LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Spalding men's soccer hosted the SLIAC Quarterfinal on Saturday. SU played the fifth-seeded Fontbonne University Griffins and advanced to the SLIAC Semifinal, 1-0.
SU moved to 9-7-2 on the season, while Fontbonne's season came to an end.
TURNING POINT
The Golden Eagles and the Griffins started the game with a heated battle. Based on Wednesday's result, SU came out seeking revenge. It was a back-and-forth matchup, with each side putting pressure on the goalkeepers. Fontbonne tallied eight shots in the first half, and Spalding took nine of their own. Just before the half, the Golden Eagles lit up the scoreboard first. In the 40th minute, the Mulume brotherly connection put SU on top.
Kevin Mulume found his brother
Benit Mulume at the top left of the 18-yard box. Benit took one touch and hit a banger in the top right corner of the goal. This gave Spalding a 1-0 advantage. Just as everyone thought that was it before the half,
Ali Alkhabi struck paydirt for the Golden Eagles.
Jose Huerta tallied an assist off a long ball to Alkhabi at the top right of the box. Alkhabi put the ball on his left foot and made the best David Beckham impression he could, curling the ball into the top left corner of the net to give Spalding a 2-0 lead into the half.
Opening the second half, the Golden Eagles carried all of the momentum. Just 12 minutes into the half,
Eddie Mendez-Perez joined the scoring column.
Ethan Eckert hit a beautiful through ball to Mendez-Perez. He then found the bottom left corner of the net. This gave SU a 3-0 lead. With nine minutes remaining in the game, the Griffins found the net themselves, making it 3-1. SU bounced right back, not giving the Griffins a chance. Eckert found the back of the net with six seconds left off of an assist by
Samuel Mulume. SU took the 4-1 win and will advance to the SLIAC Semifinal on Wednesday.
GOLDEN EAGLE NOTES
NEXT FOR SPALDING
Spalding will travel to the one-seeded Greenville Panthers on Wednesday to play in the SLIAC Semifinal. Kickoff is set for 8:30 PM EST.
