The UMass Boston men’s soccer team traveled to MIT for a face-off Saturday, Sept 14. The first half of the match proved rough for both teams until the Beacons got a golden corner kick in the last 10 minutes of the half, putting the score at 1-0.
Senior back Diego Gisholt took the corner kick, but the Engineers’ goalkeeper punched the ball out, landing in freshman Eduardo Chirico’s vicinity. He made the most of the opportunity by netting the first goal of the game, and his second of the season.
The goal was followed by a foul deep in the Engineers’ territory; the Beacons took advantage of the last-minute chaos that ensued amongst their opponents. Gisholt took a free kick with just 30 seconds on the clock and was able to net it while the Engineers’ defense was completely out of position, bringing the Beacons up 2-0.
The start of the second half saw the Engineers desperately pursuing any chance to score. The moment finally came when the Engineers’ first year midfielder Shikar Motupally netted a goal, just missing the Beacon goalkeeper Andy Ramirez’s hand by a few inches, putting MIT just one goal behind.
With time running out in the second half, the Engineers took shot after shot in UMass Boston’s territory, but were unable to score. The Beacons quickly regained possession of the ball, and junior midfielder Elijah Elliot passed it to senior Josh DeAlmeida, who took a chance on a long kick and landed a goal for the team, earning them a 3-1 win against the Engineers.
This victory came after a series of draws and losses for UMass Boston, the Little East Conference favorite. This match could have been the turning point for their slump, possibly reigniting their momentum.
Unfortunately, it proved too good to be true. The rush from their win was short-lived as the Beacons traveled to Bridgewater State University Monday, Sept 16, tying the Bears in a 1-1 finish.
The Beacons were in possession of the ball for almost the entire first half. With just a couple of minutes remaining, DeAlmeida netted the match opener with Elliot’s help, bringing the Beacons up 1-0.
The start of the second half was a tough battle for both of the teams. The Bears’ failure to score early on in the second half certainly worked out well for the Beacons. But their advantage didn’t last long after the Bears were presented with a free kick, changing the trajectory of play.
With less than five minutes left and the Bears in control, Justin Silva netted the equalizer. The shot was taken 25 yards away from the Beacon goal post. The ball played out wide right into Silva’s lap, who wasted no time in taking the shot to knot things up.
What could have been a winning match ended in a draw. The Beacons tried their best but were unfortunately unable to turn the game around. There’s plenty of time in season left, and the Beacons have lots of work left to climb back up to the top.
