Williamsburg, KY – Cumberlands blanked the Shawnee State Bears, 2-0 to extend their win streak to four games, their longest stretch of wins on the season.

Aleksandar Mirkovic and Rodrigo Riveros got on the scoresheet for the Patriots. For Mirkovic it marks his first goal of the season and Riveros scored his team high eighth goal of the year.

UC wasted no time getting on the attack, firing three shots in the first five minutes. The persistent pressure against the Bears paid off in the fifth minute when the Patriots earned a corner kick on the right side of the field. Liam Healey sent the ball to the six-yard box right to Mirkovic. The Belgrade, Serbia native sent a one time shot to the lower left side of the net converting the goal to put UC up 1-0. The assist from Healey marked his team best sixth of the season.

The Patriots recorded nine shots in opening period, but could not find the back of the net again. The Bears were limited to just one shot in the first half thanks to solid defense by UC's backline of Mirkovic, Gabriel Figurski Vieira and Joachim Blomsterberg. The one shot from SSU came from a free kick opportunity just outside the 18-yard box in the 36th minute. The Bear's attacker sent the bending ball right for the net, but Nathan Hart stretched out his right arm to push the ball out of play and preserve the shutout.

The Patriots took the 1-0 lead into halftime and then came out firing on all cylinders to start the half. UC started with the ball and immediately got forward. Tommaso Ogliari got in behind the defense and rocketed a shot that just hit the right goal post. The ball redirected to Riveros who was looming in the box and he tapped the ball in to give UC the two goal advantage just 21 seconds into the second half. The goal for the Asuncion, Paraguay native marks the fourth straight game he has scored in, noting the longest scoring streak of his young career.

The Bears had more chances in the second half with eight total shots, however only one more found its way on goal and once again Hart was up for the challenge which earned him and the team their fifth shutout of the season and their third in a row. That is the longest shutout streak since the 2019 season.

With the 2-0 victory, the Patriots improve to 6-4-3 overall with a 5-2-1 Mid-South Conference record. The win pushes UC into fourth place of the MSC standings.

Cumberlands will hit the road for their next contest up against Georgetown, who is in second place of the MSC with an overall record of 10-1-1. The game is on Wednesday, October 20and is set for a 6PM kick-off with live video available here.

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