WESTFIELD, Mass. – The Owls men's soccer team will host the Albertus Magnus Falcons at Alumni Field on Thursday, September 1 at 7:00 pm to open the 2022 fall season for Westfield State Athletics. The Owls look to take advantage of a clean slate after finishing (4-12-1) during the 2021-2022 season. Albertus Magnus will come to Westfield expecting to keep the ball rolling after a successful season last year finishing (10-5-1) overall.
Now entering his second year, forward Nick Brown (Southwick, Mass.) looks to pick up where he left off last year as the team's leading goal scorer (4) and assists leader (3). Brown was elected MASCAC Rookie of the Week to begin the season last year after scoring two goals and recording two helpers in the opening week. Another notable piece to keep an eye on is senior forward JoJo Evborokhai (Chicopee, Mass.). Evborokhai picked up two goals last season.
Returning in net is junior keeper Emilio Mancuso (Ludlow, Mass.) who started in nine games a season ago. He registered two of Westfield's four wins, pitching shutouts over University of New England and Mass. Maritime which included a nine-save effort against the Buccaneers.
Albertus Magnus returns a pair of 2021 Great Northeast Athletic Conference All-Conference players in midfielder Kelvin Cortez (Meriden, Conn.) and goalkeeper Garfield Rodriguez (West Haven, Conn.). Cortez enters his senior year after leading the Falcons in goals (8) in 2021. Rodriguez guided Albertus to nine victories, five of which were shutouts, and finished the season with a tidy 1.04 goals against average. He started in all but two games for the Falcons last year. The Falcons men's soccer team was voted fifth in the GNAC preseason coaches' poll heading into this season.
One big idea: The Owls offense versus the Falcons defense – Scoring was an issue for the Owls a season ago, netting 14 goals in 17 games last year. Rodriguez and the Falcons defense was stout on the back end in 2021, allowing less than a goal per game across 16 matches. How Westfield attacks the Falcons will be worth monitoring, especially under a new system in head coach Chris Streeter's first season.
Admission to the game is free. Live stats and video are available at westfieldstateowls.com