Koalas Open AAC Play With Win on the Road

KNOXVILLE, TN- After an extended weather delay, Columbia College Men's Soccer kicked off the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) schedule on Saturday night, taking down the host Royals, 3-2. 

The Koalas now stand 4-1 on the season and 1-0 in AAC play, while Johnson falls to 0-3 overall and 0-1 in league play.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Initially slated for a 4:30 PM start, the game was pushed back to a 6 PM kick due to a weather delay; the Women's game was postponed at the half.
• The week one NAIA Offensive Player of the Week, Jakeem Amuda, got the Koalas on the board first when he tallied his team-leading eighth goal of the season in the 29th minute, assisted by Jimmy Yancey.
• In the 69th minute, the Koalas put a little cushion between themselves and the hosts when Dan Stryffeler tallied his seventh score of the year.
• However, Johnson didn't go away quietly; they finally broke through in the 73rd minute to pull within one.
• Just 62 seconds later, Ethan Poungthana fed a pass to Aedan Bowers for the third Koala score of the night.
• In the 89th minute, Igor Junior scored an unassisted goal, but it wasn't enough as the Koalas escaped with their first conference win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Mynor Gonzalez made three saves in 90 minutes of action; he's allowed just six goals in five games.
• There was a total of eight yellow cards handed out, four to each side.

UP NEXT:

The Koalas will return to action on Wednesday, Sept. 13, when they take on cross-town rival Columbia International at 7 PM.