Two halves of offensive excellence paved the way for the Blinn College men’s soccer team’s 8-1 Region XIV victory over Texas Southmost College on Tuesday at Rankin Field in Brenham, Texas.
“This was a good team win,” Blinn head coach said, “and I’m pleased with how the players performed this evening.”
The Buccaneers are now 9-6-3 overall with a 6-5 mark in the region standings.
Sophomore midfielder Mathew Williams booted a free kick into the Southmost net after just 64 seconds of action to get Blinn going. The goal was the 350th in Buccaneer men’s soccer history.
Four total tallies in each half of play solidified the Blinn’s dominance over the Scorpions.
Freshman forward Devon Arnold made it 2-0 in the 16th minute (assisted by John Cooper and Charlie Goldsmith); freshman forward Ethan Lindo increased the lead at the 18-minute mark (assisted by Arnold and Geoff Ojango), and sophomore forward Diego Ramos (assisted by Ojango and Gabriel Ordonez) capped the big half with a tally in the 33rd minute.
The Scorpions cut into Blinn’s lead with a goal in the 34th minute.
After the intermission, Goldsmith got in on the action when he looped a beautiful corner kick just under the crossbar at the 47-minute mark. Goldsmith’s Olympic goal – a corner kick that finds the net without being touched by another player – made it 5-1.
Arnold notched a hat trick when he buried his second goal in the 50th minute (assisted by Joaquin Rosales and Philipp Mokwa) and followed that with another tally (assisted by Goldsmith and Callum Ellington) in the 53rd.
Sophomore midfielder Callum Ellington capped the offensive outburst when he scored on a penalty kick in the 83rd minute.
The Bucs out-shot the Scorpions 21-18 with a 15-6 edge in shots on goal. Blinn also had a 10-5 advantage in corner kicks.
In goal for the Bucs was freshman netminder Connor Vela, who made five saves en route to his eighth win of the season.
Blinn’s regular season comes to a close with a region road trip to Jacksonville College at 4 p.m. on Friday.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 49 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
