NEWTON, Mass. (9/16/17) – The Lasell men's soccer team opened Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play with a 2-1 victory over Anna Maria College on Saturday afternoon at Taylor Field.
The Lasers, now 1-0 in GNAC play, improve to 2-3 overall with their second consecutive win, while the AMCATS drop to 1-4-1 and 0-2 in the conference.
Kenan Omerbasic (Windsor Locks, Conn.) netted the Lasers' game winner in the 50th minute, for his second goal in as many games.
The Lasers owned a slight advantage in shots overall, 18-14, as sophomore Matt Latsha (Litchfield, N.H.) took an offensive charge early with a strike in the 2nd minute that dinged off the crossbar. Anna Maria opened the scoring in the 19th minute, as Derrick Casey fed Gift Kalombo a pass for a breakaway goal and the 1-0 lead.
As with the previous victory against Southern Vermont, Lasell came from behind and scored the 1-1 equalizer at 35:57, this time off the cleats of freshman Simon Nigro (Simsbury, Conn.). Gerald Lemus (Revere, Mass.) fed a pass inside the six, where Nigro finished bottom corner.
In just the second play of the final half, the AMCATS committed a foul outside the 18-yard-box. A relaxed and focused Omerbasic took the free kick, bending it just past Mark Robinsaw's right shoulder, and the 2-1 game-winner.
With 15 minutes left to go in regulation, the AMCATS were presented with their most promising scoring opportunity following a free kick from an offside call. Casey wound up for a shot after collecting a loose ball in front, but David Perry (Canton Mass.) kept the AMCATS at bay with a sliding clear from the goal line.
Jackson Burhans (Berlin, N.Y.) rolled to his second straight win in net with four saves overall, while Robinshaw drops to 0-2, and stopped two of four shots faced.
Lasell looks to roll with momentum for their next contest, and their first road game of the season, on Monday, September 18 at Nichols at 4:00 p.m. The AMCATS return to GNAC play on Wednesday when they host the Cadets of Norwich University at 4:00 p.m.
