No. 19 Richard Bland Defeats Visiting Southern Maryland 5-2

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS (YouTube)

SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. -- Sophomore Dusan Stankovic/Belgrade, Serbia and freshman Davi Girardi/São Paulo, Brazil each scored two goals to lead No. 19 Richard Bland College to a 5-2 men's soccer victory past the College of Southern Maryland on Tuesday afternoon at the Statesman Soccer Field.  Freshman Uziel Hernandez/The Villages, Florida added a goal and an assist, while classmates Vandyke Gyau/Alexandria and Max Turner/Christchurch, England each had an assist as well for the host and unbeaten Statesmen (8-0) against the visiting Hawks (1-4).  Richard Bland will travel to play a Region X match at USC Salkehatchie on Friday, September 22, at 2 p.m. in Allendale, South Carolina.

Richard Bland led 2-0 at the intermission following first-half goals from Girardi and Stankovic at 10:30 and 27:07, respectively.  Girardi finished a cross inside the box from Gyau, while Stankovic found the back of the net on a free kick.  Following an own goal for Southern Maryland at 48:01, Girardi scored his second goal of the contest at 52:05, assisted by Hernandez, for his team-leading 11^th goal this season.  Hernandez added a goal of his own at 65:10, assisted by Turner, to make it 4-1.  The visitors managed another goal at 76:01 with a deep shot that found its way over the keeper's head, but Stankovic added his second goal of the day at 87:26 after collecting a loose ball in the box to provide for the final three-goal margin.  Stankovic now has seven goals on the season, while Hernandez has scored four goals this fall.

"Attitude and discipline are choices that our players own," said fourth-year head coach Eduardo de Souza.  "Nobody can make them negative, selfish or lazy without their own permission.  We play to win every match, always respecting each opponent.  Today, the result was there, but the performance was not."

Richard Bland took a 22-5 advantage in shots against Southern Maryland, including 13-4 in attempts on goal, and the Statesmen had a 7-1 edge in corner kicks.

Freshman Almir Menezes/São Paulo, Brazil started in front of the net for Richard Bland and played 78:59, allowing the two goals while making two saves.  Classmate Seth Perez/Fruitland Park, Florida played the final 11:01.

Richard Bland and Southern Maryland were meeting for the first time in the sport of men's soccer, as the Statesmen now lead the series at 1-0.

Richard Bland will play two contests in South Carolina this weekend, including at Region X opponent USC Lancaster on Saturday, Sept. 23, at 4 p.m. in Lancaster.  The Statesmen return home to host Region X rival Louisburg (N.C.) College next Tuesday, Sept. 26, at 4 p.m. at the Statesman Soccer Field.