Burnaby, BC - The Simon Fraser University Clan men's soccer team won an intense match against the Montana State University Billings Yellowjackets 2-0 at Terry Fox Field on Thursday night to open conference play.

"We really worked hard, it was a great team effort," said goalkeeper JD Blakley (Saskatoon, SK).  "Everytime they had the ball, we were pressuring them as much as we could and it paid off.  It was a hard fought game and it's good to come away with the win."

Both teams were playing a very defensive game, exchanging possession throughout the first half.

In the 34th minute, a great set up from by Jovan Blagojevic (Coquitlam, BC) to Justin Wallace (Kamloops, BC) led Chris Bargholz (Fuessen, Germany) to an open net, and Bargholz made no mistake, giving SFU a 1-0 lead.

With 15 minutes left in the first half, Thomas Sheets had a great chance on Blakley, but the Clan keeper was up to the task, making a tremendous save to preserve the 1-0 lead.

Just over 10 minutes into the second half, the Clan added to their lead when John Hodnett (Wolverhampton, UK) deposited a shot in the top corner to make it 2-0.

The Clan held on to the two goal advantage and kept the Yellowjackets off the scoresheet, as Blakley earned his second shut out of the season.

With the win, the Clan improve to 5-0 on the season and are now 1-0 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.

The Clan will be back in action on Saturday at Terry Fox Field when they host the Northwest Nazarene Crusaders at 3.00 p.m.  Admission is free.