SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- Senior Amaury Jarry picked the final night of the regular season to score his first two goals of the year, helping the No. 14 John Brown University men's soccer team blank Oklahoma City, 3-0, on Tuesday evening (Oct. 27) at Alumni Field.
John Brown struck from a corner in the 15th minute, doubled the advantage through Jarry just before halftime and kept the Stars to a single shot on goal. Jarry then put the finishing touch on the regular season with his second of the night in the 89th minute.
The victory sent John Brown (10-4-1, 6-3-0 Sooner Athletic) into the postseason as the No. 2 seed in the Sooner Athletic tournament. The Golden Eagles will host a quarterfinal at Alumni Field and, with a victory, would remain home through the semifinal round.
While the visiting Stars started on the front foot, JBU opened the scoring in the 15th minute on a well-worked set piece. Senior Marco Brizuela sent a corner toward the back post, where junior Alejandro Gallardo headed the ball back across goal. Freshman Kevin Acosta met it in front and nodded the ball barely across the line for his third goal of the season.
The Golden Eagles remained on the front foot throughout the half, forcing Oklahoma City goalkeeper Vittorio Di Carlo into three saves while generating nine shots.
Their pressure produced a second goal with 46 seconds remaining before the break.
Freshman Wyatt Marksberry started the move up the left channel for Gallardo, who laid the ball off to senior Gabriel Cabrera. Cabrera one-touched a pass through to Jarry at the back post, and the senior finished first time to send JBU into the interval ahead 2-0.
Oklahoma City (6-8-3, 4-4-1) was reduced to 10 men in the 61st minute when Rhys Bryant-Jones was shown a straight red, but the visitors kept the margin at two deep into the closing stages.
John Brown continued generating chances, including another Jarry effort that Di Carlo stopped in the 66th minute and a freshman Marksberry attempt denied in the 85th.
Jarry finally added the third in the 89th. Marksberry laid the ball off to sophomore Constantin Bauer, who cut toward goal through the OCU back line before sliding a pass across the goalmouth. Jarry crashed the back post and redirected the ball home with one touch to complete his brace.
Jarry finished all four of his shots on frame, while Gallardo supplied two assists and put two of his three attempts on target. Bauer led the Golden Eagles with five shots and added an assist.
JBU finished with an 18-6 advantage in shots, including a 9-1 edge on frame, and earned six corners to Oklahoma City's two.
Junior goalkeeper Juan Almanza (8-4-1) needed one save to secure the clean sheet, his lone stop coming in the 36th minute against Sebastian Castillo. Di Carlo made six saves for the Stars in the loss.
Postseason play begins Wednesday (Nov. 4), when John Brown hosts a quarterfinal at Alumni Field. The opponent and kickoff time remain to be announced, with the winner advancing to Saturday's (Nov. 7) semifinal round. The SAC Sports Network will carry JBU's postseason run live.
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