STATESBORO, Ga. - Freshmen Aldair Cortes and Jack Rittmeyer executed a perfect give-and-go in the box, with Cortes scoring the game-winning goal in the 77th minute in Georgia Southern's 2-1 collegiate men's soccer victory over visiting Stetson on Tuesday evening in Statesboro.
The Eagles (7-7) halted a two-game slide with the victory, while ending the Hatters' four-game unbeaten streak. The Atlantic Sun Conference regular season champions fell to 7-6-2 on the year with the loss. Georgia Southern returns to Sun Belt Conference play on Saturday, hosting Howard in a 7 p.m. contest at Eagle Field. It will be Senior Day as the Eagles will honor their seniors in a pre-match ceremony.
All of the scoring in the contest came in a frenetic five-minute span late in the second half. The Eagles dominated the first half offensively, outshooting the Hatters by a 12-1 margin, but Stetson goalkeeper Joseph Melong made five saves to keep the match scoreless.
The Eagles broke through in the 73rd minute as a longball into the box came to Melong and Stetson defender Justin Broome. Senior Blake Wilson was able to split the pair of players, win the ball, then score on a quick turnaround shot for the goal, his fourth of the season.
It didn't take long for Stetson to answer as a foul just outside the top of the box set up the Hatters' Eyal Cohen, who put the free kick inside the upper 90 for his first goal of the year in the 76th minute.
Just a minute and 50 seconds later, the pair of Eagle freshman would hook up for the match-winner. Cortes dribbled the ball down the left side and found Rittmeyer at the top of the box. Rittmeyer then touched it back to Cortes in front of the net, and Cortes beat Melong just inside the far post for his third goal of the year and the difference maker.
"I thought it was a well-played match by us," Head Coach John Murphy said. "Stetson were exactly what we thought they were going to be. Organized, competitive and they gave us a very very difficult game. I felt we had a really good grip of it, particularly in the first half. We came out and scored in the second half on a scruffy goal, then they really responded and scored a good equalizer. We had to really fight for it at the end.
"We had a fantastic contribution by the entire team, but particularly Jack [Rittmeyer], a freshman who comes off the bench, creates a good chance for himself, then sets up the winner for his fellow classman Aldair [Cortes] on a great game-winning goal. We needed it. We're a good team, we've played a very competitive schedule, but losing the past two games knocked our confidence a little. But tonight, we're feeling really good, and really proud. It was a great performance for us."
The Eagles put up a season-best 22 shots in the match, compared to five for the Hatters, and goalkeeper Robert Flott made a pair of saves in notching his second shutout of the season. Melong made 10 saves in net for the Hatters. The Eagles enjoyed a 10-2 edge in corner kicks and Georgia Southern was whistled for 15 fouls, compared to eight for Stetson. Georgia Southern was also offsides four times on the night.
