Oct. 28, 2008
BEVERLY, Mass. - Endicott College got goals from Gregory Capece (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) and Joseph Ryan (Peabody, Mass.) to help lead the Gulls past the visiting Fitchburg State Falcons, 2-0, on Senior Day in Beverly, Massachusetts. The win improves Endicott to 6-11-1 overall while the visitors slip to 4-11-2. Endicott must now wait to see if it will qualify for the conference postseason.
Capece got the scoring started in the 19th minute as he gathered a loose ball inside the box and buried a shot to the right post for a 1-0 lead. Junior TJ Sapienza (Milford, N.H.) crossed the ball into the box to Kyle Schmutte (Wilbraham, Mass.), who redirected the feed to a waiting Capece for the wide-open goal.
The 1-0 lead would stand at the intermission as each side battled through the remainder of the half. Fitchburg's best opportunity came midway through the opening frame as the Falcons rushed up the field in a two-on-one situation, only to have their offensive efforts thwarted by an excellent defensive play by freshman Christopher Serpa (Bristol, R.I.).
Fitchburg State stepped up its pressure in the second half, forcing sophomore goalkeeper Jack DeJesus (Swampscott, Mass.) to make several big saves. DeJesus made his best stop of the night on a cross to his right, forcing the netminder make a sprawling save off his extended right leg to keep it a 1-0 game.
A seemingly harmless free kick with 27 seconds left in regulation proved to be the insurance goal that the Gulls were looking for. Ryan, who lined up the free kick at Endicott's own 30-yard line after a Fitchburg player was whistled for a slide tackle, booted the ball 50 yards before it took an awkward bounce near the Fitchburg box. Goalkeeper Matt Carey (Stratford, Conn.) came off his line to collect the bouncing ball, only to have it soar over his head and into the vacant goal.
A heavy and consistent wind made playing conditions difficult for each side. Jack DeJesus notched five saves for his first shutout of the year. Carey suffered the loss after making four stops for the Falcons.
Endicott must now wait to see if its 5-7-1 TCCC record will be good enough to earn a berth into the conference postseason this coming weekend. The Gulls will keep a close eye on both the Colby-Sawyer vs. Eastern Nazarene game and the match-up between Wentworth and Western New England College, as the outcomes of these games will ultimately decide the Gulls tournament fate. Fitchburg State wraps-up its 2008 campaign at Framingham State on Saturday afternoon at noon.
