BOSTON, Mass. - Sophomore Yuran Teixeira's (Praia, Cape Verde) penalty kick goal in the 86th minute broke a scoreless tie, as UMass Boston men's soccer defeated Worcester State 1-0 at James Cotter Field.
After 85 scoreless minutes, UMass Boston finally got on the board thanks to a penalty kick opportunity.
Junior Raffi DeSouza (Watertown, Mass.) received a long ball just outside the box on the far side and drove into the box and towards the goal line, before he was pushed to the turf. Teixeira stepped up to take the penalty kick and blasted the ball into the top right corner for a 1-0 lead at 85:36.
The Beacons continued to attack over the final 4:24 and nearly tacked on a second goal, to easily close out the non-conference victory.
Junior goalie Omar Castro-Dreher (Woonsocket, R.I.) earned his second win and shutout of the season, by making two saves in the victory.
Worcester State's Henri Guilmette (Franklin, Mass.) posted eight saves on nine shots to fall to 2-4-1.
The Beacons dominated the play for most of the contest, but struggled with their finishing touch.
Freshman Jonathan Rodrigues (Brockton, Mass.) provided the best opportunity for the Beacons in the first 45 minutes. The freshman was released one-on-one with the goalie but his shot, that beat Guilmette, caught the post to keep the score 0-0.
After a frustrating first half, the Beacons upped their game in the second half, forcing Guilmette into a lot of action.
Sophomore Josh Crespo (Curitiba, Brazil) and DeSouza each delivered two shots on goal in the opening five minutes of the half, but all four shots were blistered right at the goalie.
UMass Boston had a golden chance in the 77th minute, but Julio DaSilva's (Icara, Brazil) effort went just high after the Beacons had unlocked the Lancers defense.
Worcester State earned their best look of the second half at 65:14, when Bryan Brasil (Williamsburg, Mass.) forced Castro-Dreher to make a diving parry on a shot to the near post.
UMass Boston outshot the Lancers 22-6, including 12-3 in the second half. The Beacons also earned a 9-2 edge in shots on goal. The two teams each recorded three corner kicks.
With the win, UMass Boston extended their winning streak to three in a row against Worcester State and improved to 6-3 all-time against the Lancers.
Next up for the Lancers, they will cap off a three-match road trip at Fitchburg State on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 12 p.m.
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