NEWTON, MA- After falling into a 1-1 stalemate through the first half of Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's soccer action between the Lasell College and Emerson College, the Lasers turned the contest around with a big second half to propel them past the Lions, 4-1, at the final horn.
Lasell's rookie goalkeeper Aren Moorman (Somerset, NJ) earned the win, making three saves to keep Lasell unbeaten through four contests so far this season. Emerson's goalie Noah Price (Apex, NC) made four stops in the setback as Emerson drops to 0-2 overall.
Despite Emerson holding the advantage in shots, 21-18, Lasell produced better chances at the net, leading to the three goal win. The contest was a physical one throughout, as the teams combined for 39 fouls and three yellow cards between them.
Jacob Allen (Westminster, MA) started things off for Lasell at 12:42, heading in a fine-looking pass across the end line from current GNAC Player of the Week, Mike Skelton (Conway, NH).
Shortly after, Price got a helpful hand from defender Ken Nikravesh (Geneva, Switzerland) to prevent Lasell from pulling further ahead. Nikravesh swept away an on-target shot from Skelton which drove past Price, picking up a team save for the Lions.
Emerson followed that up with a burst of seven shots over the following six minutes which eventually evened the score in the 26th minute. Cory Walls (Scituate, MA) had the visitor's first close call at 24:22 when he received a pass off an indirect kick which he headed towards a sprawling Moorman who made the save. Just a moment later, Jacob Lawrence (Clifton, VA) overshot a wide open net after picking up a rebound off the Laser's crossbar.
The Lions finally connected at 26:29 off a direct kick by Juan Ossa (Bogota, Columbia) which deflected off the defensive wall before being headed in by Nikravesh amidst the redirect. The one-all tie held through the rest of the half which ended with Emerson holding a 14-8 advantage in shots while Lasell had a 7-2 bulge in corner kicks in the period.
Lasell came out renewed in the second half and scored two quick goals to return to the lead. Dan Gleason (Weymouth, MA) struck first at 49:17, tearing from midfield to beat his defender, and Price, with a long ball from 25 yards out. Evan Gaccione (Westerly, RI) was credited with Lasell's third goal two minutes later, connecting with the back of the Lion's net off a corner kick.
Lasell continued to roll from there, adding the final mark in the 78th minute off a penalty kick. Adam Luciano (Fairfield, CT) was tripped on a breakaway in Emerson's penalty box leading to the extra chance shot which Skelton produced on to yield the 4-1 win for Lasell.
Lasell (3-0-1, 1-0 GNAC) has a week off before their next contest, another GNAC tussle, slated for Saturday, September 17th at noon against Emmanuel. The Lasers will host the contest on Taylor Field.
