Box Score LEXINGTON, Va. – The Belmont Bruins notched its first Southern Conference victory of the season over the VMI Keydets by a score of 3-1 Saturday afternoon. Three different Bruins found the back of the net in the road win.
Junior midfielder Jack Shaw (8th minute), and sophomore forwards Ares Marlonsson (67th minute) and Niccolo Dagnoni (88th minute) each netted goals to lift Belmont over the Keydets.
Sophomore defender Brett Royster notched his third assist in the last five matches on Marlonsson's score. Sophomore goalkeeper Cameron Petty remained stout between the posts for the Bruins with three saves on seven shots faced.
Freshman forward Anderson Velazquez tallied VMI's lone goal on the day in the 81st minute.
Belmont got to work early against the Keydets, at it logged both a shot and a corner kick within the first seven minutes. Shaw netted an 8th-minute goal from the top of the box to give the Bruins a 1-0 advantage early in the match.
The two teams traded possession, mostly in Belmont's favor, for the remainder of the first half. Still, the Bruins applied constant pressure, as they piled on eight more shots to finish out the first 45 minutes.
Six different Belmont players tallied a shot in the first half, as Petty was only forced to make a pair of saves.
The Bruins came out of the gates hot once again, with four shots in the first 15 minutes of the second half. Marlonsson capitalized on Belmont's pressure in the 67th minute, as he nestled a shot in the top-left corner of the goal to give the Bruins a 2-0 lead.
Velazquez responded with a score of his own just 14 minutes later for VMI to cut the Belmont lead to 2-1 with nine minutes remaining in regulation.
Dagnoni wasted no time putting the match on ice for the Bruins in the 88th minute for his seventh goal on the year. Belmont held its 3-1 lead for the remaining two minutes of the match to secure the road victory.
The Bruins fired a season-high 19 shots with 10 shots on goal against the Keydets. Belmont now has double-digit shots on goal in two of their last three matches. In total, Dagnoni, Dozzi and junior midfielder Esteban Lestido combined for 13 shots and seven shots on goal on the day for the Bruins.
Overall, eight separate Belmont players registered a shot in the match, as Shaw and Marlonsson each nabbed their second goals of the season.
CONTINUING A TREND: The Bruins extended their unbeaten streak against VMI to five matches in Saturday's road victory.
MILESTONES FOR CHICCO: With six shots against the Keydets, Dagnoni is now tied for the sixth-most shots (45) in a season in program history and needs just one more goal to hold a tie for the eighth-most in a single season at Belmont.
UP NEXT: The Bruins return home for their final home match of the regular season Tuesday against the ETSU Buccaneers. Kickoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. at E.S. Rose Park. Belmont still has a trio of Southern Conference contests on deck before the conference championship begins on Nov. 5.
QUOTE:
David Costa, Head Coach
"Today was a great collective effort and we earned valuable points in the conference. We are going to turn our attention to a talented ETSU team and we look forward to being back at Rose Park."
