Box Score PRESQUE ISLE – The Owls played host to the Unity Rams and were able to put up five goals on their way to a 5-1 victory.
The Owls put the pressure on early and often. Just a minute and thirty seconds into the game, Cody Blair (FR, Ashland, ME) had a great look at a goal. His attempt was deflected by the keeper, but managed to trickle towards the net and deflect off of a Ram defender. The Owls got on the board first with an own goal. The Owls continued to pressure the Rams and in the 18th minute, Blair was a part of another goal. This time he was credited with the assist to fellow freshman Mohamud Abukar (Lewiston, ME), who put the Owls up two. The Rams would finally answer, as Francesco Gurrero (FR, Monfalcone, Italy) scored an unassisted goal to cut the lead to 2-1. It took just a couple short minutes for the Owls to answer back, this time it was Chris Daly (SO, Kingfield, ME) that put the ball in the net, with Blair getting yet another assist, and UMPI went into halftime up 3-1. In the second half the Owls turned to Derek Healy (JR, Hanover, MA) to put the game out of reach. In the 50th minute Healy found a way to get another ball past the Ram's keeper. Abukar got credit for the assist. Brandon Danforth (FR, East Millinocket, ME) collected his first assist in his college career, setting Healy up for his second goal of the game (pictured). The Owls would hold on to win by a score of 5-1. The win was the first on the season for the Owls.
"This is by far the best we have played as a team," said Head Coach Alan Gordon. "I think the early goal really helped us settle down and just play. The younger guys on this team needed something like that to happen for them. The passing was good, the communication was good, it was an all-around team effort. We have been looking for a lot of young faces to step up and contribute, and they did that today. Cody [Blair] and Mohamud [Abukar] really stepped up today. [Sean] Barbosa was a big part of the day as well, stepping in as a back and really solidifying our defense. It was a great team effort."
The Owls will go on the road on Tuesday and take on Maine Machias. That game is scheduled to start at 5 PM.
