WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – Exactly one week ago, the Eastern Connecticut State University men's soccer team was outshot and outcornered by wide margins but, that notwithstanding, came away with a non-conference road victory over Wesleyan University.
Tuesday in the regular-season home finale, the roles were reversed – sort of -- and despite outshooting Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (5-6-3) by 29-4 and outcornering the Trailblazers by 11-2, Eastern (6-5-4) could manage only a scoreless tie on Senior Day at Thomas Nevers Field.
For teams which have combined for a pedestrian record of 11-11-7, however, it may have been poetic justice that neither team prevailed.
While getting the better of play but coming away with nothing to show for it in the first half, the Warriors turned it up after the break, outshooting MCLA 17-1 and out-cornering it, 6-0, but still came away empty. While the Warriors did everything in their power to deliver a win for their four outgoing seniors in the final regular-season home game of their careers, they were -- following a 2-4-1 start to the season -- able to improve their record in the last eight games to 4-1-3 and finish with only two losses at home (3-2-4).
One of the team's four outgoing seniors,
Dylan Pallanck (Willington) was not called upon for a save in recording his third full shutout (second straight 0-0 outcome) in the last six starts and the Eastern defense extended its scoreless streak to 305 minutes on the strength of its third straight shutout.
By contrast, Mass College junior keepers Ryan Taylor (first half) and Richard Schineis (second) were kept busy in combing on the Trailblazers' fifth shutout of the year. The pair made 11 saves between them, one a spectacular one and the final two timely ones.
The spectacular one was made by Schineis four minutes into the second half when he timed perfectly a missile by Eastern sophomore midfielder
Niall O'Brien (Guilford) and with both hands, punched it over the top of the net.
The timely ones prevented Eastern from sending its seniors home with a victory in their career finale at home when Schineis made two point-blank saves on shots from six yards out by O'Brien, and by junior forward
Sean Cafferty (Clinton) on the rebound that wasstopped at the post with under 60 seconds remaining.
In addition to his late bid, Cafferty knocked two headers over the crossbar and wide left, respectively, in the opening eight minutes of the second half that were sandwiched around O'Brien's rocket that Schineis pushed over the crossbar.
Another of Eastern's serious bids came 14 minutes into the second half, but Schineis was in a perfect spot at the right post to foil Eastern first-year midfielder
Miles Deiulis (Canton) when he launched a hard, low shot from close range.
Taylor kept the game scoreless in the first half when he stopped first-year forward
Julius McNeill's (East Hartford) header from the middle of the box off a corner kick by senior
Eric Kingue (Vernon) midway through the period and turned away O'Brien's hard shot off a free kick from the top of the circle ten minutes later.
The start of Eastern's frustrating afternoon came 20 minutes into action when fifth-year senior co-captain
Andrés Mayuri (West Hartford) – the team's active career scoring leader – couldn't quite get a square foot on a cross from the left side by O'Brien and could only volley a weak shot right at Taylor from inside 12 yards.
The Trailblazers' only real threat came in the final three minutes of the first half and nearly gave the visitors a halftime lead, when sophomore Benjamin Bonsu turned quickly at the top of the circle and let loose a hard drive that sailed on a line over the leap of Pallanck, but a foot over the crossbar, as well.
The appearance Tuesday marked the 2023 debut and start of the team's fourth senior – four-year player
Jaren Haddock (South Windsor). Haddock had missed the first 14 games while rehabilitating an injury but played 46 minutes against MCLA before leaving the game after re-injuring himself with 14:13 remaining.
Eastern (3-3-1 LEC) closes out the regular season with a Little East Conference game at the University of Massachusetts Boston Saturday at noon. The Warriors will be the No. 5 seed in the LEC playoffs and will play a first-round road game a week from today against the No. 4 seed.
