Keene State College Men’s Soccer opened Little East Conference (LEC) play against Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU) with a hard-fought battle on Saturday afternoon, but a late goal with less than six minutes remaining gave the Owls a 1-0 loss. With the loss, Keene State fell to 1-4-0 overall and 0-1-0 in LEC play.
The Owls came out attacking early, recording three shots within the opening 12 minutes. Junior defender Jack Corby put two shots on goal, but ECSU’s goalkeeper turned both away. First-year goalkeeper Tommaso Lorrai made his first save about 20 minutes into the game as Keene State continued to put pressure on the other end of the field.
Keene State recorded five shots and two corners during a strong stretch of play, with junior midfielder Luke Belisle and first-year forward Edoardo Tambini each having opportunities to break the scoreless tie. Neither team was able to find the back of the net before halftime, sending the teams into the break tied 0-0. ECSU came out aggressively in the second half, but Lorrai continued to keep the Owls in the game. In the 68th minute, Lorrai intercepted a free kick and sent the ball forward, allowing junior midfielder Dorian Wilczynski to break away. ECSU’s goalkeeper made the save to keep the game scoreless.
Keene State continued searching for the go-ahead goal, but another opportunity slipped away. Junior midfielder Lapo Cabianca had a shot on goal with eight minutes remaining, but it was saved.
With just 5:54 left, ECSU finally broke through the Owls’ defense and scored to take a 1-0 lead. Keene State pushed forward in the final minutes, but shots from Tambini, Belisle and sophomore forward Luke Hartshorn were unable to find the net.
Despite the loss, Keene State finished with advantages in shots, 20-9, shots on goal, 7-3, and corner kicks, 5-3. Wilczynski led the game with five shots, while Corby and Tambini each recorded two shots on goal. Lorrai finished with two saves.
The Owls return to action Saturday, Sept. 19, traveling to the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth for a 2 p.m. matchup.
Lauren Bender can be contacted at
lbender@kscequinox.com
