EUNICE, La. – What was a tied game just minutes into the second half turned into a 5-2 rout for LSU Eunice against Ranger College on Friday at the Bengals Soccer Complex. LSUE (8-1) officially clinched a berth in the Region 23 Championship Game which the Bengals' will host on Friday, November 1.
"The game got pretty physical midway through the second half and that's when we saw a real competitive edge to our team that was impressive," LSU Eunice men's soccer head coach Josh McReynolds said. "We stayed within ourselves, but you could tell that a fire had been lit within our side which was great to see."
Noah Wagner (Corpus Christi, TX, Veterans Memorial HS) continued his dominant offensive play with his fourth hat trick of the season. Wagner put LSUE on the board first in the 3rd minute off an
Albert Ibrahimi (Shipley, England, Shipley College) through ball. The sophomore forward would then end a highlight-reel sequence in the 7th minute after Ibrahimi pinged a long volley to
Angelo Fabricio (Jundiai, Brazil, St. Amant HS (LA)) who caught Wagner in stride crashing in on the far side.
The reigning NJCAA National Player of the Week would cap off his hat trick in the 70th with yet another game winner, breaking a 2-2 tie off a
Nicolai Small (Harbour View, Jamaica, Camperdown HS) assist. Wagner brings his season total to 18 goals, current first among all players in NJCAA Division I.
Ranger snuck back into the back with goals just before and just after halftime.
The tide turned in LSUE's favor for good when a pair of hard fouls, including a red card in the 67th minute, revved up the Bengal offense who would pocket three goals in the final 20 minutes.
Nicolai Small made it a 4-2 game in the 84th minute while Angelo Fabricio added the final goal of the game on an 89th minute penalty kick.
Christian Carrillo (Prairieville, LA, Dutchtown HS) rebounded from giving up a pair of goals on the night to finish with four saves.
LSUE now turns its attention to perennial power and second-ranked Tyler JC on Tuesday, October 1. The men's game will cap off the doubleheader at 7:00PM.
