DAHLONEGA – The University of North Georgia (UNG) men's soccer team fell short against Clayton State 2-1 on Wednesday night. The loss snaps the Nighthawks three-game win streak and drops them to 4-4-1 overall and 3-2 in conference play.
Clayton State moved to 4-2-2 and 2-1 in the PBC with the win.
After a scoreless first half against the defending PBC Champions, UNG had confidence entering the second half. Despite not having as many chances to score the ball, UNG managed to keep the Lakers off the scoreboard in the opening 45 minutes.
The energy of a crowd dressed in all black for the team's annual "black out" game created an exciting buzz for the evening.
However, in the 69th minute, Clayton State midfielder Alex Rodriguez broke the scoreless tie after burying the ball into an open net once UNG keeper
Aleksa Lukic was caught out of position.
10 minutes later, Hector Nieto deposited what appeared to be the nail in the Nighthawks' coffin. After Lukic made a great save from point-blank range on Nieto's first attempt, the midfielder kept with the play and leaped up to head the bouncing ball into the net.
With roughly 12 minutes left to play in the contest, fans turned their attention towards the exits. Against a good Laker team that has been a perennial powerhouse in the PBC, it appeared UNG had no shot at making a comeback.
Those sentiments only lasted about 90 seconds. That was until sophomore forward
Stephane Shongo breathed life into the stadium with a thrilling goal.
As the ball was pushed ahead to junior forward
Santiago Cano, Shongo began his run towards the net. With a touch and a nice leading pass from Cano, Shongo picked up the ball with pace as he headed inside the box.
With his right foot, Shongo slipped the ball past the Laker keeper to put UNG on the board at 2-1. With 11 minutes left in the game, he chased after the ball and quickly carried it under his arm as he celebrated and returned the ball to midfield.
The goal was Shongo's third of the season, moving him into a tie for second on the Nighthawks thus far this season.
In the final 11 minutes of the contest, UNG desperately pressed as it looked for the equalizer. With less than a minute to go, the Nighthawks had their best opportunity with a near-side corner kick. However, the chance was quickly cleared by the Lakers who would hang on for the win.
Now, UNG gets ready for a non-conference road matchup at Anderson on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m.
