopes of sending the game to penalty kicks. Nothing would come for the final push for GSW as the Nighthawks picked up the ninth win of the season, making their first appearance in the PBC semifinals since 2017.
Next on the schedule is second-seeded Lander, as the Bearcats will host North Georgia on Friday (Nov. 10), with times for that matchup to be announced. The Bearcats hold an 8-4-4 record, tying against UNG in the first matchup before taking a 3-1 win at home in the regular season finale.
Five Different Saints Score in a first round win over the Pacers
ST. AUGUSTINE – Five different Flagler College players scored a goal in a 5-0 romp over USC Aiken in a Peach Belt Conference Men's Soccer Tournament first round match Monday night at Saints Field.
Flagler, the No. 4 seed, improved to 6-7-4 overall. USC Aiken, the No. 5 seed, had its season end with a 2-10-1 record. Flagler will now take on the No. 1 seed Clayton State University on Friday at 5 p.m. in a semifinal match at Morrow, Georgia.
"Of course I am very happy with the win and the performance tonight," said head coach Thomas Coombes, "but what made me proud was the attitude of the players. It is difficult to play the same team back-to-back, so to come out with a 5-0 win at this stage in the season gives us a lot of confidence going into a tough match at Clayton State on Friday."
Max Gottwald scored the first goal of the match when he headed in Toby McCallum's free kick in the seventh minute.
Jackson Kirila headed in a corner kick in the 36th minute to stake the Saints to a 2-0 lead.
Filip Sparavec (50'), Kohta Uchida (74'), and Luke Williams (89') scored second half goals.
Ryan Rivas recorded three saves and turned in his second clean sheet for the Saints. Cason Donahue finished with six saves for the Pacers.
Flagler out-shot USC Aiken 20-7 and held a 7-3 advantage in corner kicks