Alec Foster
Alec Foster

Bentley Headed to NE10 Playoffs After 2-1 Win over Le Moyne

WALTHAM, Mass. – Julian Stewart (Acton, Mass./Acton-Boxboro) and Alex Foster (Wayland, Mass./Wayland) were the goal scorers as the Bentley men's soccer team defeated Le Moyne 2-1 on Friday afternoon to help book its place in the NE10 playoffs.

The win, combined with AIC's loss to Adelphi, sends the Falcons to the NE10 playoffs. They won five of their last six to close out the regular season. They will play Adelphi, which finished as the top seed, in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.

Bentley got some early pressure, with two shots in the first six minutes by Colby Gould (Exeter, N.H./Exeter) requiring saves out of Le Moyne keeper Ben Beaury.

That sustained pressure resulted in two straight corner kicks by freshman Connor Mote (Lisle, Ill./Benet). A Le Moyne clearance on the second kick led to a third one from the left corner. Mote sent it in, and senior Adam Watkins (McConnells, S.C./Clover) rose up to head it on to Stewart on the doorstep of the goal. Stewart didn't miss and notched his 7th goal of the season to give the Falcons a 1-0 lead in just the 10th minute.

Le Moyne though tied it up just five minutes later. Senior Marek Weber headed in a throw-in from Adam Resetarits for his NE10 leading 18th goal of the season.

The game went into halftime tied 1-1.

Just 1:42 after the break though, Bentley took the lead back. A shot by Stewart that was blocked by the Dolphins defense created a loose ball that came to senior Eric Spangler (Lafayette, Colo.). Spangler ran on to it and drilled a shot off the post, only for Foster to clean up the rebound from close range to put the Falcons up 2-1.

Le Moyne created a few scoring chances the rest of the way, but stout defending and the goalkeeping of David Price (Needham, Mass./Beaver Country) preserved the lead, and Bentley was able to close the game out.

Bentley and Adelphi played in the regular season back on Sept. 26 on Long Island, which the Panthers won. The last time the two programs met in the postseason was the 1975 NCAA Tournament.