GREENWOOD – Lander kept its Peach Belt Conference men's soccer regular season championship hopes alive Saturday afternoon with a 5-0 victory over North Georgia College and State University. Nick Cooke scored two goals while Adam Arthur added a goal and two assists.
Jamie Ramm and Antti Suoniemi also scored for the Bearcats, who improved to 13-3 overall and 5-2 in the PBC. Lander needed Clayton State to lose to USC Upstate Saturday night to claim a share of first place, and the Bearcats would win the regular season title on the tie-breaker. North Georgia fell to 5-11-1, 3-4.
Lander had several scoring chances in the first half but failed to capitalize. It was 0-0 at halftime.
The Bearcats broke the scoreless deadlock with 37:07 left in the game. Ivan Stoykov got in the box and rifled a shot that Saints goalkeeper Brandon Kirksey knocked away. Arthur gathered the deflection and nailed a shot from approximately 18 yards out into the right corner of the net. It was Arthur's 15th goal of the season.
The Bearcats pushed the lead to 2-0 with 26:23 left on a goal by Ramm. Martyn Bell's corner kick reached Ramm, who is playing with a broken right hand, and he redirected the ball with his head into the net. Bell was credited with the assist. It was Ramm's second goal of the season.
Lander added a third goal with 18 minutes left with Cooke scoring the first of his two goals off Arthur assists. Arthur chipped a pass to Cooke in the box and he hammered it into the net.
Cooke's 17th of the season came with 5:45 left on a long header on the edge of the box off an Arthur pass.
Cooke and Arthur came off the field after that goal. One of the subs, K.C. Dunbaker assisted on Suoniemi's first goal of the season with 1:45 left.
The Bearcats outshot North Georgia 23-8 and had a 12-1 edge in corner kicks. Lander's Garrett Daum and North Georgia's Kirksey each had four saves. Daum recorded his eighth shutout of the season.
Lander senior defenders Ife Nnadi and Zach Ducey, and midfielders Colin Kent, Corey Vickers and James Clarke were recognized before the game on Senior Day.
