BOSTON, MA (November 7, 2024) – The UMass Boston men's soccer team's 2024 season comes to a halting finish following a thrilling Little East Conference Semi-Final battle with the Rhode Island College Anchormen. A 0-0 double-overtime finish, the Anchormen outscored the Beacons 4-5 on penalty kicks.
The Basics:
(2OT) UMass Boston 0 – 0 Rhode Island College: 4-5 Penalty Kicks
UMass Boston: 11-6-2 (6-2-1 LEC)
RIC: 10-1-6 (6-0-3 LEC)
How it Happened

• The Beacons began the first half with possession. RIC Set the tone early with two back-to-back fouls. Only 11 total shots flew in the first half cumulatively. The Beacons added five in the first half compared to the Anchormen's six. The best opportunity from both sides came in the expiring moments of the opening half. Lucas Duquette registered a shot that initially beat the Beacons' graduate goalkeeper Andy Ramirez (Waltham, Mass.), but was blessed with a ricochet off the woodwork. Michael Strain was in the right place at the right time, but put the rebound too high over the bar. In the responding counter-attack, seniors Diego Gisholt (Tijuana, Mex.) and Logan Erickson Potter (Swansea, Mass.), along with sophomore midfielder Jair Whyte (St. Johns, Antigua and Barbuda) triangled their way down the right wing in the expiring moments. Erickson Potter teed up Whyte who one touched a through ball that set up Gisholt on the goal-line. His shot was placed on target forcing the Wesley Perotto save.
• The Beacons offense calculated their attacks in the second half, setting up some of their premiere scorers, sophomore John Arruda (Espirito Santo, Bra.), Patrick Garcia (Brookline, Mass.), and Rafael Gross (Minas Gerias, Bra.), each of them registering shots on target, but to no avail. The Anchormen responded with heavy offensive pressure in the second half, but the comforts of home bolstered an already suffocating Beacons' defense, and Ramirez met every opportunity with swiftness. 90 minutes of soccer expired, and the game could still not decide a winner.
• With two minutes remaining in the first overtime period, the Beacons scrambled for a corner. Feeling the pressure of the clock, senior back Max Mian laced in a swinging corner that was initially headed down by Arruda but was met by Perotto. Junior midfielder Luan Cruz, and Whyte each took a poke at the rebound, but Perotto was able to bat out each of the attempts to keep the Anchormen alive for another period.
• The final overtime period was a battle in the midfield, with no real opportunities arising for the Beacons. Ramirez added a remarkable save following a Sekou Kamara breakaway to send the game into a nail-biting penalty shootout.
• One-by-one, the Anchormen and Beacons alternated attempts from the spot. First-year Eduardo Chirico (Minas Gerias, Bra.) stepped up first for UMass Boston, and calmly finished in the bottom right past a diving Perotto. With acclimating pressure, Whyte stepped up next for the Beacons and finished in the same fashion as Chirico. Perotto made the save on UMass Boston's fourth effort, and Nathan Cepello stepped up to capitalize on the advantage, putting an end to the Beacons 2024 season.

By the Numbers:

• The Beacons were outshot 16-13 but registered a 7-3 shots on goal advantage. Excluding Ramirez in net, the Beacons had four players with 110 minutes on the pitch. Whyte, Erickson Potter, Cruz, and sophomore back Ian Visnick (Beverly, Mass.) each required full participation in the effort, leaving 110% on the field. Chirico attributed three shots, however Arruda teed up the most chances, with two shots on goal, good for a team high. In 110 minutes, Ramirez kept a clean sheet against 16 shots, registering three saves. From the corner, the two teams were dead even with five apiece.
• Finishing out the 2024 campaign, the Beacons outscored opponents 31-9, outshot opponents 263-181, held opponents to a microscopic 0.53 goals a game, and converted 52.3% of shots recorded on target. Erickson Potter concludes his four-year tenure as a Beacons leading the team in points with five goals and six assists. Gisholt ends the season with seven assists as one of the LEC's prime playmakers. Ramirez in his only season with UMass Boston finishes an undefeated 9-0-4 with 10 combined shutouts as the LEC's top goalkeeper. The boys in blue and white have nothing to hang their head over an outstanding and hard fought season, leaving the 210 supporters from the BC High JV Fields in optimism for what's to come in the future.

What's Next:

• Keep an eye out for post-season All-LEC, All-Region, and All-American awards, coming soon with the conclusion of the LEC, and national soccer postseasons.