Columbia, MD - Nelson Hernandez and
Biruk Yitayew each scored twice as the #11-ranked Howard Community College Dragons blanked the Anne Arundel Community College Riverhawks 6-0 Tuesday afternoon.
Howard battled against a tough Anne Arundel side all afternoon, scoring four times in the final 20 minutes to put away the Riverhawks. The Dragons out-shot the Riverhawks 33-14, with 17 shots on goal.
Hernandez opened the scoring off beautiful series of passes from
Angel Giron-Ramos and Yitayew in the ninth minute. Anne Arundel's defense would hold tough against the Dragons throughout the rest of the half, as the Dragons only broke through for a second goal in the 24th minute.
Jackson Costell scored off a deep pass from
Alonso Aguilar to make it 2-0 at the half.
The second half would see more aggressive play from the Riverhawks, as they finally began to get some pressure on the Dragons. Goalkeeper Alejandro Dealvarez made a series of stunning saves, including one he barely edged off the crossbar, to preserve the shutout.
In the 70th minute, the Dragons opened the game wide. Yitayew scored off a pass from
Carson Feeser to make it 3-0 Dragons, and Hernandez scored a minute late from a Feeser pass to make it 4-0.
Gabriel Alejandro Vasquez joined the fun with his first career goal in the 79th minute off a pass from
Kiar Sani, and Yitayew finished the onslaught with his second goal in the 88th minute.
Hernandez led the Dragons with seven shots, three shots on goal, and two goals. Yitayew added six shots, four shots on goal, two goals, and two assists. Feeser had five shots, three shots on goal, and two assists, while Vasquez added three shots on goal and a goal off the bench.
Kiar Sani had two assists late in the contest, while Dealvarez had six saves.
The Dragons next face nationally-ranked Montgomery College on Thursday, October 1 at 7:00 PM on the road.Â
