PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The University of Maine at Presque Isle Owls men’s and women’s soccer teams hosted Thomas and Unity colleges during the weekend of Sept. 21 and 22, dropping two out of the four matches.
On a sunny Saturday, the Thomas College Terriers took home a 5-1 victory against the Lady Owls. According to UMPI sports information representative Mark Knight, the Owls started off strong with an early goal by Marissa Valdivia Reagle, a junior from Seattle, in the six-minute mark, her fifth goal on the year. The Owls kept the pressure on with a near goal by Hannah Nadeau, a sophomore from Madawaska, that was deflected by a Terrier defender.
The Terriers answered with a goal at the 20-minute mark and another with two minutes left in the half, thereby taking the lead. They extended their lead and prevented the Owls from taking a shot in the second half, adding three goals.
Savannah Rodriguez, a freshman from Presque Isle, fought hard in the goal with seven saves on the day.
In men’s action, Thomas took the game with a 5-0 victory.
Thomas started off aggressively, Knight said, with a goal at the 11-minute mark, then followed with two more goals at 22 and 23 minutes. Zenawi Bowen led the Terriers with two of those goals. The Owls picked up their defense and ball control in the second half, only allowing five shots on goal. The Terriers added two more goals late in the game.
Paul Kaplan, a junior from Embden, and Jonah Hudson, a freshman from Presque Isle, led the Owls on the defensive end, while Keith Mank, a freshman from Raymond, ended the game with four saves.
The Owls fared better on Sunday, Sept. 22, taking both of their matches against Unity College.
The Lady Owls beat Unity 6-0. Reagle led the way with the first goal, while Nadeau scored the second goal, assisted by Alexis Rodriguez, a freshman from Caribou. Rodriguez added another goal, giving the home team a 3-0 lead in the first half. Other goals came from Courtney Richard, a freshman from Farmington, Kassandra Nelson, a freshman from Portage Lake, and Reagle. Monica McLaughlin, a freshman from Caribou, helped lead the defense, allowing two shots on goal throughout the game.
The men’s team won 1-0 on a goal early in the second half by Andre Rossignol, a sophomore from Van Buren. Knight said both teams fought hard on the defensive end. The Owls led the way at the half with eight shots to the Rams’ three. Just three minutes into the second half, Rossignol was fouled after a setup by teammate Hunter Wardwell, a freshman from Mars Hill. He hammered in a goal to give the Owls a 1-0 lead.
The single goal was enough, thanks to defense led by UMPI goalie Mank, with six saves in his shutout game.
Both teams will face conference opponent Northern Vermont-Lyndon on Homecoming weekend, Saturday, Sept. 28, with the men hitting the field at 12 noon and the women’s game beginning at 2:30 p.m.
