SAGU caves under Pioneers' pressure

LUBBOCK – It's difficult for teams to score when they hardly ever possess the ball.
 
That appeared to be Wayland Baptist's defensive philosophy against Southwestern Assemblies of God University on Saturday afternoon at Berl Huffman Athletic Complex where the Pioneers dominated possession and came away with a convincing 5-0 Sooner Athletic Conference victory.
 
Wayland (9-4-1, 4-2-1 SAC) broke open a 1-0 game with four second-half goals. Leonardo Amaral led the way for the Pioneers, recording their first and final goals of the match and helping the Pioneers win their third straight.
 
"We scored goals and kept a clean sheet today, but I told the guys that I was not very thrilled with the way we started the game," Wayland coach Robert Ssejjemba said. "Our decision-making was not good enough and we were very wasteful in front of the goal."

The Pioneers got off 26 shots, including 14 in the first half when SAGU keeper Julio Guevara logged eight saves. Wayland was much more efficient after halftime.

"In the second half we came out with more urgency and higher intensity, using our width and forcing SAGU to drop off even deeper. This created more space for us to play in front of their backline and led to some good combinations for the goals we scored," Ssejjemba said.

The Lions (1-8-2, 0-5-1) used just two substitutes, and it appeared to be Wayland's game plan to keep steady defensive pressure and push the ball as much as possible. As a result, the Pioneers – coming off a 9-0 win over Texas Wesleyan – maintained control of the ball most of the way, and the Lions managed just four shots, none of which were on-goal.

Amaral's first goal was assisted by Elton Tettey, who made it 2-0 in the 59^th minute. Marco Magnoli, who in the first half failed to convert a penalty kick, got another PK chance in the 68^th minute and this time made it pay off. Less than a minute later, a goal by Gerardo Perdomo, assisted by Amaral, took it to 4-0.

Amaral capped the scoring with a goal in the 72^nd minute. It was Amaral's second straight two-goal, one-assist performance.

Magnoli fired five shots, all on-goal, to lead in those categories.

Wayland returns to Berl Huffman on Tuesday for its final "home" match of the season at 4 p.m. against Science and Arts of Oklahoma (7-3-3, 3-2-1). The Pioneers are currently tied for third in the league standings with Oklahoma City, a half-game ahead of USAO.
 
The Drovers are coming off a 1-0 win over Central Christian. That followed matchups against league co-leaders Southwestern Christian and Mid-America Christian. USAO tied the Eagles, 2-2, after falling to the Evangels, 5-1.
 
Wayland is 3-0 playing at neutral sites in Lubbock due to field issues at Hilliard Field on the WBU campus.