Box Score The Bob Jones University Bruins were looking to end their regular season on a high note, but the team ran into a brick wall in Lawrenceville, Georgia as the team fell 6-1 to Georgia Gwinnett College.
The Bruins came into Saturday's match having lost their previous five matches. The team has struggled as of late and knew they would be in for a tough test as they met the 10-1-2 Grizzlies. The stage was set as the battle of the bears was about to get underway under the clear Georgia sky.
In the opening minutes, the Bruins and Grizzlies exchanged possession but the Georgia Gwinnett was able to assert momentum early on. The Bruins would be without goalkeeper Joseph Wooster who missed the game due to a knee injury. Philip Gibble filled in nicely for the Bruins in the opening minutes with several saves.
In the 26th minute, the Grizzlies finally broke through off a goal from Samuel Gomes to put GGC up 1-0. Ten minutes later, the Grizzlies struck again as Martin Lugo stretched the Grizzlies lead to 2-0. Samuel Gomes added his second goal of the match late in the first half to give GGC a 3-0 lead over BJU at the break.
"Overall the first half went well for us with the exception of a few breakdowns," Coach McCormick said. "We had good composure offensively but we could have done a better job of finding the final pass in this game."
In the second half, the Bruins possession play began to struggle as the teams passing led to giveaways and opportunities for the Grizzlies. In the 73rd minute, Samuel Gomes completed the hat trick with a goal to make it 4-0. The Grizzlies then scored two goals just 30 seconds apart in the 78th minute to increase their lead to 6-0.
The Bruins were able to prevent the clean sheet in the 82nd minute as Travis Woodham notched a goal off an assist from AJ Redlinger but it was too little, too late as the Bruins fell to Georgia Gwinnett College 6-1.
"It was good to see some fight from our guys to get the late goal," Coach McCormick said. "We did not possess well in the second half and we failed to stay organized and our communication could have been better."
With the loss, the Bruins end the regular season at 5-12 having lost six straight. The team will have some time to allow injured players to return as the Bruins prepare for the NCCAA DI South regional playoffs which begin in a week and a half.
