New London, Conn. (September 26, 2023) - The Golden Bears rolled into New London, Connecticut, for a non-conference game against Connecticut College. WNE was coming into the game fresh off a conference win on Saturday, hoping to keep the momentum going and get another win. The Golden Bears kept the game close and tied in the first half. The Camels would score five in the second half to win the game 5-0.

Records:

• Western New England: 1-4-4 (1-0-1)
• Connecticut College: 5-0-2 (1-0-2)

How it Happened:

The Golden Bears and Camels got set to kick off the midweek non-conference matchup. Braylon Casinghino was in one net for the Golden Bears, and Peter Silvester was in the other net for the Camels. Connecticut College had the kickoff in the first half. They worked the ball around and tried to make a move towards the Golden Bear net. That was the same from the Golden Bears. Both teams tried to get behind the other team's defense. Both defenses held strong and pushed the other team aside. The ball went back and forth from team to team. The 7th minute saw Shay O'Neill send a shot toward the net. However, it was wide left and did not require a save from Silvester. That was followed up by both teams trying to make runs toward the net, but again, neither could crack the other team's defense. The 19th minute saw Mike Milazzo get an opportunity, but the shot missed to the left of the net, and the result was a goal kick. There was more back-and-forth action from the teams.

The 25th minute saw a corner kick from the Camels, but nothing would come from it. The 32nd minute saw the Golden Bears have another opportunity. Jake Thibodeau had a shot, but the shot went right of the net. That was followed up by a Camels shot. Sam Boehm sent the Camels' first shot at net in the 34th minute, making Casinghino dive to the right and make the save. The Camels had the final shot of the first half. In the 41st minute, Marco Cerezo sent a shot wide right of the net. After one half of action, the Golden Bears had three shots, and the Camels had two. The Camels had one shot on net compared to the Golden Bears, who had none. The Camels led in corners, 3-0, and the teams both had three fouls each. The score was 0-0 at the break.

The action got picked up quicker in the second half than in the first half. The Golden Bears kicked off. However, Maurice Pigola got the action started with a shot blocked by the WNE defense in the 49th minute. The Camels would pressure the Golden Bears by keeping the ball in the Golden Bear end of the pitch. However, nothing would come of it for some time. The 60th minute saw Aidan Keith send a shot above the crossbar and over Casinghino. The 66th minute saw the Golden Bears get a shot off. However, it was blocked by a Connecticut College defender. Two shots from the Camels in the 68th and 69th minutes followed that. The first, from Jake Creus, was sent towards the upper left corner of the net. However, Casinghino was there for the save. The second was from Gavin Mpiana, who had the shot blocked. In the 71st minute, the Camels found the back of the net. Gavin Mpiana sent a free kick from the right side of the pitch towards the swarm of players in the 18-yard box. Jake Creus got a foot on it and deflected it into the bottom-left corner of the net. The Camels had the lead, 1-0. Twenty-four seconds later, it was Mpiana to Creus again via a through ball. Creus moved the ball to the right and sent a shot to the net. Casignhino got a hand on the ball, but it still found its way into the back of the net. The Camels now had a 2-0 lead. Matt Scoffone was the next player to go for goal for the Camels. Casinghino made a nice save and parried it out of bounds. Ryan Suprin would then go in for Casinghino and play the rest of the game in net. The teams would send the ball back and forth for a little while. In the 84th minute, the Camels were on a run towards net when a player was taken down inside the 18-yard box. That led to a penalty kick by Christian Perugini. Perugini ran up and sent the ball to the left side of the net. Suprin dove to the left, but the ball just got over him, and the Camels had a 3-0 lead. The 87th minute saw the fourth goal of the second half. A corner for the Camels was taken by Gavin Vanden Berg. It was lofted to Charlie Miles. Miles sent a header shot back to the right corner of the net and in. The Camels lead was stretched to 4-0. The Camels kept going with a shot in the 89th minute from a free kick by Vanden Berg. Suprin got a hand on the ball, but the ball deflected into the net. The Camels had their fifth goal, and that would be the final goal of the game. The final score was 5-0, Camels. The game ended with the Camels having 13 shots, compared to the four from the Golden Bears. The Camels had all eight of the shots on goal for both teams. The Camels led in corners, 10-1, and fouls were even at ten per side. 

Inside the Lines:

• WNE traveled to New London, Connecticut, for a matchup against the Connecticut College Camels.
• The score was knotted at zero at halftime.
• Jake Creus scored in the 71st minute of play. Gavin Mpiana had the assist on a free kick. That gave the Camels the lead, 1-0.
• Jake Creus scored 24 seconds later in the 71st minute. Gavin Mpiana has the assist on a through ball to Creus. That made the score 2-0, Camels.
• Christian Perugini scored on a penalty kick in the 84th minute to make the score 3-0.
• Charlie Miles headed a shot to the right side of the net after a corner from Gavin Vanden Berg, who was credited with the assist. The Camels lead was stretched to 4-0.
• Vanden Berg scored from a free kick in the 89th minute to make the score 5-0.
• The Camels beat the Golden Bears 5-0.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears will return to Springfield for their next game against the University of New England. The game will be played on Saturday, September 30, at 2:30 PM.
• The Camels will travel to Clinton, New York, for a matchup with Hamilton College. They will play on Saturday, September 30, at 1:30 PM.