JACKSONVILLE, Florida – In a tight 90-minute battle, Marist men's soccer was defeated by Jacksonville to begin the season. Samad Bounthong gave the Red Foxes the lead late in the first half, but the Dolphins answered before the break and scored again in the final ten minutes for the come-from-behind victory.
 

SUMMARY

• In the tenth minute, Stefan Copetti had a close one-touch opportunity off of a cross from Allen Gavilanes, but his shot went just wide of the net.
• Marist scored the first goal of the game in the 35^th minute after Gavilanes crossed up his defender in the left corner of the penalty box and found Samad Bounthong by the net for a sliding score.
• Jacksonville tied up the game in the 40^th minute when Steven Saunders freed himself up just inside the penalty box and fired to the bottom right corner.
• The Red Foxes controlled the pace early in the second half, tallying five shots while holding the Dolphins to one after the first 20 minutes. 
• Jacksonville had a big opportunity to take the lead in the 70^th minute, but Samuel Ilin leapt to make a huge save to protect the net..
• The Dolphins scored on a goal by Jesus Colombo in the 82^nd minute to take a 2-1 lead.
• Marist had an opportunity late by Gavilanes, but could not push the game into overtime.

STATS

• Marist recorded 17 shots and eight on goal, while holding Jacksonville to seven total shots and four on goal.
• The Red Foxes tallied five corner kicks and allowed just two.
• Gavilanes led the team with six shots and four on goal, as well as the assist on Bounthong's goal.
• Bounthong was strong on offense as well with four shots and three on goal, as well as his score in the 35^th minute.
• Samuel Ilin made two saves in his goalkeeping debut as a Red Fox.

NOTES

• Gavilanes tallied his 16^th-career assist, and stands at eighth all-time in the Marist record books.
• Bounthong recorded his 12^th-career goal for the Red Foxes. He also scored Marist's first goal of the 2018 season.

QUOTE

"Hopefully we can take the lesson of tonight and implement it the rest of the year. We were beaten in the work category," stated Head Coach Matt Viggiano. "Jacksonville beat us to first and second balls most of the night, and I don't think we matched their completeness. Despite our number of shots, we could've been more clinical in front of the net. Kudos to Jacksonville, they countered us multiple times tonight. We were able to find some energy and urgency late in the game, and we need to play like that for 90 minutes. It was a good lesson, and the guys will rally, work hard and be ready for our home opener Friday night."
 

UP NEXT

Marist welcomes Gonzaga for the home opener in Poughkeepsie on Friday, September 6 at 7 p.m.