The men’s soccer team’s 3-0 victory against Eastern Connecticut State Oct. 18 marked head coach Jake Beverlin’s 143rd win, solidifying him as the coach with the most games won in program history.
The team then traveled to Gorham Oct. 22 to take on the Southern Maine Huskies and retreated with a 2-2 draw.
The Beacons were off to a not-so-great start against the Eastern Connecticut Warriors and went scoreless in the first half. The Warriors’ goalkeeper worked the Beacons’ offense to the bone — UMass Boston took more shots in the first half and still did not manage to put any in the net.
The breakthrough came for the Beacons in the 50th minute when one corner kick led to back-to-back shots from sophomores Eduardo Chirico and Felipe DeAndrade, paving the way for junior Rafael Gross managed to sneak a goal through the Warriors defense, giving UMass Boston a 1-0 lead.
This set the momentum for the Beacons, and within 10 minutes Chirico doubled the team’s lead. Soon after, DeAndrade secured the win with a 3-0 advantage over the Warriors.
Assistant coach Marcello Cunha stated, “This is huge. A conference win is usually hard to get — it doesn’t matter who we play. We are very happy to get a conference win and just keep moving. … We just gotta be ready come playoff time and make sure we click again.”
Junior captain Ian Visnick later added, “There’s always things to improve on, that’s the beauty of the game. We are carefully optimistic; we are taking it day by day and moving into tomorrow, it looks pretty good.”
The Beacons then traveled to Gorham, Maine, for a face-off against the Huskies, but came back with a 2-2 draw.
The Huskies opened the match with a goal in the eighth minute, securing a 1-0 lead over the Beacons. The team retaliated shortly after in the 29th minute with a goal from junior John Arruda. Since joining the Beacons, Arruda has received the Little East Conference’s offensive player of the week award almost every season.
The Huskies though were not happy with the equalizer and responded with a goal in the 41st minute, bringing back their lead and concluding the first half with a 2-1 advantage.
The second half saw an offensively charged Beacons, and they made 19 shots on goal. Their efforts were rewarded in the 88th minute when junior Ryan Doherty scored his second goal of the season, bringing the opponent’s lead down to 2-2 and tying the game. Senior Ryan Lima led the Beacons on the offensive front, while first-year goalkeeper Mario Hajhdi stood his ground defensively.
The Beacons had a three-game winning streak before their tie against Southern Maine. They have found their momentum and are ready for the playoffs.
