Dayton, Tenn. – Another Appalachian Athletic Conference victory went to the Bryan College Men’s Soccer team Wednesday night when they routed Milligan College (Tenn.) for a 4-1 decision, outshooting the Buffaloes 20-5. Of their limited shots, Bryan allowed Milligan only one shot on goal compared to the Lion’s eight that fell on target.
Bryan, who is currently receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches’ Top-25 poll, owns the No. 2 spot i conference with an outstanding 5-1 record in AAC play and 9-5 overall record. Milligan stays without a conference win at 0-7 while posting a 1-12- 1 mark overall this season.
The Lions took no time to get on the board when Charlie Clarke threaded a pass to Brad Spooner, who notched his ninth goal of the year to put Bryan on top 1-0 only 40 seconds into the game. It would be exactly 20 minutes after the initial strike that a penalty kick was awarded to the Lions, and none other than Spooner would capitalize for his second goal of the contest. He currently matches Clarke as Bryan’s scoring leader with both Lions at 10 total goals this season.
At 37:21, the duo of Kevin Roenpage and Arthur Dombrowski helped put a three-goal difference between Bryan and Milligan as Dombrowski went on the attack before connecting with Roenpage who found the back of the net for the first time this year. The Lions controlled a comfortable 3-0 advantage at the half after producing 12 shots. The Buffaloes struggled to create an offensive threat with just one shot taken in the opening period.
To give Milligan any hope, they knew they needed to strike fast as the second half unfolded, and that’s exactly what they did as Josh Willard corralled an assist from Joel Dominguez for a score in the 46th minute. Unfortunately for the Buffaloes, that would be the only goal tallied for the rest of the contest as the Lions governed the pitch until the end of the match. As the final minutes ticked off the clock, Dombrowski positioned himself on the scoring end of a successful attack by Bryan, netting his first career goal as a Lion after receiving double assists from Daniel Vonthin and Marcelo Monteiro.
Dombrowski’s score helped seal a commanding 4-1 win for the Lions.
Spooner led Bryan in the shots column with five and three on goal as two reached the back of the net. Trailing Spooner was Roenpage with four shots, two on target, and one goal. Aaron Attree compiled a trio of shots, and Jonathan Ricketts created two looks. Six other Lions finished with one shot, respectively, but it was Dombrowski who made his count for a goal and went on to receive an assist as well. Bryan continues AAC play at Montreat College (N.C.) on Saturday, Oct. 14 with kickoff scheduled for 3:30pm.