SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Freshman midfielder Franco Ocnana blasted his third goal of the season in the 19th minute while the Gardner-Webb (11-1-2) men's soccer team ran its unbeaten streak to eight consecutive games following a 2-1 win at USC Upstate (4-9-1, 2-3-0) on Saturday afternoon.
The Spartans shocked Gardner-Webb in the opening seconds of the match, scoring just 26 ticks into the first 45 following a goal from Oskar Kaufmann.
However, that lead did not last long as the Runnin' Bulldogs regained their composure before knotting the score at 1-1 in the 6th minute after sophomore wing Samson Kpardeh connected on his team-leading fifth goal of the season.
From that point, Gardner-Webb controlled the momentum while pushing the Spartans back on their heels. Relentless persistence paid off at the 18:21 mark as Ocana took a feed at the top of the box from Kpardeh before connecting upper-90 to give the Runnin' Bulldogs the lead.
Senior goalkeeper Alan Horrocks helped preserve the slim advantage with five key saves while graduate midfielder Robbie Lyons led all players with five shots. Freshman forward Javan Ochieng added four shots.
Gardner-Webb held a 21-12 margin on shots, including 7-6 shots on goal. The Runnin' Bulldogs were able to earn six corner kicks on the evening.
The Runnin' Bulldogs return to the pitch on Saturday, October 25 as they host High Point in a much-anticipated rematch of last year's Big South Tournament Championship, which GWU took 2-1. Game time is set for 6 p.m. at Greene-Harbison Stadium.
