JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The New Jersey City University men's soccer team once again picked up a non-conference victory in the early going of the 2021 season and remain undefeated at 6-0-1 following the 5-1 route of John Jay College under the lights at Caven Point Field on Monday night, Sept. 20. Sophomore Maximo Vargas (Montevideo, Uruguay/The British Schools) finished with a pair of goals as he helped the Gothic Knights to their first win over the Bloodhounds since 2012.



Early on it seemed the Knights (6-0-1) were going to run away with it immediately, as they scored back-to-back goals in the first four minutes and change of the match against John Jay (0-5). Sophomore Jorkaef Fallas (North Bergen, N.J./Hudson Catholic) got things started in the first minute of the game with a beautiful cross to the far side of the box where freshman Jaime Bimboza (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson) was waiting for a perfectly placed header that made its way to the back of the left side of the net. Goal number two came off the foot of Vargas as Bimboza made his way speedily down the far side of the field in the fifth minute and sent a beautiful cross to the center of the box. Vargas got one touch on it and sent it past the Bloodhound keeper to make it 2-0. The final goal of the first half came in the 24th minute as John Jay scored its only tally of the night following a foul on NJCU inside the box that set up a penalty.

Despite multiple chances from the 34th until the 73rd, the Gothic Knights were unable to stretch their lead. That was until they exploded for three goals in 74th, 76th and 77th minutes to make it a runaway victory. Making his debut for NJCU after just being added to the official roster hours earlier was freshman Jeremy Jordan (Guayaquil, Ecuador/ANAVI). He found the ball at his feet at midfield after senior keeper Nick Linebaugh (Linden, N.J./St. Benedict's Prep) cleared it out of the Gothic Knights' zone, and proceeded to send a gorgeous outlet pass down field to a streaking Vargas, who lifted it gently over the John Jay netminder's head in the 74th to make it 3-1. Making it 4-1 was senior Luis Laing (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson) in the 76th. Another just-added Ecuadorian freshman in Jean Cueva (Guayaquil, Ecuador/Colegio ANAI) also made his debut on Monday night and in this instance, sent a nice pass to the far side to Laing. The latter sent what looked to be a cross attempt toward the Bloodhound net, but it ricocheted into the back of the net for the three-score lead. The fifth and final tally of the night came from Cueva himself in the 77th. Sophomore Gabe Cruz (Colonia, N.J./Colonia) capitalized on a turnover in the offensive zone and then sent a throughballl toward the box where Cueva was able to sidestep the keeper and tap it into the back of the net.

Highlights
- NJCU outshot John Jay 20-8 on the night, including 9-2 in shots on goal.
- With his two goals, Vargas now has 11 points on the season, the first Gothic Knight to reach double-digits.
- The Knights three goals late in the second half were the fastest consecutive since 2013.

What's Next
NJCU returns to action for another day-night doubleheader on Wednesday evening, Sept. 22, when the Gothic Knights host the City College of New York back at Caven Point Field under the lights. Watch all the action live on GothicVision.