The Fitchburg State men’s soccer team secured a 3-1 victory over Westfield State University at Elliot Field on Friday afternoon October 18, 2024. The Falcons performed very well on both ends of the field, dominating their way to keep their winning streak alive at three. On this beautiful sunny afternoon, both teams came out on each side of the field ultra aggressive. Both squads looked to attack, moving the ball up and down the field .
With five minutes off the clock, junior midfielder Michael Vazquez executed an excellent pass in the air from midfield to his teammate making a run up the right side. Freshman defender Ajani Guzman settled the pass, attacked the goal, and finished beautifully, striking the inside of the top left post and sending the ball ricocheting into the goal, giving Fitchburg State a 1-0 lead.
The game stayed very intense, with the Falcons very confident as they held their lead. The Westfield State Owls stayed hard, looking to even the match up 1-1. Great defense was being played by both teams.
As the first half neared its conclusion, the Falcons added on to their lead in the 39th minute. Sophomore forward Nathan Youngquest connected on a great one touch pass over to his teammate Justin Job, a freshman forward. With only one defender left to beat, Job made an impressive move to get by and then finished expertly using the outside of his strong right foot to send the ball right past the Owls Sophomore goalkeeper Luke Theroux.
The second half continued with great overall soccer being played with both teams making tremendous plays. Falcons were very confident with their 2-0 lead as the Owls kept their foot on the gas looking to score. In the 63rd minute, sophomore midfielder Julian Correa-Estrada and sophomore forward Anthony Oliveria-Dalicandro executed a gorgeous give and go on the left side, leading to open space for Estrada near the corner. He then delivered a tremendous cross in the air to the far post where Job was streaking in on a perfectly timed run, heading the ball off the crossbar and in, giving him his second goal of the game. The Fitchburg State Falcons were now up 3-0 with around thirty minutes left to play.
In the 76th minute, Westfield State freshman midfielder Cooper Gabriel-Achorn dribbled his way through the Falcons defense. He then sent a well-hit shot right past the left side of sophomore goalkeeper Alexander Carvalho. The goal proved to be too little too late though, as time would expire with a final score of 3-1.
The Westfield State Owls attempted a total of 11 shots with 5 shots being on goal. Fitchburg State Falcons shot 12 shots with 6 shots being on target. The Falcons capitalized on their chances, scoring three goals out of their six shots that were on target. Fitchburg keeper Carvalho made a total of 4 saves in the match. The decisive victory comes at a crucial part of the season for the Falcons, as they improve their MASCAC record to 2-2-1 with only one more in-conference matchup remaining on their schedule.
