CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Scoring its first goal just two minutes into the first half, the MIT men's soccer team defeated Wentworth Institute of Technology with a score of 3-1 in its first home game of the 2013 season on Saturday afternoon. Sophomore Sean Bingham (Garden City, N.Y.) led the Engineers, who were ranked ninth in the most recent National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) regional poll, with two goals that were scored 20 minutes apart. Tech is now 3-2 for the season, while the Leopards fell to 0-4.
The first touch MIT made in the goal resulted in a goal; at 2:57, after receiving a pass from junior Chester Chambers (Columbia, Md.), Bingham scored his fourth goal of the season when he buried the ball in the far right corner of the net, giving the Engineers a lead very early in the game. Following two more close calls that were saved by the Leopards' keeper Chase Richard (Smithfield, R.I.), junior Nicholas Diamantoni (Boca Raton, Fla.) was able to slip the ball past the keeper, scoring his first goal of the season off a pass from freshman Alex McCullumsmith (Mountain Brook, Ala.).
Less than seven minutes later, Bingham scored goal number five of the season when he split two defenders and sank the ball in the left side of the net, with an assist from junior Jason Adler (Scarsdale, N.Y.). With over 15 minutes remaining in the first half, the Engineers had a 3-0 lead over Wentworth. MIT took six shots at net throughout the remaining minutes, with three of them having to be saved by Richard. In the first half, sophomore goalie Jake Amereno (Commack, N.Y.) only had to make one save.
It looked as if MIT might score another early goal when senior Matthew Monheit (Abington, Pa.) fired a shot directly at Richard less than two minutes after returning to the field, but the keeper was able to save it. Junior Samuel Cannon (Scarsdale, N.Y.), who replaced Amereno in net following the first half, did not have to make his first save until 70 minutes into the game, thwarting two different players' attempts at a goal two minutes apart. MIT almost had the chance to raise its score by two additional goals, with shots fired by juniors Alex Dago (Chicago, Ill.) and Bokil Lopez-Pineda (Eagan, Minn.) both hitting the crossbar.
At 80:50, with less than 10 minutes of play to go, Wentworth's Alec Watkinson (Merrimack, N.H.) scored an impressive goal when he sent a rocket right over Cannon's hands and into the left top corner of the net. Both teams turned up the intensity at that point, hoping to score a last-minute goal. In the span of five minutes, both Richard and Cannon had made two saves apiece but, time elapsed, leaving MIT with a 3-1 win.
Tech outshot Wentworth 26-10, with Richard having to make 10 saves compared to the Engineers' five. Amereno and Cannon split the time in net, with Amereno only having to make one save and Cannon saving five.
MIT will be on the road for the next three consecutive games, with its next game being against Bridgewater State University on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 7:00 p.m. At that same date and time, Wentworth is at Mass. Maritime.
(Recap Courtesy of MIT Sports Information)
