SURPRISE, Ariz. — Park-Gilbert men's soccer delivered its most dominant offensive performance of the season Wednesday night, cruising past OUAZ 5-1 at Spirit Field to move to 4-3 overall and 1-1 in GSAC play.
The Buccaneers were led by a historic performance from
Olli Saksinen, who scored four goals to power the Park-Gilbert attack. Saksinen opened the scoring in the 28th minute, finishing off an assist from goalkeeper
Nicklas Lagesen to give the Bucs a 1-0 lead.
Saksinen added two more goals in a span of just 19 seconds late in the first half. He struck again at 38:11 before completing his hat trick at 38:30, with
Anton Aaltonen providing the assist on the third goal. Saksinen then added his fourth goal of the night in the 51st minute, assisted by
Florian Traebert, giving Park-Gilbert a commanding 4-0 advantage.
Brody Donovan added another Buccaneer goal in the 66th minute, converting a pass from Traebert to make it 5-0. OUAZ scored late in the 90th minute, but Park-Gilbert had already put the match firmly out of reach.
Saksinen's four-goal performance tied the Park-Gilbert single-game record for goals, matching Caleb Christian's four-goal performance against Providence Christian on Oct. 29, 2022. He also came close to another program mark, recording eight shots on the night, just one shy of the Park-Gilbert single-game record of nine.
The Buccaneers controlled the attacking numbers as well, finishing with 19 shots, including 12 on goal, compared to 12 shots and five shots on target for OUAZ. Park-Gilbert also earned six corner kicks, while OUAZ had 10.
Lagesen played all 90 minutes and made four saves, while also becoming an unusual part of the scoring sheet with his assist on Saksinen's opening goal.
The victory also continues the strong offensive partnership between Saksinen and Donovan. Saksinen now has eight goals and two assists on the season, while Donovan has three goals and four assists, keeping the pair at the center of the Buccaneers' attacking production.
Park-Gilbert returns to action Thursday, Sept. 24, at 8 p.m. when the Buccaneers travel to Riverside, Calif., to face La Sierra University at LSU Soccer Field.
