Yellowjackets 4, Crown 0
SUPERIOR, Wis.: Don't look now, but the Yellowjacket men's soccer team is in the midst of a special season. Heading into Saturday's home match with Crown College, the Yellowjackets had won five straight and were unbeaten in their last ten (9-0-1) and were looking to keep both streaks going.
Mission accomplished.
The Yellowjackets thoroughly dominated Crown Saturday, outshooting the Storm 49-1 and scoring twice in each half on the way to a 4-0 shutout. The win, coupled with a St. Scholastica loss to Martin Luther gives the Yellowjackets sole possession of first place in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference with a match between the circuit's top two teams on tap next week.
A trio of Blakes got things going for the Yellowjackets in the first half.
Blake Hanson (Superior, Wis./Superior) started a play and
Blake Doyea (Ramsey, Minn./Anoka) finished it, scoring his second goal of the season in the 30th minute to give the Yellowjackets a 1-0. Then with time ticking off the clock in the first half the Yellowjackets stretched the lead.
Blake Perry (Anoka, Minn./Anoka) used some nifty ball handling as he worked his way down the left side, created some space for himself and scored his sixth goal of the year with just 12 seconds left in the half to give the Yellowjackets a 2-0 lead at the break.
In the second half the Yellowjackets made it 3-0 when
James Bruce (Gladstone, Mich./Gladstone) tipped a pass to
Eric Watson (Thunder Bay, Ontario/Hammarskjold), and the junior made no mistake, sending a shot into the lower left corner for his second of the year to make it a 3-0 score. Then with under 10 minutes to play the Yellowjackets closed out the scoring.
Leonardo Paredes (Uberlandia, Brazil/Colegio Sao Paschoall), with arguably the prettiest goal of the season and a likely candidate for U.M.A.C. Play of the Week, used the bicycle kick to perfection, launching a shot past the Storm goalkeeper for his fourth of the year to make the final score 4-0.
The Yellowjackets had a 15-0 edge in shots on goal.
Dalton VonKaenel (Eagan, Minn./Eagan H.S.) got the start and the win for the Yellowjackets, with his record improving to 8-1-1 for the year. He played the first half before giving way to
Ulrik Lager (Vollen, Norway/Asker VGS), who played the second half.
Up Next: The Yellowjackets (10-2-1, 5-0-1 U.M.A.C.) will host Twin Ports rival St. Scholastica Monday, October 8. The match will kick off at 7:00 p.m. at the N.B.C. Spartan Sports Complex.
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