Oct. 1, 2011

Box Score

Senior F Mohammed Saied (Woburn, Mass.) scored his second goal in three matches as UMass Lowell defeated Le Moyne College, 1-0, Saturday afternoon in a Northeast-10 Conference men’s soccer clash at the Niland Athletic Complex.

The victory was the fourth straight for UMass Lowell as it improved to 5-4 overall and 5-2 in the Conference entering Wednesday’s home match against Saint Michael’s (7:00). The match against Saint Michael’s starts a string in which five of UMass Lowell’s final seven regular season matches are at home.

“This win puts us in a place where we are really in charge of our own play going forward,” said head coach Christian Figueroa. “We’ve got the road behind us a little bit.”

The win was UMass Lowell’s first over the Dolphins since the 2007 season, and first in Syracuse since the 2006 season.

With the loss, Le Moyne slipped to 5-4-1 overall and 4-2 in the NE-10.

Sophomore GK Chris Maierle (Wantagh, N.Y.) earned his second shutout in three matches as he stopped two shots. Le Moyne outshot UMass Lowell 11-8 overall, but UMass Lowell had a 4-3 edge on target.

“Our defense was great today,” Figueroa said. “Le Moyne had a couple of tough players to deal with. Our guys did a great job limiting opportunities, getting blocks. They were outstanding today.”

Saied scored the winner in the 55th minute, marking the third time in as many games he has had a hand in scoring. Junior M Bruno Bonicontro (Marlborough, Mass.) crossed over defense to Saied, who took it off the chest and beat Le Moyne goalkeeper Matt Silva with a half volley from 20 yards out.

Le Moyne nearly leveled in the 90th minute when an attempt by sophomore M Zachary McNabb caromed off the post. “They were throwing numbers forward,” Figueroa said. “There was a scramble where a ball got into the box and dropped.”

The Dolphins also had a chance to go ahead in the 38th minute when an attempt by senior M Jesse Carr was cleared off the line by junior D Michael Ntori (Worcester, Mass.).

Silva had three saves for the Dolphins.