The Tribune

MIRAMAR, Florida — The University of The Bahamas men’s soccer team completed its two-match tour in South Florida undefeated after beating United International College 3-1 Saturday at The Miramar Regional Park. It was the first time a Mingoe team completed a tour with only wins.

Midfielder Ronaldo Green turned in another hat trick for The Mingoes - his second in international play - to give the team the 3-1 win.

Grand Pierre scored two goals - his first two as a Mingoe - to lead The Mingoes to the 8-2 win over Fort Lauderdale University Thursday at Lauderhill Park in the largest win for a Mingoes soccer team.

The match against The UIC Eagle Rays started bumpy with lots of contact between players. However, Green was able to break free from a tackle to connect for the first goal in the 19th minute.

The Eagle Rays’ defence turned on the pressure after that goal and that turned in a few offensive opportunities for The Eagle Rays. The Eagle Rays connected in the 39th minute to tie the match at 1.

The teams would carry that tie into halftime when The Mingoes made several adjustments.

The Eagle Rays were a bit more aggressive in the middle third coming out of the half, but Green was able to receive a short pass from Stanley Grand Pierre in the 51st minute to connect for a second goal to put The Mingoes up 2-1.

Green was not done at that point. Eight minutes later, he scored off a chip shot in the 59th minute to give The Mingoes the commanding 3-1 lead.

The Mingoes defence would hold on to pick up the second win of the tour and become the first team in UB history to finish an international tour with only notches in the win column. Three weeks ago, The Mingoes finished the tour with a tie and a win.

Head coach Alex Thompson said the team is clearly growing with each match and is looking forward to big things from the squad.

“They executed what we worked on in training and they tried to take a very professional approach too so I couldn’t be happier,” he said.

“A few players stepped up today like Ronaldo Green with the hat trick, Peter Julmis and Evelt Julmis played very strong and again Nathan Wells was very solid for us today.

“This shows that teams from The Bahamas can definitely compete internationally with the right structure and with the correct organisation. We can not only compete but we can definitely be successful.”

The team now waits for The Bahamas Football Association season to start later this month.