Owls, Rams Battle to 1-1 Draw in MASCAC Opener
WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State junior goalkeeper Sean Moore (Feeding Hills, Mass. /Agawam) made ten saves as Westfield State and Framingham State battled to a 1-1 draw in the MASCAC opener on Saturday at Alumni Field.
The Owls got on the board early in the 14th minute when senior Josh Baillargeon (Russell, Mass. / Gateway) booted home a beautiful pass from freshman Liam Kelly (Braintree, Mass.). After the early goal, Westfield State continued with a flurry of offense, but were unable to put another one past Rams goalkeeper Corey Davidge (Blackstone, Mass. / BMR).
Westfield and Framingham would trade chances throughout the rest of the first half, until a red card was given to sophomore goalkeeper Tyler Diotalevi (Ludlow, Mass.) forcing the Owls to play a man down for the remainder of the match.
The Rams eventually capitalized on the man advantage in the 61st minute when junior Issac De Souza (Sao Paulo, Brazil / Acton-Boxborough) put one past the dive of Moore after a nice feed from Bryce Nardizzi (Framingham, Mass.) to level the score at 1-1.
In the 94th minute, Framingham captain Ken Stahovish (Springfield, Mass. / Springfield Central) kicked one just wide off of a nice cross from Akeem Bucknor (Manchester, Jamaica / Monomoy Regional), keeping the game knotted at one.
Moments later in the 98th minute, sophomore Jason Haji (Shrewsbury, Mass.) slid the ball over to Sinha Kunphel (South Yarmouth, Mass. / Nauset) who fired a shot riddled for the back of the net, but Davidge came up with an incredible diving save for the Rams to keep the game at 1-1.
The two teams would trade chances in the dwindling minutes of the overtime period, but neither were able to break through, ending the game in a 1-1 draw.
Before the red card, Diotalevi made 3 saves and Moore finished with 10 for the Owls. Davidge finished with 5 saves for the Rams.
Westfield State will be back in action at Alumni Field on Tuesday against Western Connecticut, with kickoff at 7:00 p.m.
The Rams will host Fisher College on Monday with the game beginning at 4:30 p.m.