Worcester, MA --- All three of WPI's goals came off the foot of freshmen – including the game-winner in the 63rd minute from Kurt Naugler (Westford, MA) – and the Engineers extended their winning streak in the Worcester City Tournament to eight straight with a 3-2 win over Worcester State on Friday afternoon at Clark University's Granger Field.
WPI jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead following a pair of markers from Christopher Murray (Canton, MA), the first of which came on an unassisted tally 2:25 into the contest.
The Lancers fought back and cut the edge in half when Brendan Whitson (Auburn, MA) notched his first of the year in the 42nd minute.
Worcester State (0-1) then evened the score when Whitson netted his second of the contest a little less than halfway through the second half.
The tie score was short-lived, however, as Naugler took a feed from Sean Galligan (Weymouth, MA) and deposited his first career score past Lancer netminder Nick Zucco (Ludlow, MA) at the 62:10 mark – a little more than 30 seconds after Whitson's second goal.
WPI (1-0) controlled the tempo for most of the contest, holding a 21-8 edge in shots.
Engineer backstop Jeff Wong (Millington, N.J.) needed to make just three saves to collect the season-opening victory.
Zucco, meanwhile, playing in his first collegiate contest as well, made eight stops in the loss.
Both teams will be back in action on Sunday with WPI facing Becker at 2:30 p.m., while the Lancers face Clark at noon.
Full Release Courtesy of Clark University