Springfield, Mass. (October 12, 2024) – The Golden Bears hosted the Leopards for their annual Senior Day game on Saturday. WNE carried the Senior Day momentum into the game and would see a 1-0 lead at halftime. Roger Leland would double the lead with the eventual game-winning goal. Vinny Detrone would cut the Golden Bears' lead in half with a goal in the 61st minute. However, WNE would hold on and win the game 2-1.

Records:

• Western New England: 6-6-3 (2-1-1)
• Wentworth Institute of Technology: 6-6-2 (2-2-0)

How it Happened:

The game began with Braylon Casinghino and Noah Lawless in goal for the Golden Bears and Leopards, respectively. The teams tried to get a feel for the game in the first few minutes. Then, the Golden Bears would start to attack with shots in the 5th and 10th minutes and a corner kick in the 10th minute also. Neither shot would test Lawless. The Leopards answered with a shot which went wide in the 15th minute. Keegan Reim took the first shot on goal in the 16th minute. Lawless made the save. The Golden Bears kept applying pressure with a 21st-minute corner kick leading to a shot blocked. The next corner kick in the 21st minute would end up with Tyler Lewis. Lewis sent a cross to the front of the goal and it was deflected in by a WIT defender. The Golden Bears led 1-0 in the 22nd minute. The Golden Bears went right back on the attack with a Jack Leland shot in the 24th minute, which Lawless parried away for a corner kick. They also had shots in the 26th and 29th minutes go wide. After some back-and-forth play, the Golden Bears had three shots between the 35th and 38th minutes. Tyler Lewis had the third shot, and it tested Lawless in goal. Lawless made the save. WIT had the final shot of the first half; however, it was blocked, and the Golden Bears led 1-0 at half. The first-half stats showed the Golden Bears leading in shots 10-2, shots on goal 3-0, and corner kicks 4-0. WIT led in saves 3-0 and fouls 10-4.

The second half began with the teams sending the ball from one side of the field to the other. That was before Ryan Sunshine ran down the right side of the field and sent a cross into the penalty box, which Roger Leland rose up for and sent a header shot crashing into the top-right corner of the net. The Golden Bears led 2-0. There were not many shots for a little while after that goal. WNE had one after a corner kick which went over the goal. Then, in the 61st minute, the Leopards found an opportunity with Adamo Tsakris sending the ball to Vinny Detrone, who sent a quick shot into the back of the WNE net to cut the WNE lead in half. The Golden Bears led 2-1. The Golden Bears responded with the next seven shots of the game and a corner kick. Between the 62nd and 74th minutes, the Golden Bears saw six shots mix the mark, with two colliding with the goalposts. Aiden Casinghino had the final shot of that stretch. Lawless made the save. Both teams had a corner kick during that time. The Leopards answered with a shot from Younes Henniche, which Braylon Casinghino was able to save.

The Golden Bears had two shots after that, which would not test Lawless in goal. The Leopards responded with three shots in a row with under ten minutes left in the game. Only one tested Casinghino, but Casinghino made the save in the 88th minute. That would secure the WNE victory as the Golden Bears saw Tyler Lewis and Aiden Casinghino send shots on goal, but the Leopards did not have another major opportunity. The Golden Bears won the game 2-1. The final stats showed WNE with more shots 23-7, shots on goal 7-3, and corner kicks 6-1. The Leopards had more saves, 6-2, and fouls, 18-13.

Coach's Corner

After the game, head coach Devin O'Neill was asked for a comment on the crucial 2-1 conference victory. "A lot of respect for Wentworth, they played a very good game. It was a hard-fought win. Any points in the conference are tough. I felt like we created some good chances, and we responded well when they scored in the second half," O'Neill stated. "Some critical performances off the bench. Brandon Lewis and Owen Dieterle did a wonderful job in terms of sorting things out."

Goal-scorer Roger Leland was asked to take us through the eventual game-winning goal. "Pretty crazy feeling! I think the wind played a big factor in the game today, so judging headers off that was pretty tough. I realized on the cross that it was kind of coming high over the other kid, so I kind of got a few steps behind him, made the jump, and it kind of just lined up perfectly. It felt good seeing it in the back of the net," Leland answered.

Senior captain Mike Milazzo was asked how it felt to get the win on Senior Day. "It felt great, you know," Milazzo commented. "It felt amazing. It felt awesome, especially for the seven seniors we got on the team. I loved it."

Inside the Lines:

• The Golden Bears hosted the Wentworth Institute of Technology on Saturday in a conference showdown.
• 21:32 – The ball deflected off a WIT player after Tyler Lewis sent a cross into the penalty box. The Golden Bears led 1-0.
• 54:19 – Roger Leland netted a header shot to double the Golden Bear lead. Ryan Sunshine was credited with the assist. The Golden Bears led 2-0.
• 60:21 – Vinny Detrone cut the WNE lead in half with a goal assisted by Adamo Tsakris. The Golden Bears led 2-1.
• Noah Lawless made six saves on eight attempts.
• Braylon Casinghino made two saves on three attempts to lead the Golden Bears to a conference victory.
• The Golden Bears beat the Leopards 2-1.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE will travel to Suffolk University for their next conference game on Wednesday, October 16, 2024, at 7:00 PM.
• The Leopards will host the University of New England in their next conference game on Tuesday, October 15, 2024, at 4:00 PM.