DANBURY, Conn. - The Western Connecticut State University men's soccer team and visiting Stevens Institute of Technology battled to a 0-0 draw at the Westside Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon, with the Ducks controlling much of the possession and shot count but unable to slip anything past Wolves sophomore goalkeeper Makai Smith (Bridgeport, Conn.), who turned away all five shots he faced to preserve the clean sheet.
Stevens pressed for most of the match, out-shooting WestConn 13-4 and winning the corner kick battle 9-2, but found the iron of the goal more often than the back of the net. Junior defender Martin Fields (Plainfield, N.J.) had the Ducks' best looks, hitting the post with a header in the first half and forcing two more saves from Smith late in the second, sandwiched around a header that clanged off the crossbar from junior Joey Bucchere (Chesterfield, N.J.). Junior midfielder Emerson Kekesi (Columbus, N.J.) and classmate forward Matthew Murillo (San Gabriel, Calif.) also tested Smith without success, while first-year goalkeeper Bobby Boyke (Somerset, N.J.) needed only one save to also earn a shutout for the visitors.
WestConn generated fewer chances but had its moments, with sophomore Juan Gomez Herrera (Brentwood, N.Y.) firing two early shots wide and graduate student Ben Tomas (Danbury, Conn.) forcing a save from Boyke in the second half. Senior Aidan Roxo (Danbury, Conn.) whipped in a pair of second-half corner kicks that nearly resulted in shots for the Wolves.
The match was chippy throughout, with nine total yellow cards shown — four to WestConn and five to Stevens .
With the draw, WestConn moved to 1-0-2 on the season, while Stevens went to 1-0-1. The Wolves return to the field on Monday when they travel to non-conference foe Wheaton College at 2 p.m.
