AMERICUS, Ga. – Georgia Southwestern State University broke through twice in the final 14 minutes Saturday night to earn a 2-0 victory over the University of West Alabama at Hurricane Field.
Mateo Acuna Marmol snapped a scoreless tie in the 77th minute before
Theo Hoang added an insurance goal less than nine minutes later as the Hurricanes improved to 2-2 on the season.
GSW played with a man advantage for nearly 74 minutes after West Alabama's Florian Laot was shown a red card at the 16:02 mark, but the Tigers (0-3-1) kept the Hurricanes off the scoreboard through the opening half.
GSW generated six shots in the first 45 minutes, putting two on frame, while West Alabama goalkeeper Dan Erez stopped attempts from
Sean Carlos Rivera and
Mac Vargas. At the other end,
Javier Barbosa made two saves to keep the match scoreless heading into halftime.
The Hurricanes increased the pressure after the break, outshooting UWA 12-3 and earning five corner kicks over the final 45 minutes.
West Alabama nearly grabbed the lead against the run of play in the 66th minute when Yabsira Cobo's attempt struck the crossbar.
GSW responded by creating a series of chances. Erez denied Acuna Marmol in the 71st minute and
Giancarlo Walsh in the 74th before the Hurricanes finally found the breakthrough at 77:00.
Acuna Marmol scored his first goal of the season when he collected a deflection and found the lower left corner inside the pipe from outside the 18-yard box to put GSW ahead 1-0.
The Hurricanes continued to press for a second, and Erez stopped another attempt from Walsh with just over four minutes remaining. Seconds later, however, Hoang found the net off the rebound from a saved shot by
Juan Franco to double the advantage at 85:40.
The goal was Hoang's fifth through the first four matches of the season. The senior has accounted for five of GSW's eight goals this fall after scoring twice in the season opener against Andrew College and twice at Embry-Riddle.
GSW finished with an 18-6 advantage in shots, including a 7-2 edge in shots on goal, and earned eight corner kicks to West Alabama's one. Acuna Marmol and Rivera led the Hurricanes with three shots apiece, while Walsh placed both of his attempts on frame.
Barbosa finished with two saves to record his second shutout in four starts as a Hurricane. GSW's defense did not allow a shot on goal in the second half.
Saturday's victory evened the all-time series between GSW and West Alabama at 1-1. It was the first meeting between the programs since 2012.
Next Up
- The Hurricanes now turn their attention to Peach Belt Conference play and Flagler College on Wednesday at 7 p.m. to wrap up a three-match homestand. GSW will play conference opponents the rest of the way until closing the regular season at Tuskegee University on Oct. 27.
