WASHINGTON – Marlon Tabora had a career day, and the No. 3 seed Georgetown University men's soccer team cruised to the 4-1 victory over the Providence College Friars in the third round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday afternoon at Shaw Field. With the win, Georgetown improves to 18-2 on the season and advances to the NCAA quarterfinals for the fifth time in program history, while Providence finishes the 2021 campaign with a mark of 12-5-4.

Postgame Reaction

• "I thought Providence came out and outworked in the first half, they were doing all of the things that earn possession better than us. I asked the guys at halftime to be more aggressive and pick up the ball first so once we got a hold of it we could play the game more on our terms and I thought they did a great job of that." – Head Coach Brian Wiese
• "I feel amazing, it's so satisfying being able to beat a conference rival at home in the Sweet 16, what a feeling. My whole family that lives here, my best friends, they were all in the stands. It felt so good to have them come watch me and being able to see us win today." – Sophomore Marlon Tabora

How it Happened

• Despite the intense atmosphere, the first 30 minutes were relatively quiet as neither team managed much offensively. Both had opportunities, but could not turn them into a real chance.
• The game changed in the 36th minute when senior Zach Riviere was fouled just outside the box. Tabora had a free kick which clanged off of the near post. The rebound went to junior Dante Polvara who finished it to put the Blue & Gray up 1-0.
• Minutes before halftime, it was Polvara again as he hit a bending free kick and PC keeper Lukas Burns laid out to get a hand on it keeping it a one-goal game going into the break.
• Early in the second half, Georgetown added another with Tabora playing the hero. The sophomore was running down the field in space and found junior Stefan Stojanovic on the right side. Stojanovic played the give and go right back to Tabora in the box who hit the volley into the back of the net to make it 2-0.
• Tabora wasn't done yet, as an acrobatic pass from sophomore Chris Hegardt set up a perfect shot for Riviere. The senior's strike hit off of the crossbar and back to none other than Tabora as he tallied his second of the game in the 58th minute.
• Just six minutes later, Tabora would pick up the hat trick when he knocked in a near post ball from senior Aidan Rocha to get his third and make it 4-0 in favor of the Blue & Gray.
• Providence found a goal late, but the comeback would never come as GU closed out the match for the 4-1 victory.

Of Note

• Tabora finished the game with an impressive seven points.
• Georgetown outshot Providence 15-10 and the Blue & Gray had eight shots on goal to the Friars' five.
• The Hoyas were awarded five corner kicks, while Providence had three on the day.
• Nikopolidis took the win with four saves to his credit, while Burns was given the loss with four saves as well.
• The last hat trick for the Hoyas was Riviere against UCLA in 2019, but the last Georgetown hat trick in the NCAA Tournament dates back to Steve Neumann in 2012 when the Hoyas advanced past Maryland in the national semifinals.
• Neumann also holds the distinction of being the last Hoya to score seven points in a game tallying three goals and an assist in an 8-0 victory over Seton Hall during the 2013 season.
• The game was significant for the BIG EAST Conference as the league was guaranteed one team moving on to the quarterfinals.

Up Next
Georgetown will host West Virginia University Mountaineers on Saturday in the NCAA Championship Quarterfinals at Shaw Field. Kickoff is scheduled for noon. Live stats will be available at GUHoyas.com and the game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Dan Helfrich and Tom Greaser calling the action. Tickets are available here and fans are encouraged to purchase in advance.