New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE

NEW YORK, NY (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Junior forward NANA KOFI KUSI (Jersey City, NJ/Kumasi Academy (Ghana)), senior midfielder TOM KRYCHKOWSKI (North Arlington, NJ/North Arlington) and junior midfielder GABRIEL AVANS (Roselle Park, NJ/Union Catholic) each scored and senior forward WALTER AVANS (Roselle Park, NJ/Union Catholic) contributed a pair of assists as New Jersey City University  won its second game in a row with a 3-1 decision over City College of New York in a non-conference game played on Wednesday in a steady rain on Randall's Island, NY.
 
NJCU improved to 2-1 with the win, dropping the Beavers to 1-3. NJCU leads the all-time series, 8-1 (37-10 goal differential) and has won the last eight meetings between the clubs. NJCU led 1-0 at the half, outshooting the Beavers 15-6 in the period before owning a 27-13 margin for the game.
 
WALTER AVANS increased his club lead to 13 points through three games with his two assists. He moved into seventh place in program history with 73 career points, passing former teammate Jonathan Bilbao (23 goals, 26 assists) who had 72 points from 2005-08 on the all-time list.
 
Freshman midfielder/defender SANTIAGO RAMIREZ (West New York, NJ/Memorial) also recorded his first collegiate point with an assist.
 
Senior keeper MANNY LOJO (Clark, NJ/Union Catholic) made six saves for the victory. CCNY junior Tayfun Kucuk (Eskisehir, Turkey) stopped 11 shots in defeat.
 
NJCU's first half goal was a combination of the Gothic Knights' two returning All-NJAC performers. Senior forward ALEX CERON (Belleville, NJ/Belleville) sparked the sequence with a pass to WALTER AVANS, who dribbled into the box. Avans' shot was set aside and was blocked by the opposing keeper, but the rebound caromed directly onto the feet of Kofi Kusi on the left of the box for an easy marker at the 27:10.
 
In the second half, the Beavers' lone goal came at 72:55 when the Knights attempted to clear a ball out of the box, before sophomore forward Brian Mbamelu (Enugu, Nigeria) tied it at 1-1 with sophomore midfielder Kazuhide Kosugi (Hamamatsu, Japan) earning an assist.
 
But just 13 seconds later, the Knights took the lead for good at 73:09. Ramirez crossed the ball from the right wing into the box where Krychkowski headed in his first career game-winning goal into the upper left corner from 10 yards out for his second goal of the season.
 
NJCU's final goal was set up as Ceron possessed the ball on the right side of the field as WALTER AVANS made an overlapping run. Ceron heeled the ball to his fellow co-captain and WALTER AVANS delivered a cross on the ground to the far left post where his younger brother, GABRIEL AVANS, knocked in a one-timer for his first goal of the season at 86:03.
 
NJCU next plays in the Holiday Inn Conference Center Soccer Classic at York College in York, Pa. On Saturday, September 10, NJCU meets McDaniel College at 3 p.m. On Sunday, the Knights will face either host York or Cabrini University.