Men's Soccer Falls to Suffolk

BOSTON, Mass. – Four different players scored goals and sophomore Tommy Handelsman (Woodberry Forest, Va.) had a pair of assists as the Suffolk University men's soccer team defeated Wentworth Institute of Technology, 4-0, in Commonwealth Coast Conference action Tuesday night.

RECORDS:

SU:       8-4-2 (3-1-1 CCC)
WIT:     3-7-3 (1-3-1 CCC)

SCORING:

• SU:  Brady Sorensen (Aiden McLaughlin, Xander Balog), 8:36
• SU:  Damon Smargon (unassisted), 32:15
• SU:  Taj Jensen (Tommy Handelsman), 50:23
• SU:  Matthew Belluardo (Handelsman), 54:01

SHOTS (ON GOAL):

SU:       14 (7);  WIT:     11 (4)

GOALIE SAVES:

SU:       Xander Balog, 4; WIT: Louis Quintero, 3

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• A pair of early corner kicks yielded no scoring opportunities for Wentworth, while Suffolk put a shot on goal in the eighth minute that was saved by senior Louis Quintero (Boston, Mass.).
• The Rams got the only goal they would need at the 8:36 mark. Sophomore keeper Xander Balog (Tallahassee, Fla.) played a ball to sophomore Aiden McLaughlin (Medford, Mass.). McLaughlin sent a long pass ahead to junior Brady Sorensen (Plymouth, Mass.) who beat Quintero.
• In the 30th minute, the Leopards nearly evened the score. Senior TJ Prouty (Glendora, Calif.) took a shot that rattled off the post. Sophomore Christopher Jimenez (Doral, Fla.) corralled the rebound but his second-chance bid went wide.
• At the 32:15 mark, Suffolk took a 2-0 lead when a deflection off a Wentworth defender went to sophomore Damon Smargon (San Diego, Calif.), who tucked a shot inside the upper left corner.
• In the 40th minute, sophomore Raphael Ribeiro (Medford, Mass.) served a free kick into he box. Jimenez was able to get a shot off, however, Balog came up with the save. With 46 seconds left in the half, the Black & Gold had a goal waved off due to an offsides call.
• Suffolk scored twice in a span of 3:38 to extend its lead to 4-0. At the 50:23 mark, sophomore Taj Jensen (Providence, R.I.) took a feed from Handelsman and put a shot home to the top right corner. At 54:01, Handelsman sent a throw-in towards the box where freshman Matthew Belluardo (Mahwah, N.H.) headed the ball into the back of the net.
• Balog made four saves in his seventh shutout of the season. Quintero made three saves for Wentworth. Suffolk had a 14-11 shot advantage while the Leopards had a 3-2 edge in corner kicks.

THE SERIES:

• Tonight was the 14th all-time meeting. Suffolk snapped a four-game series losing streak, winning for the first time since September 25, 1997. Wentworth leads all-time, 7-5-2.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth hosts Gordon Saturday afternoon.

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