Westfield State junior Cody Baglow clears the ball in the Owls season opener at Alumni Field. (Photo courtesy of Westfield State)
WESTFIELD – After jumping out to a two-goal lead in its season opener, the Westfield State Owls men’s soccer team fell in sudden death overtime, 3-2, to Western New England Tuesday evening at Alumni Field.
Western New England freshman Troy Remillard (Palmer/Palmer, Mass.) scored the game-winning goal in the eighth minute of the overtime period, corralling a loose ball and firing a shot which deflected off an Owl defenseman before finding its way into the back of the net.
After a scoreless first half, Westfield State notched the first goal seven minutes into the second half. Senior forward Kevin Bengle (West Springfield/ West Springfield, Mass.) roped a low through pass to junior midfielder Cody Baglow (Amherst/Amherst, Mass.), who took one touch to control the pass at the top of the box before flicking it past the goaltender in the next instant.
The Owls added onto their lead in the 74th minute, when freshman forward Legend Mu’min (Central/ Springfield, Mass.) earned a penalty kick with some nifty ball handling in traffic and senior Zack Horn (Old Colony Voc./ Carver, Mass.) found the back of the net with the free kick.
However, Western New England answered with a penalty kick goal of its own four minutes later after an Owl handball in the box to cut the lead to 2-1. Twenty-six seconds later, Golden Bear sophomore Logan Pingree (Middletown/Middletown, Conn.) took advantage of a sloppy Owl defensive clear and fired a left-footed laser into the top left corner of the net to knot the game at 2 goals apiece.
Sophomore goalkeeper Alex Kraver (West Springfield/ West Springfield, Mass.) had a strong outing in net for Westfield State in his season debut, before leaving the match with an injured left leg with six minutes remaining in regulation. Kraver made six saves, including three on one frenetic play midway through the second half.
Western New England outshot Westfield 19-6, in addition to a 6-2 edge in corner kicks. The Golden Bears freshman goalkeeper Tyler Lavigne (John Jay/ Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) made one save in his collegiate debut.
The Owls drop to 0-1 on the season, while Western New England moves to 1-0. Westfield State returns to action on Friday, September 4, facing the University of South Maine in the USM Invitational in Gorham, ME.
