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Outside of seeing family, defender Ben Wilcox and keeper Chad Mongeon’s visit to their home state was not a pleasant one. On Saturday afternoon, the University of Maine men’s soccer team suffered a stinging 2-0 lost to the University of Vermont at Centennial Field.
Saturday’s loss also saw the Black Bears record fall to 3-3-2 and more importantly saw the squad lose ground in America East conference competition. As of deadline, the Black Bears were in a tie for sixth place in the conference standings. With the victory the Catamounts moved into second place in the conference. The Black Bears’ lone conference point comes from their 2-2 match against New Hampshire on Sept. 25.
From the moment the game started, Vermont was not only able to set the pace but largely dictate the pace. The Catamounts tallied their first goal in the 16th minute using a aggressive counterattack.
Vermont’s Ronan Keegan scored the goal after a perfectly placed Tony Anderson pass. Anderson played a through ball to Keegan from ten yards out to beat Mongeon for the early lead.
Late in the first half, Vermont was looking to extend their lead when Scott Webb sent a low shot on Mongeon who was able to snag the tough shot. The Black Bears entered the half with a one- goal deficit.
Mongeon, who played at nearby Essex High with Wilcox, was able to make four saves in net for the Black Bears in front of the 1,000-plus fans that were at the game.
When the second half started, Maine was able to apply pressure on Vermont while creating several scoring chances. The Black Bears’ best chance came off the foot of freshman Jimmy Velas, who sent a shot ringing off the crossbar.
Despite constant pressure and a solid attempt to tie the game, Vermont was able to put the game out of reach late in the second half when Anderson scored in stoppage time for a 2-0 lead.
The tally came after Maine tried to clear the ball out only to have Ashton Harrewyn gain control of the ball and find Anderson for the insurance goal.
Vermont outshot Maine 15-6 en route to victory.
The Black Bears will look to improve on Saturday’s performance, when they face conference foes Northeastern and Albany at Alumni Field later this week. The game against Northeastern will start at 3 p.m. Wednesday. The game will mark the team’s first time appearance at home in a month.
Bangor Daily News