BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott men's soccer team (5-2-1, 3-0-0 CCC) defeated Roger Williams (2-6-1, 0-0-2 CCC) 1-0 as junior Dario Neukom (Palma de Mallorca, Spain) scored his first career game-winning goal in the 87th minute to lift the Gulls past the Hawks for the second straight season.
Neukom's game winner comes after the Gulls and Hawks would played a scoreless first half that saw Endicott hold an 8-2 advantage in shots in the frame. Of the eight shots, just one was on goal while neither of the two Hawks shots found the frame. The Gulls also held the slight advantage in corners, recording the only one of the half.
The first real scoring chance for the Hawks came in the 57th minute when Riley Parnham's (Califon, N.J.) shot was blocked in the box. The deflection of the block caromed to Cole Owens (Brookline, N.H.) who put his one-timer high and wide left across the face of goal.
The Gulls' would counter and would see freshman Evan Couchot (Mason, Ohio) put a shot wide just past the 60 minute mark before then following up in the 62ndminute by putting a shot just over the cross. Couchot's, and Endicott's, best scoring chance came in the 73rd minute when the talented forward flicked a glancing header on frame near the left post that coasted just over the middle of the crossbar to keep the match scoreless.
Francis Muumba (Newton, Mass.) was able to make a run in the 68th minute and deked the defense to the inside and rifled a shot right into the stomach of Weinstein who easily made the save.
Roger Williams saw freshman Cody Decker (Colchester, Conn.) blast a shot off the crossbar in the 77th minute as he took a shot from the right wing while on the run.
Neukom's strike with 3:03 remaining on the clock came off a set piece after a Roger Williams foul right at the top of the box. Neukom took the free kick and buried his shot to the lower left corner of the net, lifting Endicott to the 1-0 win.
BEYOND THE BOX
- Endicott keeper Nick Weinstein (Trumbull, Conn.) would make just one save on the night to record his fourth shutout of the season and improve his record to 5-2-1.
- Neukom's goal marked the third straight match in which he has scored, a stretch in which the Gulls are 2-1-0 in.
- Evan Couchot kept the Roger Williams back line busy, registering five shots in the win.
- Endicott has now won the last two meetings between the two programs, claiming a 1-0 win in Bristol, R.I. last season.
- Endicott out-shot Roger Williams 20-7 while the Hawks were whistled for 12 fouls to just six for the Gulls.
FOR THE FOES
- Decker and Parnham tied for the team lead with two shots while Muumba recorded the lone shot on goal.
- Keeper Edmund Geschickter (Brookline, Mass.) played well in defeat, stopping four of the five shots he faced on the evening.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott takes to the road as they travel to Worcester, Mass. to take on WPI on Tuesday at 7:00 pm. Roger Williams has an extremely quick turnaround as they play tomorrow afternoon at Johnson & Wales in Providence, R.I. at 1:00 p.m.
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