CHICOPEE, Mass. - The New England College men's soccer team was edged by Elms College, 2-1, in Tuesday evening's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) road matchup.
The Blazers capitalized on an early foul by the Pilgrims to open the scoring. Elms continued to pressure the NEC defense, putting shots on goal that were blocked by the 'Grims. The Blazers added to their lead in the 41st minute, carrying a 2-0 advantage into halftime.
Senior Erik Corbin (Marlborough, Mass.) looked to get the Pilgrims on the scoreboard, but his shot was blocked by the Blazers' defense. Minutes later, junior Levi Campbell (Goffstown, N.H.) sent a header on target that was saved by the defense to keep NEC off the board. The Blazers responded with offensive pressure, but senior goalkeeper Lukas Tate (South Jordon, Utah) turned aside their attempt to maintain their lead. Corbin eventually broke through, capitalizing on a foul by the Blazers to find the back of the net and cut the lead to one. Freshman Carson Leibeck (Willsboro, N.Y.) continued the Pilgrims' push, seeing one shot blocked before sending a header just wide in the closing seconds as the Blazers held on for the 2-1 victory.
The 'Grims return home on Saturday to host Albertus Magnus at 3:00 PM. Prior to kickoff, NEC will recognize its graduating student-athletes.
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