No. 16 Lander uses North’s hat trick to rout Shaw, 7-0:
The 16th-ranked Lander men’s soccer team used a scoring barrage in the second half to stay unbeaten on the season with a 7-0 win over Shaw on Thursday night at Van Taylor Stadium.
The Bearcats (5-0) lead Shaw (3-2-1) 2-0 at the half before exploding for five second-half goals. Four different Bearcats netted their first goals of the season, including Jamie North, who finished with a career high with goals on the night.
The win marked Lander’s largest margin of victory since a 9-0 win over UNC Pembroke in 2016.
“We scored some really good goals through good football, paitent play,” said head coach Lee Squires. “In the first half, they proved a tough nut to crack, but we stayed paitent, didn’t panic, didn’t get frustrated and we continued to move the ball and create chances.”
Crisp passing in the first period created multiple opportunities for the Bearcats before Lander struck in the 21st minute when Thibault Chretien set up Richard Bryan for a shot just inside the box. The ball was delected in front of the net by George Knight for his second goal of the season, putting the Bearcats up 1-0.
13 minutes later, Lander extended the lead as Michael Leach controlled the ball right of the box before crossing it to North, who fired a shot past Bear keeper Theo Delaleu to put the Bearcats in control with a 2-0 advantage heading in halftime.
North struck again at the 64:51 mark with a rocket inside the near post to give Lander a 3-0 lead. Just over two minutes later, Robbie Young netted his first goal of the year as North drove down the end line and found him open in front of the net.
The Bearcat lead grew to 5-0 in the 72nd minute when Max Landau scored his first career goal. At the 80:27 mark, North received a pass from Joe Conway and converted the chance for his third goal of the match.
Conway was rewarded for his efforts just moments later with a one-on-one opportunity, which he took advantage of for his first career goal.
On the night, eight different Bearcats either scored or recorded an assist. Lander outshot Shaw 29-3 and did not allow the Bears a single shot on goal.
Lander travels to Francis Marion on Saturday night for its Peach Belt Conference opener at 7:00 p.m.
