WORCESTER, Mass. – Junior forward
Josh DeAlmeida netted two goals, his second and third of the season, as the UMass Boston Men's Soccer got back in the win column with a 2-0 victory over Worcester State on Wednesday night to notch their second win of the season.
THE BASICS
UMass Boston 2, Worcester State 0
UMass Boston (2-2-1)
Worcester State (2-2-1)
HOW IT HAPPENED
A chippy first half led to 16 total fouls being called with the Beacons earning 10 of those calls to only six for the Lancers. Amidst the aggressive play was a stout UMass Boston defense which held Worcester State in check for the entirety of the opening 45 minutes. Junior midfielder Manny Ramirez recorded the only first half shot for the Lancers in the 35
th minute, missing wide of freshman goalkeeper
Victor Reyes who was making his first collegiate start in goal for the Beacons.
UMass Boston would finish up the first half with five total shots, three of which made it on net. That included the first goal from DeAlmeida on a pass from sophomore defender
Logan Erickson Potter in the 17
th minute, and two more shots on goal from freshman midfielder
Ryan Lima that threatened to extend the Beacon lead. The UMass Boston defense stifled Worcester State, allowing them to get just one corner in the first half and forced junior goalkeeper Andy Ramirez to make two saves in net.
The Beacon offense came out in the second half playing aggressive as a quick shot by Lima led to a corner kick followed by another shot on Andy Ramirez by sophomore defender
Diego Gisholt. Gisholt's shot rattled off the post and found the foot of DeAlmeida who in the 48
th minute recorded his second goal of the game to give UMass Boston a 2-0 edge.
A short while later, the Lancers recorded their first shot on goal when junior defender Matt Alzamora headed the ball towards Reyes but was denied by the freshman goalkeeper in the 49
th minute. That would be one of only two shots on goals that the Lancers manufactured against the UMass Boston defense with the other coming in the 74
th minute by Manny Ramirez who was turned away by Reyes as the Beacons were victorious, 2-0.
BY THE NUMBERS
- In his first collegiate start in goal, Victor Reyes made two saves on the two shots he faced, tying his career high
- Each team only manufactured one corner each with Worcester State's coming in the first half and UMass Boston's coming in the second half
- Aggressive play from both sides continued in the final 45 minutes of play as the teams combined for 28 fouls, 19 for the Beacons and nine for the Lancers
- The Beacons held a 12-8 margin in shots and 8-2 edge in shots on goal
- This was the sixth consecutive win for UMass Boston over Worcester State, they are now 9-3 all-time versus the Lancers
WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston head into the penultimate match of their seven-game road trip against Eastern Connecticut State University to kick off Little East Conference play on Saturday afternoon at 1:00 PM at Nevers Field.