Openda scores quickfire hat trick as Lens routs Clermont 4-0

CLERMONT, France — Lois Openda scored a hat trick in a four-minute span to help Lens move into third place in the French league with a 4-0 win over mid-table Clermont on Sunday.

Lens trails second-place Marseille by a point and is 3 points clear of Monaco.

Openda had not scored in his 11 previous games in all competitions, but he rediscovered his touch by slipping the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Mory Diaw in the 31st minute from a tight angle.

Hungry for more, Openda closed down Clermont midfielder Maxime Gonalons, who lost possession to Adrien Thomasson in the 34th. A selfless Thomasson set up Openda, who doubled the lead with a low strike.

The Belgian striker smelled blood again in the 35th, intercepting a poor back pass from Mateusz Wieteska to round Diaw and slot into an empty net for his 12th league goal this season.

Lens substitute Alexis Claude-Maurice sealed the win in the 76th with a goal set up by Openda.

It could have been a different story if Lens centerback Jonathan Gradit had not made a crucial block in the 20th. Clermont winger Aiman Maurer beat goalkeeper Brice Samba, but Gradit cleared the ball off the line.

The 27th round ends later Sunday with Marseille vs. Strasbourg, Monaco vs. Reims, Nantes vs. Nice, Lorient vs. Troyes, Angers vs. Toulouse, and Ajaccio vs. Montpellier.

On Saturday, Paris Saint-Germain edged Brest 2-1 to extend its lead to 11 points.