Richard Bland Wins Regular-Season Finale Past USC Lancaster 6-0

SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. – Freshman Hussein Osman/Charlottesville scored two goals with one assist, and classmate Eduardo Pessoa/Rio de Janeiro, Brazil had one goal and one assist, to lead Richard Bland College to a 6-0 Region X Conference victory past USC Lancaster on Sunday afternoon at Statesman Field. Sophomore Rodrigo Carvalho/Lisbon, Portugal, along with freshmen Reuben Bosompem/Alexandria and Dusan Stankovic/Belgrade, Serbia, each contributed goals for the host Statesmen (10-6-1, 7-6-1 Region X) against the visiting Lancers (2-17, 0-14 Region X) on Sophomore Day. Richard Bland will play on the road at USC Salkehatchie in a Region X Tournament Quarterfinal contest on Wednesday, October 26, at 2 p.m. in Allendale, South Carolina.

"It was a great way to send off our sophomores, who were playing their final match on our home field," said third-year head coach Eduardo de Souza. "Our players were able to gain back their confidence at an important time as we face USC Salkehatchie on Wednesday."

Richard Bland took a 1-0 advantage late in the first half at 39:29 when Stankovic scored on a successful penalty-kick opportunity. Stankovic now has six goals this season. Bosompem made it 2-0 at the intermission with his goal at 44:06, assisted by sophomore Bryce Deitrich/Farmville with a nice cross in the box. It was the second goal of the season for Bosompem, while the first assist this fall for Deitrich, who was playing his first game in the midfield.

The Statesmen added four goals in the second half, beginning with two-straight goals by Osman at 54:31 and 65:26, assisted by sophomore Sukrija Dudic/Richmond and Pessoa, respectively. Both goals came on similar plays in the box with nice cross passes from his two teammates. Osman scored his first two collegiate goals on the afternoon, while it was Dudic's second assist and the first on the year by Pessoa.

Richard Bland pushed its advantage to 5-0 with a goal from Pessoa at 66:43, assisted by Osman, who was returning the favor with his feed into the box. It was Pessoa's team-best 11th goal of the season, while Osman's third assist. Carvalho added the final goal of the match at 71:53, getting the assist from freshman Peter Diawuo/Alexandria on a well-executed corner kick opportunity. It was the third goal of the year by Carvalho, while the team-leading seventh assist for Diawuo.

Freshman Justin Ennis/Gainesville started in front of the net for Richard Bland and played the first 48:56, before a red card ejection early in the second half after a foul outside the box. Classmate Tomas Fonseca/Torres Vedras, Portugal played the final 41:04 in goal for the Statesmen, making one save, as the two keepers combined for the team's sixth shutout this season.

Richard Bland took a commanding 30-4 advantage in shots against USC Lancaster, including 12-1 in attempts on goal. The Statesmen had a 10-1 edge in corner kicks.

Prior to the match, Richard Bland recognized its nine sophomores during a special pre-game ceremony. The nine Statesmen honored included defender Rodrigo Carvalho of Lisbon, Portugal, midfielder Bryce Deitrich of Farmville, forward Sukrija Dudic of Richmond, midfielder Tulio Graciano of Cacapava, Brazil, forward Sebastian Hendi of Alexandria, defender Sahir Jovel of Intipica, El Salvador, midfielder Jeffrey Pineda of Los Angeles, California, defender Calvin Sanford of McLean and defender Denzel Speed of Williamsburg.

Richard Bland will enter the post-season tournament as the Region's No. 5 seed against the No. 4 seed USC Salkehatchie. The Statesmen and Indians tied 1-1 in double-overtime on September 25 at Statesman Field, before USC Salkehatchie took a 1-0 decision against Richard Bland on Oct. 16 in South Carolina.