SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 31, 2026) – A scoreless battle through 110 minutes came down to penalty kicks on Saturday afternoon, as the Western New England University men's soccer team advanced to the Conference of New England (CNE) Tournament semifinals with a 3-2 shootout victory over the University of Hartford at Suprenant Field. After both teams were held scoreless through regulation and two overtime periods, the Golden Bears converted three of their four penalty attempts, while goalkeeper Brendan L'Italien helped hold the Hawks to just two successful conversions. Marcus Joshi delivered WNE's final successful attempt before Hartford missed its fifth opportunity, sending the Golden Bears into Wednesday night's semifinal matchup.

Records:

Western New England: 7-5-6 (5-2-2 CNE)

Hartford: 7-7-3 (5-4-1 CNE)

How It Happened:

First Half:

• The Golden Bears opened the contest with an early corner kick at the 3:13 mark, while Hartford registered the first shot of the afternoon when Jared Noble sent an attempt over the crossbar in the seventh minute. Noble added another opportunity in the 18th minute, but his attempt sailed wide of the upper-left corner as both sides remained scoreless.

• Western New England registered its first shot on goal in the 15th minute when Andrew Macca directed an attempt toward the bottom-right corner of the net. Hartford goalkeeper Cristian Vitti made the save, leading to another Golden Bears corner kick just four seconds later.

• WNE continued searching for the opening goal as the first half progressed. Tyler Lewis tested Vitti in the 30th minute with an attempt toward the bottom center of the net, but the Hartford goalkeeper turned it away to preserve the scoreless tie.

• The Golden Bears generated two more opportunities late in the half. Marcus Joshi sent an attempt over the crossbar in the 36th minute before Cole Casinghino placed a shot on target in the 38th minute that was credited as a team save for Hartford. Western New England followed Casinghino's attempt with another corner kick.

• Hartford looked to break through before halftime when Rory Ohalloran directed a shot toward the bottom-right corner in the 42nd minute. L'Italien made the save, keeping the Hawks off the scoreboard. Western New England entered the break with a 4-3 advantage in shots and a 4-2 edge in corner kicks, with neither team able to find the opening goal.

Second Half:

• Hartford came out of halftime with three early shots on goal, forcing L'Italien into action. The Golden Bears' goalkeeper denied Eddie Hageman in the 48th minute, Ron Palilo in the 50th minute and Kyle Theobald just 23 seconds later, keeping the contest scoreless through the opening five minutes of the second half.

• Western New England responded with an opportunity from Jacob Dounetos in the 62nd minute, though his shot missed to the left. Just under a minute later, Lewis registered another attempt on goal, directing a shot toward the bottom-left corner that Vitti saved to keep the Golden Bears off the scoreboard.

• Both teams continued creating opportunities through the middle stages of the half. Hartford's Noble sent an attempt wide in the 66th minute, while Ryan Sunshine answered with a shot that missed left in the 67th minute. Ohalloran followed with an attempt over the crossbar for Hartford before Owen Dieterle sent a WNE shot wide in the 76th minute.

• The Hawks registered two attempts from Cole Jones in the 83rd and 84th minutes, while Yihun Burnham answered for Western New England in the 88th minute with a shot that sailed over the crossbar. The Golden Bears continued searching for a breakthrough after generating three second-half corner kicks.

• Hartford threatened in the final minute of regulation, with Jonathan Gutierrez recording an attempt at 89:25 before Noble placed a shot on target just five seconds later. L'Italien made his fourth save of the second half to preserve the shutout and send the contest into overtime. Hartford outshot WNE 9-5 during the second half, but the teams remained tied at zero after 90 minutes.

Overtime:

• Western New England opened the first overtime period with an attempt from Jake Thibodeau in the 92nd minute before earning three corner kicks over the next three minutes. Nick Adzima registered a shot on goal in the 97th minute, but Vitti made the save. Brennan Johnson followed with another opportunity in the 98th minute, sending his attempt wide of the upper-right corner.

• The Golden Bears continued generating opportunities during the second overtime period, earning three additional corner kicks. Nigel Martin recorded an attempt in the 107th minute that sailed over the crossbar, while Ben Riley placed a shot toward the bottom center of the net in the 108th minute, forcing another save from Vitti.

• Hartford recorded its lone shot of overtime in the 109th minute when Jaiden Daigle sent an attempt wide right. Western New England finished the extra 20 minutes with a 5-1 advantage in shots and a 7-1 edge in corner kicks, but neither team could find the winning goal. The scoreless contest advanced to a penalty-kick shootout.

Penalty-Kick Shootout:

• Hartford opened the shootout with a missed attempt from Noble before Dounetos converted Western New England's first opportunity, giving the Golden Bears an early advantage. Brayden Tahiliani answered for Hartford, but Dieterle converted WNE's second attempt to keep the Golden Bears ahead.

• Jones converted Hartford's third attempt before Lewis was unable to score on WNE's third opportunity, leveling the shootout at two successful conversions apiece. The Golden Bears regained the advantage when Palilo missed Hartford's fourth attempt and Joshi converted for Western New England.

• With the Golden Bears leading 3-2, Hartford's Zaire Wharton missed the Hawks' fifth attempt, securing the shootout victory for Western New England and sending the Golden Bears into the CNE Tournament semifinals.

Inside the Box Score:

• Western New England held a 14-13 advantage in total shots, including a 5-1 edge across the two overtime periods.

• The Golden Bears generated 14 corner kicks compared with Hartford's four, including seven corners during overtime.

• Brendan L'Italien played all 110 minutes in goal for Western New England, recording five saves without conceding a goal.

• Hartford goalkeeper Cristian Vitti also played all 110 minutes, recording five individual saves as the Hawks finished with six total saves, including one team save.

• Tyler Lewis led the Golden Bears with two shots, both on goal. Andrew Macca, Cole Casinghino, Nick Adzima and Ben Riley also registered shots on target.

• Jacob Dounetos, Owen Dieterle and Marcus Joshi converted Western New England's three successful penalty kicks to secure the shootout victory.

Up Next on the Schedule:

The Golden Bears will travel to East Boston, Massachusetts, for the semifinal round of the Conference of New England Tournament on Wednesday, November 4, at 7:00 p.m. The contest will be hosted by Suffolk University.