PLYMOUTH, N.H.—Two-time defending Little East Conference Champion UMass Boston men's soccer opened up their title defense with a bang, as Mohamed Kenawy's (Revere, Mass.) hat trick highlighted a 5-0 win over host Plymouth State University.

THE BASICS

#13/17 UMass Boston 5, Plymouth State 0

(UMass Boston 6-0-0, Little East 1-0-0)

(Plymouth State 2-2-1, Little East 0-1-0) 

HOW IT HAPPENED

After taking a 1-0 lead into the break, UMass Boston scored four goals in the final 23 minutes in a 2015 LEC Semifinal Rematch.

Kenawy carried the scoring load with his second-career hat trick and his third, fourth and fifth tallies of the season. In three starts, Kenawy has already contributed 11 points.

Senior Klismam Mendes (Fogo, Cape Verde) and junior Matt Coakley (Medway, Mass.) also found the back of the net late in the second half.

Daniel Morales (San Diego, Calif.) and Calvin Smick (Wilmington, Del.) each were credited with assists in the contest.

Omar Castro-Dreher (Woonsocket, R.I.) made a sterling debut in conference play, as he stopped all three shots he faced to improve to 5-0-0. 

Senior Felix Lindeberg dropped to 2-2-1 on the season, after stopping six shots. James Mansour came on for the final 11 minutes and allowed one goal on one shot. 

Kenawy consistently found open space throughout the afternoon and was able to score at 4:11 after receiving a through ball and finishing from 12-yards out on the right side of the box.

After a long spell of possession and chances but no goals, the Beacons blew the game wide open in a four-minute spurt during the second half.

Mendes tallied his first goal of the season at 67:03, before Kenawy completed his hat trick with goals at 70:15 and 70:43.

Coakley completed the scoring with less than a minute to go, as the junior found the back of the net for the second time in as many games at 89:15.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Kenawy becomes the first player to score a hat trick for the Beacons this season. He's the first player to have scored three goals in a game since Edmilson Barros (Praia, Cape Verde) found the back of the net four times against Massachusetts Maritime Academy on October 28, 2015.
• UMass Boston outshot the Panthers 17-7 and held an 11-4 advantage in corner kicks.
• Senior Pedro De Carvalho (Praia, Cape Verde) made his season debut this afternoon, after missing the first five games of the season.
• The Beacons earned their fifth shutout in six games. The program record is eight shutouts, set by the 2014 team. 

WHO'S NEXT

#13/17 UMass Boston will travel to Colby-Sawyer College on Wednesday afternoon for a 2 p.m. non-conference matchup.