The UMass Boston men’s soccer team is breaking out of their temporary slump with two consecutive Little East Conference wins. The first of these games was against the UMass Dartmouth Corsairs Wednesday, Oct. 2.
Their second win was bagged recently on Saturday, Oct. 5 against the Rhode Island College Anchormen. In the first fifteen minutes, the Beacons took a free kick from their own defensive line to open the game. It was received by junior midfielder Luan Cruz, who then passed it to sophomore midfielder Jair Whyte. The ball found the foot of senior defenseman Diego Gisholt, who was standing deep into enemy territory and managed to net a goal without any backup, giving the Beacons a 1-0 lead.
This gave the Beacons a much-needed boost of confidence: the second half saw the team applying great offensive pressure to their opponent. Shortly after, freshman Eduardo Chirico showcased his exquisite dribbling skills as he managed to confuse an Anchormen defender with an overhead flick.
The ball was passed to Gisholt, who then managed to find senior forward Logan Erickson-Potter. An exceptional diving header by Potter was secured the Beacons a 2-0 lead.
This exerted a lot of pressure on the Anchormen to score. Their desperation was rewarded by a mistouch in the backfield, which allowed the Anchormen to steal possession and net an easy goal, narrowing the score gap to 2-1. This was the Anchormen’s first and last goal throughout the game.
Freshman goalkeeper Andy Ramirez managed two saves against three shots that were taken on the Beacons’ goalpost; he’s undefeated with a record of 3-0-2. Ramirez guarded the post for the complete 80 minutes of the game with senior goalkeeper JJ Devine out for the season due to a torn meniscus. Luckily for the team, Ramirez can pick up the slack.
This is the Beacons’ fourth win of the season, and their second consecutive win — but they still have a long way to go with the season.
The team seems to have picked up their momentum. Every single match that the team has won, the Beacons have opened by scoring first. This is instrumental in the team gaining confidence. Every single goal adds to their self-confidence, which helps them keep their head in the game and build up the lead.
But this is not the case in every single game; there are games that the Beacons opened and were unable to close. The team is determined to not fall back into familiar patterns, and will hopefully keep their momentum alive until the end of the season.
The Beacons will reclaim their home field Wednesday, Oct. 16. These next games will provide the team with an opportunity to salvage the remainder of their season.
