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SMC California Athletics

Saint Mary's College Athletics Gaels
Joseph Restani and Stephen Doughery
Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
0
San Francisco USF (3-8-1, 1-1 WCC)
8
Winner Saint Mary's (CA) SMC (13-0-0, 2-0 WCC)
San Francisco USF
(3-8-1, 1-1 WCC)
0
Final
8
Saint Mary's (CA) SMC
(13-0-0, 2-0 WCC)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
San Francisco USF 0 0 0
Saint Mary's (CA) SMC 1 7 8

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

MSOC | No. 6 Gaels Dominate Dons, Remain Perfect with 8-0 Win

For only the second time in program history and the first time against a Div. I opponent, No. 6 Saint Mary's unloaded eight goals in an eventual shutout drubbing against USF.

MORAGA, Calif. — After a close first half, the No. 6 Gaels opened the floodgates in their conference home-opener as they defeated the San Francisco Dons 8-0 on Saturday afternoon. With the win, Saint Mary's remains as the only team in the nation with a perfect record (13-0-0, 2-0 WCC).

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gaels got the scoring started during the first half of the contest as Stephen Dougherty crossed the ball to Jake Rudel for a tap-in goal in the 29th minute.

After a relatively quiet remainder to the opening half, Saint Mary's offense came out firing following the halftime break. Early in the half, Joseph Restani scored the second and third goals for the Gaels within eight minutes of each other. The first goal came off a cross from Anders Engebretsen in the 48th minute while the second was scored from the top of the box on a low shot that found the right corner.

46 seconds after Restani's second goal, Rudel tallied his second score of the match when he popped a shot over the Dons' keeper on a one-on-one. The goal was Rudel's team-leading 12th of the season.

Engebretsen scored the Gaels' fifth goal in the 60th minute as he fought past several Don defenders in the box for his seventh of the season. Shortly after, Lucas Andrews came off the bench to score two more goals only 15 seconds apart. Andrews was set-up by David Brog for his fifth score of the year and then created a goal by himself by racing down the left side and finishing to stretch the lead to seven.

Phillipe Van der Lof capped off the Gaels' epic afternoon with his first goal of the season on a free kick in the 87th minute. Van der Lof's intended pass rolled past the mob in the box and banked in off the post for Van der Lof's first career score.

Saint Mary's held the Dons (3-8-1, 1-1 WCC) to only six shots in the match and outshot USF 21-2 in the final half. San Francisco had their best scoring opportunity from Sean Bowman's rocket shot in the 34th minute but goalie Remi Prieur made a diving stop to prevent the Dons from scoring. Prieur was only forced to make two saves in the match for his 10th shutout of the season.

THOUGHTS FROM ADAM COOPER
  • "Obviously, we are pretty happy with today's result. I was not happy with how we played in the first 30 minutes of the match. We hold ourselves to a higher standard than we showed in that time."
  • "I thought once we scored the first goal, our focus and energy improved. In the second half, we certainly played with the right mentality and spirit. Everyone contributed to the win in a positive way."
QUICK FACTS
  • Saint Mary's is now 17-29-5 all-time versus USF but the Gaels are 5-2 in the last seven matches between the two teams.
  • SMC tallied eight shots in the first six minutes of the second half and 28 shots in the match, which is the team's game-high this season.
  • The 8-0 win ties the Gaels' program record for the most goals in a match and sets the record for the most against a D1 opponent.
  • For the first time in program history, Saint Mary's has recorded 13 wins in a season.
  • Saint Mary's has scored twelve goals in their two conference matches this year.
UP NEXT: SANTA CLARA
  • Saint Mary's will return home to Saint Mary's Stadium for their next match on Oct. 21 against the Santa Clara Broncos at 1 p.m. Tickets for the game can be found by clicking here, calling the Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx, or by purchasing them at the entrance to the stadium.
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