CONWAY, Ark. – Central Arkansas men's soccer (7-5-2, 4-1-1 ASUN) set a new season high in goals Sunday, defeating Queens 7-2.
Central Arkansas controlled possession early and limited Queens' opportunities in the attacking third. Vaclav Kozeny opened the scoring in the 26th minute to give the Bears a 1-0 lead. The Royals responded five minutes later when Luis Vera Mayorca found the back of the net to even the score.
The Bears quickly regained the lead as Rico Duggan found Noa Bomballi down the far side of the field. Bomballi beat the Queens goalkeeper to put Central Arkansas ahead 2-1. The goal was Bomballi's second of the season, while Duggan recorded his fourth assist to take sole possession of the team lead.
Duggan extended the Bears' advantage to 3-1 with a goal in the 41st minute. Central Arkansas set the tone offensively in the first half, recording nine of its 14 shots before the break.
Queens cut into the lead early in the second half when Vitor Baptistelli converted a penalty kick to make it 3-2. Duggan responded with his second goal of the match, scoring directly from a corner kick to restore the Bears' two-goal advantage.
Kozeny followed with his second goal of the game in the 61st minute, pushing the lead to 5-2. He now leads Central Arkansas with six goals this season. Nine minutes later, Maxim Sheenkov added his fifth goal of the season, with Mateusz Wojtalik recording the assist.
The Bears added their seventh goal when Queens conceded an own goal, sealing the 7-2 victory. The seven-goal performance marked the sixth time in program history that Central Arkansas has scored at least seven goals in a match. The last time the Bears reached that mark was in 2004 against Ouachita.
Central Arkansas returns to the road Wednesday to face West Florida at the UWF Soccer Complex. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., with the match streaming live on ESPN+ and live statistics available online.
