LOEHR’S TWO GOALS LEAD RAMS PAST BRYANT, 3-0
Sekyere picks up second and third assists of the season
Box Score

RICHMOND, Va. – Even the remnants of Hurricane Hanna could not slow down sophomore Jorit Loehr (Bremen, Germany) and the Virginia Commonwealth University men’s soccer team as the Rams rolled to a 3-0 victory over Bryant University on the first day of action at the 2008 Nike/Alltel Classic on Friday evening.

Loehr hooked up with junior Owusu Sekyere (Suame-Kumasi, Ghana) on both of his tallies as the speedy midfielder continued his strong early season play with his second and third assists of the season.

The Black and Gold put the pressure on the Bulldog defense early as senior Joey Lyonnais (Fredericksburg, Va.) lofted a touch pass down the right sideline for sophomore Evan Slusser (Prince George, Va.) who sped past the back line. Slusser fed Sekyere in the middle of the box, but a Bryant defender was able to make a diving block to keep the game scoreless in the ninth minute of action.

Just four minutes later, Sekyere showed his speed as he blew past the Bryant defense down the right sideline and sent a beautiful touch pass to Loehr, but again the Bulldog defense was able to deflect it away.

It looked like junior Otavio De Luca (Sao Paulo, Brazil) would get on the board in the 22nd minute as he blasted a free kick from 25 yards out, but Bryant’s goalkeeper Chris Bronski was able to leap and deflect the shot high.

When the Rams were able to find the back of the net, they did it in a flurry as Sekyere dribbled across midfield and lofted a feed to Loehr down the right sideline, who blasted a shot into the left corner of the net to give the Black and Gold a 1-0 advantage in the 39th minute of play.

Just over a minute later, sophomore C.J. Gehin-Scott (Chesapeake, Va.) was taken down in the box, which allowed senior Gerson Dos Santos (Sao Paulo, Brazil) to tickle the twine with a penalty kick and send the Rams to the locker rooms with a 2-0 lead.

Most of the second half was played in the middle of the field as the two teams battled through patches of heavy rain throughout the evening.

The Sekyere-to-Loehr connection would strike again in the 88th minute as Sekyere sent a corner across the box where Loehr was able to head it past Bronski and push the VCU lead to 3-0.

The three goal advantage was plenty for senior keeper Andrew Dykstra (Woodbridge, Va.) and the Black and Gold defense who allowed Bryant just six shots in the match.

Dykstra notched two saves on the evening to pick up his first shutout of the season and the 13th of his outstanding four-year career.

On the evening, the Rams out shot the Bulldogs 18-6 and held an 8-5 advantage in corner kicks.

VCU will look to capture its second straight Nike/Alltel Classic Championship as it take on the Pirates of Seton Hall, who toppled Richmond 3-0 in the first game of the weekend, on Sunday afternoon. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m.