Itoh Nails His Third Game-Winner Of The Season As Gulls Celebrate 3-2 OT Win Over WNEU

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott men's soccer team battled the visiting Western New England University Golden Bears to a hard fought 3-2 overtime victory Saturday afternoon at Hempstead Stadium as the Gulls became the last unbeaten Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) team standing.

With the win, Endicott improved to 11-1-2 overall (6-0 CCC), while Western New England dropped to 7-7 (5-1 CCC).

For the third match in a row, the Gulls have gone to overtime, with senior midfielder Shintaroh Itoh (Nerima, Tokyo, Japan) the hero this time around as he chipped in a golden goal off of a throw in from sophomore back Carter Ocko (Danvers, Mass.) in the 97th minute.

In a match that saw WNE outshoot Endicott 23-14, the Golden Bears struck first with the quick goal in the opening minutes as sophomore forward Troy Remillard (Palmer, Mass.) connected on a feed from sophomore forward Maurice Young (Walpole, Mass.) for the first of two goals on the day in the 11th minute to give WNE an early lead.

Senior forward Diego Slobotzky (Mexico City, Mexico) found the back left of the net on a pass across the middle from Itoh that he booted on a high arc that sailed past junior goalkeeper Kevin Strobel (Rockland, Mass.) in the 14th minute to knot the score at one apiece.

Sophomore forward Diego Maillo (Plantation, Fla.) gave the Gulls the go-ahead goal (2-1) in the 33rd minute on a one-touch pass from Slobotzky that he blasted to the back right of the net.

Remillard and Young teamed up for the equalizer in the 86th minute in traffic in front of the goal as junior goalkeeper Nick Weinstein (Trumbull, Conn.) was knocked down.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• The Gulls have not lost since a 3-1 decision back on September 8 at home against Tufts.
• Tonight's match was the fifth time all-time these two teams have squared off in overtime.
• The Gulls are now 2-0-2 in extra time this season.
• Slobotzky tallied one goal and one assist in a single game for the first time this season.
• Itoh scored his fifth goal of the season (third game-winner, second in OT this season).
• The last time Itoh netted a game-winning goal in overtime came in a 2-1 win over Curry on the road on Oct. 10, 2015.
• Itoh's second match of the season with at least one goal and one assist (second in the CCC with seven assists) this season.
• Junior goalkeeper Nick Weinstein (Trumbull, Conn.) made five key stops in goal to earn his 11th win of the season (11-1-2).

FOR THE FOES

• Remillard scored twice for the Golden Bears in back-to-back matches, (third overall) as he paces the team with nine goals.
• Young now has four assists on the season, as he has registered assists in consecutive games for the first time this season.
• Strobel made four saves as he suffered his sixth loss of the season.

NOTES

• Today's contest saw the Gulls improve to 2-5-2 all-time against the Golden Bears, as Endicott won its first match against WNE since a 1-0 double-overtime home victory on Sept. 19, 2009.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (11-1-2, 6-0 CCC) will welcome Wentworth on Wednesday, October 21 at 4:00 p.m. at Hempstead Stadium.

Western New England University (7-7, 5-1 CCC) will host Salve Regina on Wednesday, October 21 at 3:00 p.m. at Suprenant Field.  

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