WORCESTER, Mass.  – Freshman forward Luan Cruz and junior forward Josh DeAlmeida each scored for UMass Boston Men's Soccer on the road against Worcester Polytechnic Institute, helping the Beacons overcome two one-goal deficits in each half to tie the Engineers, 2-2, on the road in their final non-conference match of the regular season.

THE BASICS

UMass Boston 2, Worcester Polytechnic Institute 2

UMass Boston (9-3-3)

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (6-4-6)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

WPI would get on the scoreboard first after firing seven of their first eight shots of the match on goal at junior goalkeeper Qasim El-Ashkar in net. The Engineers would breakthrough in the 33^rd minute when sophomore forward Filippo Marcantoni found sophomore forward Matthew McLellan in traffic near the box. McLellan would fire on El-Ashkar between three defenders on the ground, squeaking the ball just under the goalkeeper's outstretched arms to give WPI the 1-0 lead.

Luan Cruz would tie the match up at one with just 22 seconds left in the first half on UMass Boston's first shot on goal in the game. On a free kick attempt by junior midfielder Maan Albehacy, Cruz possessed the ball after it caromed off the foot off DeAlmeida and lifted it past junior goalkeeper Ryan Martin for his third goal of the season.

The Engineers would strike first in the second half as well to reclaim the lead, 2-1, when sophomore forward Ryan Dalton capitalized on a miscue by the Beacon defense. Dalton darted into the backfield, taking the ball away from senior midfielder Cristian Suvak before sprinting towards the goal and placing a shot behind a sliding El-Ashkar.

But after just under 15 minutes of play in the half, the Beacon offense became for aggressive, and it paid off when a failed clear by the WPI defense results in the ball finding DeAlmeida's foot inside the box. Surrounded by three defenders, DeAlmeida quickly fired on net, freezing Martin in goal, and scoring his seventh goal of the season, an equalizer that would lead to the final score of 2-2.

 
BY THE NUMBERS

• WPI outshot UMass Boston 24-10 and 12-5 in shots on goal
• Despite being outshot, the Beacons held a 6-1 advantage in corner kicks
• Entering the day, the Beacons were 0-2 all-time versus the Engineers
• This week, WPI was ranked 5^th in the United States Coaches Region II Poll

WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston closes out the regular season with a Little East Conference matchup versus Castleton on Saturday at 1:00 PM on the road. The Beacons are already locked in at the two seed in the LEC Tournament next week, giving them an automatic bye to the semifinals which will be played at home next Thursday.