Men’s Soccer Edges Emmanuel in Season Opener, 3-1

BOSTON – Three different player scored to help lift Suffolk men's soccer to a season-opening 3-1 victory over Emmanuel Friday afternoon at Clemente Field.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 3 | Emmanuel 1
RECORDS: Suffolk (1-0-0) | Emmanuel (0-0-0)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
After a scoreless first frame, Suffolk scored three unanswered to take a hefty lead it never relinquished. 

Brady Sorensen started the scoring for the blue-and-gold with help from Taj Jensen in the 51st minute. Diego Pierantozzi found the back of the net 20 minutes later a feed from Miguel Varela. Erik Van Even's unassisted tally in the 88th minute cushioned the margin.  

Pedro-Andres Vasquez eliminated the shutout as he pushed the rock past Xander Balog with 2:49 remaining in regulation for the 3-1 final.

KEEPING UP WITH THE KEEPERS

• Balog finished the win with two saves to his credit. 
• Maddox Pierce registered four stops in the defeat.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Sorensen, Pierantozzi and Van Even were responsible for the Rams goals with one apiece. 
• Jensen and Varela each dished out one assist. 
• The Rams held the upper hand in shots, 17-5, including 7-3 shots on target advantage. 
• Emmanuel took more corners than Suffolk, 4-3.  

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk won its third straight season opener to move to 13-7-1 in the first test of the year dating back to 2002. 
• Suffolk played on the road for the season debut for the first time since 2019 and first time in the Bill Maddock era. 
• The blue-and-gold rattled off three season-opening wins for the first time since winning three wins in a row since starting six seasons in a row in the win column from 2004-09.
• The Rams are now 5-5-1 when opening the curtain on its campaign away from home since 2002. 
• The blue-and-gold is unbeaten in game one under Maddock's guidance, 3-0-0. 
• The Rams tangled with Emmanuel in the first game of the season for the first time. 
• Suffolk defeated Emmanuel for the first time since Oct. 10, 2016. 
• The Rams moved to 12-8-1 all-time against the Saints. 
• On the road, the Rams are 6-3-1 against Emmanuel. 
• Suffolk moved to 1-2-0 versus the Saints with Maddock on the sidelines. 
• The two-goal margin of victory is the largest for the Saints since its shutout Emmanuel, 3-0, Sept. 19, 2012.
• Pierantozzi notched his first collegiate point.  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk begins its home schedule tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 2 when it welcomes Salem State to East Boston Memorial Park's James A. Sartori Stadium. Kick-off is set for 1:00 p.m.