First half goals hold as Pride take 2-1 win over Culver-Stockton

CANTON, Mo. - A matchup that the Clarke University men's soccer could have easily overlooked did not turn out that way as the Pride earned a 2-1 win over Culver-Stockton College on Wednesday night.

All goals came in the first half as CU got on the board first within the first five minutes as they drew a penalty kick in the fifth minute that would be taken and scored by Joao Fernandes for his first goal of the season.

Not very long after, CJ Joyner of the Wildcats would score an unassisted goal in the 12th minute to even it up at one for the next 14 minutes of the game when Jose Gomez found Jonathan Velasquez in the 26th minute for Valesquez's third goal of the season and Gomez's team-leading fifth assist of the season.

That score would hold all the way through the halftime and final horns as Clarke would control a majority of the second half action, out-shooting Culver-Stockton 10-3 in the second frame and putting four of those on frame but none in the back of the net to extend their lead.

This win gives the Pride their seventh win of the season, matching their total in 2021 as they still have five game remaining in the regular season.

The next game up for Clarke men's soccer will be another top-10 team in the NAIA visiting Burrows Field as CU will play host to No. 5 Missouri Valley College on Saturday afternoon for a 3:30 p.m. CT kickoff.