ASHLAND, ORE. – After a hard-fought decision in its season-opener, the OUAZ men's soccer team took control of its match against No. 23 Southern Oregon immediately. Ron Naftali scored his first of two goals just 2:43 into the contest, and the Spirit ran away with a 3-0 road victory of a ranked team.
While the shot totals were a narrow 13-12 in favor of OUAZ, the Spirit had nine of its chances hit the target while the Raiders could only get two. Jonathan Garcia made two saves to clinch his second consecutive clean sheet in an OUAZ uniform.
After a shot hit the crossbar in during the 3rd minute, Naftali finished the chance up close to give OUAZ the 1-0 lead. The Spirit newcomer would blast a 23-yard shot from the right side, driving the attempt inside the left post. A turnover created by Andrew DelGuidice allowed Courtois to break and give OUAZ its final advantage.
The Spirit had an assist on all three of its tallies, with two coming from defenders. DelGuidice and Ethan Castillo each pitched in a helper from the back end, plus Jesus Castillo also dished out an assist.
The Spirit will play one more in Ashland, a neutral site contest against Northwest. Kickoff from Raider Stadium is set for 11:30 a.m.
