NORTON, Mass. – The Wheaton College men's soccer team scored a pair of goals in a 42-second span midway through the first half to erase a 1-0 deficit and would go on to defeat Wentworth Institute of Technology, 4-2, in a non-conference contest played at Keefe Field.
Wentworth jumped on the board first by scoring on its first shot of the contest. Sophomore Arberi Ferraj (Moosup, Conn.) scored on a feed from classmate Matthew Matuska (Rochester, N.Y.) at 4:31.
The Leopards' lead, their first in the three series meetings between the two schools, lasted until the 26:51 mark when junior Luke Finkelstein (Peabody, Mass.) netted the equalizer. At 27:33, shortly after the Lyons had a corner kick, freshman Kevin Davis (Beacon, N.Y.) fed junior Scott Enman (Brooklyn, N.Y.) to give the hosts a 2-1 advantage.
Wheaton extended its lead to 3-1 at 54:21 when sophomore Michael Williams (Los Angeles, Calif.), who had a shot hit the post nearly three minutes earlier, scored from Enman. The Leopards closed the gap to 3-2 when sophomore Max Hilchuk (Wethersfield, Conn.) scored from freshman Alec Watkinson (Merrimack, N.H.) at 63:56, however the Lyons added an insurance goal at 71:03, when sophomore Kevin Gil (Pawtucket, R.I.) scored on a pass from freshman Steven Pinski (Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.).
Sophomore Matt Dickey (Newton, Mass.) made four saves for the Lyons, while senior Cody Gibb (Foster, R.I.) made six stops for the Leopards. Wheaton held a 13-8 shot advantage and a 10-2 corner kick advantage.
The game was a homecoming for Leopard first-year head coach Connor Erickson, who graduated from Wheaton in 2008 and was a member of the men's soccer team for four seasons.
Wheaton (2-0) is at Western New England on Wednesday afternoon, while Wentworth (0-2) has its home opener against Johnson & Wales on Wednesday night.
