Pride roll to 5-1 win behind Luke Persenico's hat trick
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Francis (Ill.) (0-4-0) | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Clarke (2-1-0) | 1 | 4 | 5 |
St. Francis (Ill.)
| Game Statistics | St. Francis (Ill.) | Clarke |
|---|---|---|
| Shots (on goal) | 11 (3) | 13 (8) |
| Saves | 3 | 2 |
| Fouls | 17 | 16 |
| Corner Kicks | 8 | 3 |
| Offsides | 1 | 0 |
DUBUQUE, Iowa - A strong second half performance propelled the Clarke University men's soccer team to a 5-1 victory over University of St. Francis Tuesday night at Burrows Field.
It was a bit of a slow start for the Pride as they only scored one goal in the first half on a 23rd minute strike from Luke Persenico that got the freshman's night started strongly.
It was a quick barrage of three goals in just over four minutes as two more goals from Persenico sandwiched a Marco De Rosa goal in the 51st, 53rd, and 55th mintues. De Rosa's goal was a nice chip shot over the keeper after Vinicius Aspahan sent a ball through to put De Rosa one-on-one with the keeper. Persenico's hat trick clinching goal was a penalty shot earned by CU as he buried the ball inside of the right post to put Clarke up 4-0 at the time.
The Fighting Saints added a goal in the 74th minute from Izaak Avalos and it would have been a two-goal night for USF if not for an outstanding bicycle kick style save from defender Josh Serrano to prevent a potential first goal from St. Francis earlier in the second half.
The Pride will be away for their next four games starting this weekend with a pair of games in western Iowa starting with a Friday evening meeting against Northwetern College in Orange City, Iowa at 5:00 p.m. CT.