Endicott Stifles Men’s Soccer, 4-1

BEVERLY, Mass. – Endicott put away three unanswered goals over the second half to hand Suffolk men's soccer a 4-1 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) setback Saturday afternoon at Hampstead Stadium.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 1 | Endicott 4
RECORDS: Suffolk (7-6-1, 3-3-0 CCC) | Endicott (5-6-1, 4-1-1 CCC) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
Endicott controlled the pace of play from start to finish in the first half out shooting Suffolk 14-1 with all six shots on goal in the first 45 minutes belonging the Gulls. One of those attempts trickled into the Rams' goal line to give Endicott an edge at intermission. 

In the 32nd minute, Cole Ferguson subbed in for a throw in near Suffolk's net to give Endicott a taller striker. Once Elijah Wilson tossed the rock back into play, the ball was batted around in the box before Ferguson gained possession and quickly buried it in the bottom left to give the Gulls the 1-0 gap. 

Suffolk wasted little time to fire shots on target. Four minutes out of the break, TJ Maselek took matters into his own hands, well head and feet, as the freshman put a pair of attempts on net. Off a corner kick by Nigel Leo, Maselek headed the ball that looked good before Kyle Rosa chucked it aside. Maselek picked up his own rebound though and quickly fired back at Rosa, but once again the Gulls goalie did his job to keep his team ahead. 

Determination paid off for the Rams as their goal came in the 57th minute. Maselek played a part in it as the freshman's initial shot on the breakaway was blocked by sliding Camden Rigsby. The Gulls defender look to clear the box, but instead Leo stepped in front of it and lopped it same side high over and outstretched Rosa to equalize matters at 1.    

Joe Cusack broke the 1-1 tie in the 69th minute when he rifled home a loose ball just inside the 18. 

Endicott managed to extend its lead even further following back-to-back strikes from Cole Elgin and Joe Mepham over a nine-second span in the 80th minute, respectively, to send Suffolk back to Beantown with the loss.  

KEEPING UP WITH THE KEEPERS

• Xander Balog notched six saves in the setback. 
• Rosa recorded the victory with an eight-save effort over 71:38 of action. 
• Zach Regulbuto started in net for the Gulls.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Leo logged Suffolk's only goal unassisted. 
• Endicott outshot the Rams, 25-15, and held a slim edge in shots on target, 10-9. 
• The Gulls took more corners than the blue-and-gold, 9-6.  

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk met Endicott for the third time, first since Sept. 10, 2012. 
• The Rams and Gulls battled in Beverly, Massachusetts, for the second time. 
• Leo extended his point streak to three straight games. In that span he has produced seven points with four goals and one helper.   

POST-GAME PIC
  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk will be back in Eastie Wednesday, Oct. 20 when it hosts Wentworth at 7 p.m. at East Boston Memorial Park's James A. Sartori Stadium.