Wheaton 3, WPI 2 

Box Score

Norton, MA- Freshman David Ferriero (Medway, MA) tallied the game-winning goal with less than two minutes remaining in regulation as the Wheaton College men's soccer team opened its New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) slate with a 3-2 victory over Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) on Saturday at Keefe Field.

The Lyons, who are tied for sixth in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) New England poll, extended their unbeaten streak to five games and improved to 4-1-2 on the season. Wheaton downed the only NEWMAC team that dealt it a loss in 2006 and now has an 18-game home undefeated run against conference foes dating back to 2003. The Engineers fell to 1-3 in their first league game.

Wheaton grabbed a 2-0 lead within the first 14 minutes. Senior Dan Chong's (Miami, FL) cross was redirected into the WPI net by an Engineer back at 4:29 for an own goal before Chong and classmate Trevor Cote (Portsmouth, RI) each had a quick touch in setting up freshman Josh Solomon's (Acton, MA) marker at 13:21. While being flanked by a defender, Solomon rushed up the right side to catch up with the ball before sending a shot inside the far post.

WPI got on the board in the 36th minute, as the ball entered the box thanks to sophomore Matthew Gonsalves' (Swansea, MA) throw-in from the right sideline, and Wheaton was unable to clear before junior Jonathan Zwirko (Holyoke, MA) pounced and fired a shot from point-blank range. Just 58 seconds after halftime, the Engineers knotted the score when sophomore Evan Demers-Peel (Norton, MA) drove a high arcing shot from 40 yards out into the net, which had been vacated during a clearing attempt.

Both teams had a number of second-half opportunities following the early marker, as the squads combined for 22 shots after firing off just 11 in the opening period, but neither got on the board again until Ferriero's tally. Freshman Dean Hollands (Scituate, RI) sent a ball onto the right side of the field to Chong, who slipped a pass into the box that narrowly eluded the defense, and a sliding Ferriero connected for the winner.

Freshman Chris Smart (Brookfield, CT) made five saves for the Lyons in remaining undefeated at 4-0-2, while first-year counterpart Paul Moan (Watertown, MA) made 10 stops in the WPI net. Wheaton held a 20-13 advantage in shots and recorded all eight corner kicks in the game.

For the third straight weekend, the Lyons follow up a Saturday contest with a Sunday match, as Wheaton hosts Williams College tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. The Ephs are ranked ninth nationally and first in New England.

Release courtesy of Wheaton Sports Information