After three weeks of Summit League conference play, the Massachusetts men’s soccer team sits tied for fourth place in the standings at 0-1-1. Heading into the fourth week of conference competition, all teams look to make a push for higher seeding.

Omaha shuts out UMass in a convincing win

The Mavericks (6-3-3, 1-0-1 Summit) defeated the Minutemen (4-6-3, 0-1-1 Summit) at Rudd Field on Oct. 10, 3-0.

Offensively, UMass created more scoring opportunities than Omaha, outshooting the Mavericks 17-10 and holding a 13-4 advantage in corner kicks. However, the Minutemen couldn’t convert any chances into a goal.

At the two-minute mark, Omaha forward Maguire Perkins found the back of the net to put the visitors up early. Then, the Mavericks followed up the tally with two penalty conversions in the 59th and 81st minutes to seal the match.

Freshman Garrison Murphy recorded UMass’s first shot on goal in the 12th minute, but Omaha goalkeeper Kamy Ndione saved the attempt, his first of six on the day.

Minutemen goalie Dean Linden recorded four saves, including two in the 33rd and 34th minutes of the game to keep the score at 1-0. But in the 59th minute, Italo Jenkins converted a penalty kick following a yellow card for Linden to extend the Mavericks’ lead to 2-0. Throughout the game, UMass maintained offensive pressure on Omaha with five shots from defender Shane Velez and another five from forward Sebastian Weitlaner.

In the 81st minute, a foul from Minutemen defender Quinn Belt gave the Mavericks their second penalty opportunity and third goal of the game as Brett Perkins slotted home his sixth goal of the season.

UMass amassed four shots in the final eight minutes of regulation, two of which were on goal, yet neither found the back of the net. The Minutemen’s 17 shots were a season high and they matched another season total with 13 corner kicks.

Following the matchup, UMass dropped from second place to fourth in the Summit League, while Omaha jumped to second. The Minutemen will look to get back on track against Dartmouth on Oct. 13 as Omaha looks to keep momentum against Oral Roberts on Oct. 16.

Delaware draws scoreless with St. Thomas 

Outside of Amherst, on Oct. 10th in St. Paul, Minn., the Blue Hens (7-2-5, 0-0-2 Summit) took on the Tommies (4-6-3, 0-1-1 Summit).

Both goalkeepers delivered standout performances throughout the game with three saves from Delaware’s Eric Widrick and five from St. Thomas’s Moritz Krenc. Widrick picked up his league-leading sixth shutout of the season, while Krenc earned his third.

Tommies’ forward Rodrigo Salamanca Lopez created a scoring opportunity in only the second minute of the game, but Widrick saved the attempt and held the match scoreless.

On offense, the Blue Hens’ Rich Monath logged Delaware’s first shot in the fourth minute, finishing with four attempts on the afternoon. The Blue Hens then maintained pressure with four corner kicks in the first half and eight at the conclusion of the game.

Delaware increased its offensive pressure after the 69th minute, taking seven shots, including three from forward Frederik Flaskager in a three-minute span. The Blue Hens also earned all eight corner kicks in the game, with one chance in the 86th minute that they could not convert.

Despite being outshot 11-5 and conceding all eight corner attempts, St. Thomas held off Delaware’s late push.

With both teams earning a point, the Blue Hens fell from second place to third, while the Tommies are now tied with UMass in fourth. Delaware will look to pick up its first conference victory against first-place Kansas City on Oct. 17. St. Thomas will look to continue climbing the standings when it faces the Minutemen in Amherst on the same day.

Luke Conlon can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X at luke_conlon1208.