LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – Senior Ian Aramburu converted a free kick into his first collegiate goal three minutes into overtime to give the No. 16-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College men’s soccer team a 3-2 victory against Keiser University (Fla.) on Friday night at the Grizzly Soccer Complex.
Junior Alfredo Rivera delivered the free kick from the right side of the pitch. The ball sailed to the edge of the 6-yard box in front of the Keiser goal. That’s when Aramburu got a foot on the ball while sliding on the turf.
“We tried to overload the area and then put the ball into that specific area. Alfredo has always had that ability to deliver a ball in that situation. Then, Ian was able to go and find the ball. I’m proud of the way we fought and played tonight,” said Head Coach Steve DeCou.
The Grizzlies (5-2-2) squared the match, 2-2, when junior Toni Tiente cleaned up a pass that landed in front of the goal during the 63rd minute of the match. The scoring play started when junior Krishna Clarke passed the ball from the right side of the formation to sophomore Aoci Pilipili, who was on the far goal post. A slight deflection toward the Keiser goal set up Tiente for the tying score.
Keiser (3-2) scored consecutive goals in the 51st and 57th minutes to grab a 2-1 lead. A goal from Adrian Camacho Castro put the visiting Seahawks in front.
A corner kick allowed freshman Ilan Adam to give GGC a 1-0 lead in the 32nd minute with a shot that he drilled into the net from 20 yards away from the visitor’s goal. The corner originated from senior Sagi Hirsch.
The Grizzlies outshot Keiser by a 19-to-10 margin and had the only two shots in overtime.
Coach’s Corner
“It was a great start to the match. When you’re playing a team like Keiser you know they’re not going to back down. They capitalized on a couple of our mistakes to take the lead. Being down 2-1 after Tuesday night (a 3-1 loss to St. Thomas), it came down to how we were going to respond. I challenged the team before the game that we couldn’t get outworked, because we’re a blue collar team. I loved our response and thought we did very well to come back on Toni’s goal,” said Head Coach Steve DeCou.
Turning Point
The third overtime match of the season produced a winner for the Grizzlies. Junior Alfredo Rivera delivered a free kick from the right side of the pitch into the 18-yard box in front of the Keiser goal. The ball bent away from the opposing goalkeeper and found a sliding senior Ian Aramburu for the game-winning goal in the 93rd minute of the match.
Goals
32’ – Ilan Adam, GGC (Sagi Hirsch)
51’ – Ciro Damine, KU (unassisted0
57’ – Adrian Castro Camacho, KU (Evan Finnegan)
63’ – Toni Tiente, GGC (Aoci Pilipili, Krishna Clarke)
93’ – Ian Aramburu, GGC (Alfredo Rivera)
Inside The Numbers
- GGC held a 19-to-10 shot advantage for the 92:56 minutes of action
- Junior Toni Tiente attempted a match-high five shots
- The Grizzlies recorded six corner kicks
- GGC is 3-0-3 in overtime matches over the last two seasons
News & Notes
- GGC improves to 5-2-2 in 2019, while Keiser falls to 3-2 on the season
- Georgia Gwinnett College is ranked No. 16 in this week’s NAIA Top 25 poll; Keiser was receiving votes in the same poll
- GGC is 3-2-1 at the Grizzly Soccer Complex this fall
- The Grizzlies have won both meetings with Keiser
- Senior Ian Aramburu’s first collegiate goal was the overtime winner for GGC
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College hosts No. 14-ranked University of Mobile (Ala.) on Saturday, Sept. 28, at 7:30 p.m. from the Grizzly Soccer Complex.