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Southwest Mississippi Community College

Scoreboard

Bears open 2018 with win at Itawamba

By: Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information
Conner Smothers
LEE ADAMS/ITAWAMBA CC

Men's Soccer | 8/24/2018 9:20:00 PM

A pair of Patrick Larsen goals helped the Bears soccer team got their season off to a winning start Friday afternoon as they survived a trip to Fulton with a 3-2 win over the Itawamba Indians.
 
Larsen, a sophomore midfielder from Pascagoula, put the Bears on top 1-0 with 11:00 gone by in the first half as he took a ball swung in by Marcus Connolly and played the ball into the back right post.
 
At the 70:08 mark, Connolly played a through ball up the middle to Felipe Madero who finished a one-on-one with the Indians' keeper to increased the Bears' lead to 2-0.
 
After the Indians got on the board at the 77:00 mark, PJ Irwin threw the ball into Larsen who then dribbled through several host defenders to score and give the Bears a 3-1 advantage. A goal by the Indians with 0:34 remaining was not enough as the Bears held on for the victory.
 
Keeper Conner Smothers had four saves for the Bears.
 
Head coach Alex Brown said his team "came out a little nervous, but we settled in within five to ten minutes. Our wings worked hard all day long and really helped set up Patrick and Felipe all game long."
 
"It was a gutsy, hard fought team win every way you look at it," Brown continued. Also, he said he felt the team "had a little extra motivation today because on what happened last year on this field (a 2-1 post-season loss to the Indians)."
 
The Bears look to make it 2-0 on Saturday when they visit the Northwest Rangers for a 1:00 match in Senatobia.
 
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Players Mentioned

PJ Irwin

#3 PJ Irwin

MF
6' 3"
Sophomore
Patrick Larsen

#17 Patrick Larsen

MF
6' 1"
Sophomore
Conner Smothers

#54 Conner Smothers

GK
5' 8"
Sophomore
Marcus Connolly

#7 Marcus Connolly

MF
5' 9"
Freshman
Felipe Madero

#22 Felipe Madero

MF/F
6' 0"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

PJ Irwin

#3 PJ Irwin

6' 3"
Sophomore
MF
Patrick Larsen

#17 Patrick Larsen

6' 1"
Sophomore
MF
Conner Smothers

#54 Conner Smothers

5' 8"
Sophomore
GK
Marcus Connolly

#7 Marcus Connolly

5' 9"
Freshman
MF
Felipe Madero

#22 Felipe Madero

6' 0"
Freshman
MF/F