JACKSON, Miss. – The Millsaps College men's soccer team secured its sixth shutout of the season after downing Tougaloo College, 7-0 on Tuesday night at Harper Davis Field.
The Majors entered Tuesday night's contest full of confidence, with juniors
Alden Romano and
Ellis Dykes (two assists), sophomore
Raul Blandon, and freshmen
Valentin Avila (two assists),
Zachary Diamond (assist) and
Giovanni Russo all helping the Majors cage the Bulldogs with goals.
Senior goalkeeper
Gavin Pocasangre made his first collegiate start, totaling three saves for his first shutout. He becomes the third Major keeper to record a clean sheet this season.
The Millsaps men's soccer team came out firing in the first half, putting pressure on the Bulldogs early.
Romano opened the scoring for the Majors in the eighth minute, with Freshman
Dakota Vann working his way down the field to create an opportunity that gave Millsaps room to find the back of the net.
The Majors continued to scare off their cross-town opponents, forcing the Bulldogs into an own goal to extend Millsaps' lead to 2-0 within 25:51on the scoreboard.
Moments later the Bulldogs goalkeeper would collect a crucial save as Valentin seen a wide opportunity to disrupt Tougaloo.
Millsaps continued to find all the right spots on the field as Blandon found the back of the net in the 33rd minute, keeping the fire going for the Majors and extending their advantage to 3-0. Dykes played fearlessly on the attack, providing the assist on the goal.
The Majors continued to grow stronger on the field as Dykes responded with a goal of his own off an assist from Valentin in the 41st minute, extending Millsaps' commanding lead over the Bulldogs to 4-0.
Millsaps delivered the final punch to close out the first half as Diamond found the back of the net, with Dykes and Valentin combining the assist to give the Majors a commanding advantage heading into halftime with a 5-0 surge over the Bulldogs.
After being a key contributor with his assists in the first half, Valentin continued to make an impact in the second half, finding the back of the net in the 51st minute to give the Majors their sixth goal of the contest.
In the 83rd minute, Russo stepped onto the field and wasted little time making an impact, scoring his first collegiate goal to put the finishing touches on the contest as the Majors rolled past the Bulldogs, 7-0, on Tuesday.
Millsaps resumes its homestand by hosting Centenary College on Friday, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Live video will be available at FloCollege.com, and live stats will be provided at gomajors.com.
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Founded in Jackson, Mississippi in 1890, Millsaps College is a national liberal arts college dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry and free expression, the exploration of faith to inform vocation and the innovative shaping of the social, economic and cultural progress of our region. Consistently ranked as one of the best values in higher education, Millsaps has been praised by Colleges That Change Lives, The Princeton Review, Forbes Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The John Templeton Foundation, and The Fiske Guide to Colleges.
