Oct. 14, 2006
BEVERLY, MA - Joe Scarbo (Milton, MA/Milton) and the Endicott men's soccer team capped off a successful homecoming for Endicott College as the Gulls topped the University of New England 1-0, Saturday night.
EC took a 1-0 lead midway through the first half when Kyle Schmutte (Wilbraham, MA/Minnechaug) headed a ball past UNE goalkeeper Derek Poulin (Scarborough, ME/Scarborough) that struck the post but Scarbo found the back of the net as he connected on the rebound with a diving header of his own. That would be the game's lone goal despite the fact EC would continue to get chances from Pirapong Sirikietsoong (Bankok, Thailand) and Schmutte.
While EC's forwards and midfield played well, the Gulls defense was the story of the game. Anchored by captain Eric Booth (Belchertown, MA/Belchertown) the Gulls defense was able to suppress a number of scoring chances and set pieces from the Nor'easters.
The defense was bolstered by the play of freshmen TJ Sapienza (Milford, NH/Milford) and DJ Picariello (Boxford, MA/Worcester Academy) as well as the stellar play of goalkeeper Cam Twiss (Reading, MA/Bishop Fenwick). Twiss made three saves to earn the shutout, including a great diving stop that preserved the lead in the final minutes of play.
Endicott improves to 5-9 on the season and 5-5 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference, while the Nor'easters fall to 2-8-2 overall and 1-6-1 in the CCC. The Gulls have three games remaining in the regular season. They will finish out their season at home as they next take on Fitchburg State Wednesday night, before playing hosts to Curry and St. Joseph's of Maine.
