Suffolk University men’s soccer will have a chance to defend their title on the biggest stage.
Taking on the Endicott College Gulls in the Conference of New England semifinals Nov. 4, Suffolk emerged from the 90 minute battle with a 2-1 victory, securing their spot in the CNE championship game.
A game that was hard fought, intense and drama-filled for all 90 minutes ended with Suffolk’s third trip to the championship game in the last four years. Against the Gulls in the postseason, Suffolk is a perfect 3-0. When hosting a playoff game, the Rams improved to 6-2-2.
Head coach Bill Maddock reflected on what he thought was a “Typical Suffolk way” type of game.
“I thought in the first half, we did a really good job of kind of controlling the tempo of the game and what we call the temperature of the game,” said Maddock. “Controlling pace, we did a really good job in the first half. Very good chances, had good energy. Once we scored that second goal in the second half, I thought we just kind of exhaled a little bit too much. We just got to make sure that we kind of stay on the front foot with things. But credit to the boys for defending for their lives and getting back to the final.”
The Rams got on the board in the 28th minute when a centering feed from Emiliano Esquer wound up in front of Diego Pierantozzi, who rocketed the ball past Endicott goalkeeper Ethan Harrison to make it 1-0 Suffolk, a score that would last until halftime.
Maddock was proud of Pierantozzi for taking advantage of the chance right in front of him, especially as a senior.
“We like to get the ball out wide and then attack centrally,” said Maddock. “He did a really good job of just controlling kind of a bouncing ball through traffic, and [a] good finish for the senior. I’m very happy for him.”
Once the second half started, it took less than seven minutes for Suffolk to find the back of the net once again. This time, Matthew Belluardo put one away to double the lead to 2-0. It was Belluardo’s third goal in the playoffs against Endicott in as many games.
Belluardo was confident that he would score against the Gulls, as he has made a habit of doing during his time at Suffolk.
“I score against them almost every single year, especially in the playoffs,” said Belluardo. “It’s been four years, I’ve had three goals against them in the playoffs and two in the regular season. This is my moment. I knew that when the ball was coming in the box that these guys, they’re not especially good at marking set pieces. I just did what I’ve done for the last four years and put another goal on them.”
After Belluardo’s goal, tensions started to flare when Endicott’s Sam Cochran was whistled for a red card after he sent Suffolk’s Mohamed Mehaya to the ground with a body hit after a stoppage in play.
From there, three more yellow cards were issued in total. Two went to Endicott, as Carter McCoy and Ethan Nunes were whistled for infractions within three minutes of each other. Javen Ironside was responsible for the only Suffolk yellow card on the day, which came in the 82nd minute.
With the Gulls down two goals, they started to attack hard on the Suffolk defense and goalkeeper Nathan Harlow as the clock continued to tick down. In the 77th minute, they broke through when Drew McClay-Ward tapped one past Harlow to cut the deficit to 2-1.
With eight minutes left, it appeared as if Endicott scored the game-tying goal when they sent one past Harlow in a lot of traffic in front of the net. The goal was waved off almost immediately because Endicott was lined up offside. That was the closest they got to scoring again, with Suffolk holding on for the dramatic win.
Now, the Rams turn their attention to an all-too familiar foe in the CNE championship game: Roger Williams.
In 2022, the Hawks prevailed 2-1 over the Rams to win the championship, a game they hosted. In 2024, Suffolk got their revenge with a penalty kick victory in East Boston. Now, the two sides tangle back in Rhode Island once again.
“I told the guys before the game ‘we’re not letting somebody take that trophy from us,’” said Maddock. “We’re going down there and we’re gonna try to win this thing.”
Belluardo is excited about the opportunity to avenge the championship game loss from his freshman year once again.
“The most important thing to win this championship is an intelligent team,” said Belluardo. “I’ve been saying since the start of the playoffs, I’ve wanted this win at Roger Williams to avenge my freshman year. But the most important thing is we got to be the most mature man on the field. Not just the kids out on the field anymore, but now the most mature men.”
The championship game will take place at Roger Williams’ Bayside Field Nov. 8. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Michael Najarian Jr • Nov 5, 2025 at 9:28 am
We’ll written Thank You.! It’s always nice when the write up makes you feel like you were there !!!