BURLINGTON — The collective mood Wednesday night at Virtue Field turned from doom and gloom to utterly euphoric in the blink of an eye.
The University of Vermont men’s soccer team was in danger of watching its season come to a disappointing end after conceding a first-half goal vs. UMBC in the America East semifinals. And after forcing overtime, UVM still faced the imminent possibility of having the match go to a penalty-kick shootout that would determine which team could advance to play another day.
Luckily for the Catamounts, the hot foot of Yaniv Bazini with 4:05 remaining triggered a 2-1 victory over the Retrievers. And as fans cheered on the players in a postgame celebration, the Cats received more good news when they found out they’ll be hosting the conference finals for the first time in nine years.
An upset victory in a PK shootout by No. 4 Bryant over No. 1 New Hampshire allowed the second-seeded Cats to maintain homefield advantage for the America East Championship, which will take place at 1 p.m. Sunday. The winner of that game will receive one of the country’s 22 automatic bids to next week’s NCAA Division I Tournament, while the losers will cross their fingers and home to snag one of the 26 at-large spot to the Big Dance.
Vermont is seeking its 14th conference tournament championship and its fourth straight trip to the NCAA tourney. The Green Mountain State squad advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in 1989 and 2022 and also made it to the Round of 16 last year before suffering a 2-1 loss to West Virginia.
Bazini, a transfer from NC State, scored twice against UMBC to help the Catamounts (10-2-5) avenge one of their two losses this season. The 6-foot-2 striker passed Maximilian Kissel (seven goals) for the team lead by pushing his season total to eight goals, and he’s buried six game-winning goals for the Cats during the past two seasons.
The Catamounts offense and depth has come through time and time again this season. UVM has scored 15 goals in the 76th minute or later and 11 goals in the 83rd minute or later this year.
Bazini has found the back of the net 25 times during the past three season in a UVM uniform and proved once again that he can deliver in clutch situations while helping his team improve to 6-0-4 at home this fall. Bazini is now tied for sixth all-time at Vermont for career goals.
The Catamounts held a 12-0 advantage in corner kicks and outshot the Retrievers 23-6, holding a 12-3 advantage in shots on target. But a counterattacking goal in the 43rd minute by UMBC (8-7-4) forced UVM to compete with an undeniable sense of urgency throughout the second half and during the golden-goal overtime.
A tactical change by UVM coach Rob Dow paid dividends when he moved starting center fullback Max Murray to a striker position after halftime. The 6-foot-5 standout assisted the game-tying goal in the 77th minute and was routinely a thorn in the side of UMBC defenders as he competed for aerial balls and set up his teammates with header flicks into the 18-yard box.
UMBC goalkeeper Emigdio Tormo Lopez (career-high 10 saves) entered the match with a four-game shutout streak and back up the hype early to stonewall at Catamounts squad that quickly built a massive advantage in scoring opportunities. Tormo Lopez made three difficult saves in the first half, including a diving stop to deny UVM’s Sydney Wathuta.
The Retrievers stunned the crowd with a late first-half goal in transition. Loc San scored his second goal of the season after taking a feed from Tyquan Stroud on the left-hand edge of the 18-yard box. San snuck a shot under UVM keeper Niklas Herceg (two saves) to give UMBC the lead.
In the second half the Catamounts poured on the offense and Bazini finally snapped Tormo Lopez’s streak of 471 minutes without allowing a goal. Zach Barrett played a ball back into the box and Murray flicked the ball forward to Bazini. As Tormo Lopez came out to challenge the Cats, Bazini got the first touch on the ball and redirected a shot into the back of the net to make it a 1-1 match.
Tormo Lopez continued his strong play in the first overtime session by making two saves, keeping the Retrievers’ victory hopes alive. But Bazini delivered the dagger for the Catamounts in the 106th minute. David Ismail played a pass into the box for Bazini, who received the offering with his back to goal. Bazini deftly turned in a fluid movement to shake off two UMBC defenders before poking the ball past Lopez for his 10th game-winner at Vermont.
This evening was the third semifinal matchup in America East history between UMBC and Vermont. And in the previous two instances the team that advanced went on to win the league crown.
The Catamounts’ .735 win percentage this season is tied for 16th best in the NCAA, and UVM is now 12-9-3 all-time as the home team in the America East tourney. Vermont is 11-10-1 all-time in the America East semifinals, and during Dow’s tenure Vermont has gone 3-3 in the semis.
The Catamounts will host Bryant (10-5-4) for all the marbles after earning a 1-0 victory over the Bulldogs on Oct. 18. The last time UVM hosted a league final was in 2015 when the Cats earned a 1-0 over Binghamton as the No. 2 seed.
MEN’S SOCCER
Bryant wins shootout
DURHAM, NH – Bryant earned a 4-2 win in a penalty-kick shootout Wednesday night to defeat New Hampshire after 110 scoreless minutes of action the America East tourney semifinals.
In a rematch of last year’s championship game, the Bulldogs relied on two clutch saves from keeper Antreas Hadjigavriel and goals from Kerman Sukia, Jonas Lyshoj, Marc Pitarch Bayot and Tibo Jacobs during the PK shootout.
Jacobs secured the Bulldogs’ trip to the championship in the fifth round of the shootout by sending the ball into the right side of the net. Hadjigavriel made four saves in regulation and overtime to earn his eighth clean sheet of the season and the 22nd shutout of his Bryant career.
Bryant defender Christien Merritt made a crucial diving save in the second half of the match after a keeper-and-player collision in the box that resulted in a loose ball. Merritt was able to block the ball with his body, maintaining the 0-0 tie.
In the first round of the shootout, Sukia fired the ball into the upper left corner of the net. UNH’s Ibrahim Conde followed after Sukia, sliding the ball into the back-right portion of the net, allowing the Wildcats (7-3-7) to tie things up at 1-1.
Neither team was able to grab the lead in the second round, as Bryant’s Cristian Guirado fired a shot off the crossbar and Hadjigavriel made a diving save during UNH’s response.
Lyshoj shot quickly and cashed in with a bid toward the left side of the net to make it 2-1. Hadjigavriel then made a second save by diving to his right to keep the Bulldogs in the driver’s seat. Bayot then sent the ball high and into the back of the net, giving Bryant a 3-1 advantge.
Terry Makedika converted his opportunity for the Wildcats, closing the gap to 3-2 heading into the fifth round. Jacobs silenced the hosts by making the most of his chance, allowing his team to triumph after the Bulldogs earned a 1-0 victory in double overtime during last year’s America East title clash.
Bryant is now 2-5-2 all-time against UNH, but owns a 2-1-2 record in Durham. The Bulldogs will be making their fourth championship game appearance in D-I program history.
Bryant held a 10-7 advantage in shots and recorded five shots on goal, while UNH held a 4-3 edge on corner kicks. Wednesday marked the fourth 0-0 draw this season for the Bulldogs, who lead the country in fewest goals allowed per game at 0.572.
