SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- Sophomores Douglas Oliveira and Collin Smith each netted their second goal of the season in the first half and sophomore Adam Holt collected two saves in the John Brown mens soccer teams (6-4-1, 2-0-0 SAC) convincing 2-0 victory over Bacone (Okla.) on Saturday (Oct. 3) at Alumni Field.
In front of a packed house, both Oliveira and Smith capped off highlight-reel plays as Oliveira headed home a finish off a corner kick in the 12th minute while Smith ended a passing play up the middle by chipping a shot past Warrior keeper Raul Camerena in the 45th minute just before the half.
“We had a few injuries that snuck up on us this week in training,†admitted head coach Scott Marksberry, “but we had some guys step up and respond very well defensively. We still only allowed two shots in the game, so we were very solid. When you get a conference win, you get excited about it.
“We have to get a little more creative, but the goal at the end of the first half was a culmination of what weve been practicing all week. Collins run was perfect and Zekes ball was perfect. That goal was a big highlight for me.â€
With two saves to his credit, Holt (6-4-1) managed to earn his sixth shutout of the season, fourth-consecutive, and the 10th of his career. Coming off an NAIA National Defensive Player of the Week honor, Holt has helped the Golden Eagles to 450:00 consecutive minutes of shutout soccer this year at Alumni Field.
JBU struck first in the 12th minute when senior Guilherme Barbosa sent in a corner kick to the far right post. Freshman Conner Haney was left unguarded, and after settling the ball, played it back into the middle perfectly, and found the head of Oliveira for the 1-0 lead. Haney and Barbosa each notched their third assist of the season.
Just before halftime with 14 seconds remaining, junior Daniel Marulanda started a play up the middle by slotting a ball to senior Zeke Zumbro in the attacking third. Zumbro turned and relayed a perfect through ball to Smith, who found himself one-on-one with Camerena. With the keeper out of position, Smith chipped a ball to the left post, doubling JBUs lead. Marulanda and Zumbro each posted assists on the tally.
The Golden Eagles out-shot Bacone 12-1 in the first half and used a 6-1 margin in a rather quiet second half to earn an 18-2 advantage in shooting. Barbosa sent a team-leading five shots towards the Warrior net, three on target, while freshman Kelvin Omondi finished with three. Oliveira, Smith and senior Cory Cole finished with a pair of shot attempts in the victory.
Camerena (3-4-0) finished with six saves in the loss for Bacone.
John Brown faces a difficult upcoming week with a pair of contests on the road, including a matchup with Oklahoma City on Tuesday (Oct. 6) before taking on conference-leading Science & Arts (Okla.) in Chickasha on Saturday (Oct. 10).
“To start the conference with two wins is huge for us," Marksberry admitted. The standard changes, however, when you have to play at Oklahoma City. We need to sharpen up because theyre very good in conference. They started out 0-6 this year, but we know better than that. Theyve played a hard schedule but looked very strong in their first conference game against SAGU which they won, 4-0.â€
