BRYANT EXPLODES FOR FOUR-STRAIGHT GOALS TO EARN SECONDS NEC VICTORY

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's soccer team exploded for four-straight goals Friday afternoon in Smithfield to earn its second Northeast Conference victory of the season.

The Bulldogs (4-5-1, 2-3 NEC) topped visiting LIU Brooklyn, 4-1, matching their highest scoring output of the season. Freshman Brett Larocque (Ottawa, Ont.) put away two of his teams four scores, both in the second half of play.

The Blackbirds (2-8-2, 1-2-1 NEC) were able to get on the board first scoring only one minute and 46 seconds into the opening whistle. Jakeem Johnson put home his fourth goal on the season off a pass from teammate David Nuernberg. However, Bryant would control the match from that point forward.

Freshman Matt Guerriero (Pickering, Ont.) had a magnificent run, advancing the ball himself from just before midfield, into the Blackbird third and past keeper, Nathan Stockie, to put home his second tally in as many games.

The final 45 minutes of play was completely Bulldog-dominated, with Larocque scoring his first marker in the 56th minute off a helper from sophomore Connor Norat (Wilmington, Del.) and his second in the 66th minute from Guerriero. Larocque now leads the Bulldogs with an impressive five goals as a freshman.

The final goal of the match came just 39 seconds later, when senior Anthony Zarella (Marshfield, Mass.) collected the ball along the end line and snuck a crafty shot past Stockie to grant the Bulldogs a 4-1 advantage.

Bryant outshot the visitors 12-8 in the match. Freshman keeper Chris Knaub (Yarmouth, Maine) made three saves in his ninth start of the season, while Stockie stopped two Bulldog attempts.

The Black and Gold will look to get back to .500 on Sunday when they welcome Quinnipiac. Game time is set for 3:00 p.m.

For links to live stats and streaming video of Sunday's action and all the latest news on Bryant University men's soccer, visit BryantBulldogs.com.