FINAL SCORE: No. 20 Vermont 3, UMass 2
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Brian Wright moved into sole possession of second place all-time in career goals at UVM as 20th-ranked Vermont held off a resilient UMass squad for a 3-2 win on Wednesday night in front of nearly 900 fans at Virtue Field. UVM won its third straight and improved to 8-1-0 overall on the season, while the Minutemen dropped to 1-6-1.
All five goals in the contest were scored in the first half. Vermont struck for the first three of the match in the opening 25 minutes from
Charlie DeFeo, Wright, and
Stefan Lamanna, while Andrew Barrowman and Mark Dunphy tallied the UMass goals before halftime.
RELATED LINKS
CatamounTV Highlights
Photo Gallery
Box Score
The Catamounts took an early lead just over four minutes into the game when
Bernard Yeboah deflected a Lamanna cross toward UMass keeper Jorge Becerra (6 saves). The senior couldn't hang onto the ball, and DeFeo pounded at the left corner of the six-yard box to open the scoring.
Yeboah was the catalyst on the second goal in the 11th minute as he lofted a ball over the UMass back line for Wright. The forward streaked into the penalty area before drilling a powerful half-volley into the bottom right corner for his sixth goal of the year. Wright netted his 31st career goal to grab sole possesion of second place in program history. He also ranks second all-time in career points with 84.
Lamanna pushed the UVM cushion to three in the 24th minute after receiving a cross-field pass from Yeboah along the left wing. Lamanna juked around a defender into the 18 before rolling a low right-footed effort inside the left post, sending Becerra the wrong way for a 3-0 lead.
Barrowman came off the bench and pulled one back for UMass less than two minutes later, finishing a pass from Henry Steinkamp with a first-time shot near the penalty spot into the right side of the net.
With three and a half minutes left before halftime, the Minutemen trimmed the lead to one off a corner kick from Alex DeSantis. Dunphy climbed above the pack at the edge of the six and nodded home a header into the right corner.
Vermont's best chance in the second half came from Jon Arnar Barodal, whose first-time chance was blocked inside the box after a left-footed cross from Wright. UVM limited UMass to only one shot in the second half and closed the night with a 14-5 edge in shots.
Senior
Eric Venezia (2 saves) picked up his fifth win of the year in net, while rookie
Aron Runarsson played the final 30 minutes and wasn't forced to make a save while preserving the victory.
20th-ranked Vermont remained perfect (4-0-0) at home with the win and continues its home stand on Saturday (Sept. 24) with a 2 p.m. kickoff against regional rival Dartmouth. Prior to kickoff, UVM will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new grandstand and press box at Virtue Field.
Tickets are available at
UVMathletics.com/Tickets or at the Gutterson Box Office on game day. Live HD video is available for free via AmericaEast.TV.
