DAHLONEGA - Behind a goal and two assists from
Maxwell Mitchell, the No. 22 University of North Georgia men's soccer team continued its strong Peach Belt Conference form Saturday evening, downing Georgia Southwestern 3-1 at the UNG Soccer Complex.
The Nighthawks (6-3-4, 5-1-1 PBC) controlled play from the opening whistle, striking first just five minutes into the match. Mitchell broke free down the right side and finished from close range off a through ball from
Jorge Sandoval to give UNG an early 1-0 advantage.
The Hurricanes (3-5-2, 2-4-1 PBC) responded quickly, finding an equalizer in the 12th minute when Jonathan Bedard capitalized on a loose ball in the box and tucked his shot past
Mirza Zecic, with Dante Johnson credited with the assist.
North Georgia reclaimed control shortly thereafter. In the 29th minute, Mitchell served a ball into the penalty area that found
Max Garnett, who drove a low shot inside the far post to restore the Nighthawks' lead. The hosts kept the pressure on, earning five first-half corner kicks and maintaining nearly constant possession in the attacking half.
The breakthrough run continued just before halftime. With the clock nearing 45 minutes,
Will Bentley buried his second goal of the season from close range off assists from
Aram Lara and Mitchell to make it 3-1. The sequence capped a dominant first half that saw the Nighthawks outshoot GSW 10-2 and convert three of their nine shots on frame.
UNG's back line and midfield managed the game comfortably in the second half, limiting Georgia Southwestern to only one shot on goal over the final 45 minutes. Zecic made that lone stop to preserve the two-goal cushion, while the Nighthawk defense held firm through a physical closing stretch that featured three yellow cards against the Hurricanes.
In total, North Georgia finished with a 19-8 edge in total shots and an 8-2 advantage in shots on goal, while earning eight corner kicks to GSW's two. Mitchell led all players with four points on a goal and two assists, while Garnett and Bentley each added their second goals of the season.
With the win, the Nighthawks improved to 5-1-1 in conference play, maintaining their hold on top of the Peach Belt standings with 16 points as the regular season enters its final stretch.
North Georgia hits the road Wednesday to face USC Aiken in another PBC matchup. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
