WINONA LAKE, Ind. – Grace College's men's soccer team picked up its third consecutive win to start the season with Saturday afternoon's 3-0 victory over Southeastern.
The win was the Lancers' (3-0) second straight over an opponent which is currently receiving votes in the NAIA top 25 poll.
The Lancers started the game on their heels as Southeastern (1-1-1) opened with a flurry of chances. The Fire had three corner opportunities and a pair of shots during the opening minutes.
Grace answered the mini barrage with a pair of chances of their own.
Martim Sequeira nearly netted a highlight reel goal with a bicycle kick that drifted wide of the goal mouth. On their next attack, a well-placed cross was headed on goal by Felipe Gruber, forcing the SEU keeper to make a timely save.
Grace and Southeastern traded chances in the middle portion of the half before the Lancers drew first blood.
On a set piece in Grace's attacking end, Sequeira was brought down in the box with an aggressive tackle.
Sequeira calmly stepped into the penalty kick position and netted his third goal of the season to put Grace ahead 1-0.
The remainder of the half was a midfield battle as both teams continued to fight for control of the game.
The Fire had four shots in the first half compared to the Lancers' five. Grace had six corner kick opportunities, and Southeastern had four.
Grace started the second half with a bang, netting their second goal just 2:46 into the period.
Scanferlato Simone made an aggressive defensive play that forced the Fire into a turnover. Daniel Santos Rosa grabbed the loose ball and sent a crossing pass into the box that found Sequeira, who netted his second goal of the game from close range.
Down by two goals, Southeastern began to pick up the intensity and got whistled for three yellow cards over the next eight minutes.
Shortly thereafter, the Fire generated a pair of scoring chances including an attempt that was swept clear of the goal by an alert Flavio Cruz.
The Fire subbed liberally late in the second half trying to find a goal but were unable to break Grace's clean sheet.
The final mark on the game came when Juan Camilo Garcia crossed a ball off of a set piece. David Marquez blasted the ball into the back of the net to put Grace ahead 3-0.
With the game in hand, Grace continued to control the pace and picked up their second shutout win of the week.
Sequeira scored two goals in a game for the second time this season, and Matteo Conci made four saves in the victory.
The Lancers will conclude their four-game homestand with a Wednesday night tilt against No. 7 Indiana Tech. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at 1st Source Bank Field.
