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Men's Soccer
Cristiano Da Silva vs LIU
Jonathan Singh
3
Winner UMass Lowell LOW (3-0-2, 0-0-0)
1
LIU LIU (2-1-1, 0-0-0)
Winner
UMass Lowell LOW
(3-0-2, 0-0-0)
3
Final
1
LIU LIU
(2-1-1, 0-0-0)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
UMass Lowell LOW 2 1 3
LIU LIU 1 0 1

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Holy Cross

9/7/2024 | 6PM

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Sep. 07 (Sat) / 6PM
 Holy Cross
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Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

River Hawks Continue Hot Start, Take Down LIU 3-1

BROOKVILLE, N.Y. –  Freshman Cristiano Da Silva (Port Coquitlam, British Columbia) scored the first goal of his career, as the UMass Lowell men's soccer team (3-0-2) took down the defending NEC Champion LIU Sharks (2-1-1), 3-1, on Wednesday afternoon.

"I'm really proud of the guys," said head coach Kyle Zenoni. "We all know it's not easy to win games, especially on the road. We have had a lot of games with very little rest and to fight like we did shows the character of this team. LIU is well coached and has had so much success over the last few years and have started off really well this year, so we knew it would take all of us to get a result. It was a team effort and I'm very pleased. We now rest up and have to prepare for Holy Cross. They will be tough and have had our number the last couple of years. It will be a tough match and we will be up for it."

Da Silva, whose goal came midway through the second half, was one of three River Hawks to find the back of the net. Graduate student Guillermo Francés Poquet (Enguera, Valencia) got the scoring started for the River Hawks with his first goal of the year and junior Oliver Holmstrom (Gävle, Sweden) tallied his third score of the season, all of which have been game-winning goals. Senior Santiago Delfino (Cordoba, Argentina) and juniors Calvin Scholten (Hengelo, Netherlands) and Iñaki Esnaola (Junin, Argentina) each chipped in with an assist. In net, sophomore Daniele Di Giorgio (Montréal, Quebec) made his first appearance as a River Hawk, making five saves and allowing only one goal.

The game opened with both sides bringing a strong defensive presence, as neither team registered a shot in the first 10 minutes. However, that did not last much longer, as the River Hawks got their first scoring opportunity moments later. With 11:43 on the clock, Esnaola dished the ball past the defender to Francés Poquet, who was open only a few yards in front of the net. The graduate student immediately knocked it past the goalie into the lower left corner of the net to put his squad up 1-0. The Sharks retaliated instantly though, finding the equalizer in the 13th minute to make it 1-1.

Following the two goals, both teams battled for possession, and although LIU held the ball in the offensive zone longer, UMass Lowell's defense played near perfect, allowing only two shots over 25 minutes. With just over seven minutes to go in the half, a foul by the River Hawks set up the hosts with a penalty kick and a chance to take the lead. The Sharks' Alan Martinez fired the opportunity at the net, but Di Giorgio made an excellent diving save, rejecting the potential go-ahead goal.

Gaining momentum, the River Hawks dominated possession in the final minutes before the break. After an attempt by the Sharks to clear the ball was deflected, Scholten collected the loose ball and dumped it off to Delfino. The Argentina native quickly bumped it over to Holmstrom on the left side of the box, who drove the ball over the goal line, putting the visitors up 2-1 heading into the break.

The second set of 45 opened much like the first, with excellent defensive play restricting either team from logging a shot for over 15 minutes.  The River Hawks, however, continued to put pressure on the opposition, and it paid off in the 66th minute. Starting at midfield, Da Silva raced past nearly the entire LIU defense before launching a shot from the top of the box. Although the attempt was blocked, the freshman got a second chance which he ripped just past the reach of the outstretched keeper to double his team's lead.

Trailing by two, the Sharks turned up the aggressiveness on offense, firing off nine shots in the final 25 minutes. UMass Lowell's defense was up for the challenge, blocking two shots while Di Giorgio made four saves, keeping the hosts from getting any closer and sealing the 3-1 victory.

Next up, the River Hawks return to Lowell to take on Holy Cross on Saturday, September 7. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Cushing Field.
 
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Players Mentioned

Oliver Holmstrom

#21 Oliver Holmstrom

M
6' 1"
Sophomore
Santiago Delfino

#4 Santiago Delfino

M
6' 0"
Junior
Daniele Di Giorgio

#25 Daniele Di Giorgio

GK
5' 10"
Freshman
Calvin Scholten

#28 Calvin Scholten

M
6' 0"
Sophomore
Cristiano Da Silva

#20 Cristiano Da Silva

M
5' 11"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Oliver Holmstrom

#21 Oliver Holmstrom

6' 1"
Sophomore
M
Santiago Delfino

#4 Santiago Delfino

6' 0"
Junior
M
Daniele Di Giorgio

#25 Daniele Di Giorgio

5' 10"
Freshman
GK
Calvin Scholten

#28 Calvin Scholten

6' 0"
Sophomore
M
Cristiano Da Silva

#20 Cristiano Da Silva

5' 11"
Freshman
M