MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME MEN’S SOCCER

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Vendetti Field, Dudley, Mass.

FINAL:              NICHOLS 5, MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 3

DUDLEY, Mass. --  Senior Ryan Banker (Ashaway, R.I.) netted a goal and an assist to lead Nichols to a 5-3 non-league college men’s soccer victory over Massachusetts Maritime Wednesday afternoon at Vendetti Field.

The host Bison (3-3) took control of the contest by scoring four goals in less than eight minutes midway through the first half, as tallies by sophomore Gregory Giglio (Deer Park, N.Y.) and freshman Chris Noga (Belchertown, Mass.) in a 1:42 span staked Nichols to a 2-0 edge before senior David Melanson’s (Simsbury, Conn.) penalty kick conversion in the 27^th minute extended that margin to 3-0.  Freshman Zachary Lemire’s (Lowell, Mass.) marker at the 30-minute mark capped the run that gave the hosts a four-goal cushion at the break, but the visiting Buccaneers (2-2) crept back to within a pair on goals by senior Thomas McCarthy (Tybee Island, Ga.) and sophomore William Taylor (Hanover, Mass.) in the opening 12:53 after intermission.  Banker provided an insurance tally for the Bison with 6:46 to play, as McCarthy accounted for the final margin with a penalty kick conversion in the 85^th minute of action for Massachusetts Maritime.

Junior Zach Pina (North Attleboro, Mass.), sophomore Cole Houghton (Gorham, Maine) and freshman Brian Czuba (Franklin, Mass.) joined Banker with assists in the win for Nichols, while junior Chris Beaulieu (Carver, Mass.) assisted on Taylor’s tally for the Buccaneers.  Sophomore Patrick Porpora (Westminster, Mass.) picked up his second win of the season without making a first half save in net for the Bison, who received a second half stop from freshman Zach Suhoza (Clearwater, Fla.), while sophomore Connor Murphy (Mashpee, Mass.) suffered the setback in net for the visitors in making four first half saves.  Junior Mike Pruchnik (Rochester, Mass.) recorded six stops in the final 45 minutes of play for Massachusetts Maritime, as Nichols outshot the Buccaneers by a 22-14 margin overall and took three of the four corner kicks on the afternoon.

Massachusetts Maritime travels to Worcester, Mass. on Saturday afternoon to take on Worcester State in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference opener for both teams beginning at 5:00 p.m., while Nichols heads to Wenham, Mass. on Saturday afternoon to square off with Gordon in a Commonwealth Coast Conference clash that begins at 4:00 p.m.