BRISTOL, R.I. – No. 1 Roger Williams University battled No. 2 Suffolk to a 1-1 draw, winning 4-3 on penalty kicks to capture the Conference of New England (CNE) Championship on Saturday on Bayside Field.
The win marks the second title for the Hawks in the last four years, after falling short last season to Suffolk in a penalty shootout, after falling in 2023 in a similar fashion to Western New England.
The Hawks outshot the Rams 19-17, with six on goal to Suffolk's five. Roger Williams also held the advantage on corner kicks, 6-4. The Rams had 16 fouls called against them to RWU's 11, with one yellow being awarded to the Hawks and two being awarded to Suffolk.
The Rams fired off two shots in the opening ten minutes, but the Hawks struck first as Dylan Robbins (Johnston, R.I.) sent a ball forward to Max Patenaude (Pepperell, Mass.), who fired a shot past Suffolk keeper, Nathan Harlow. Suffolk responded quickly, firing off four shots before Francisco Valck scored on a penalty kick in the 24th minute, levelling the score 1-1.
RWU had a series of early chances in the second half, including a corner kick and shots from Brandon Rodriguez (Norwalk, Conn.), Robbins, and Liam Blaisdell (Plymouth, Mass). Roger Williams controlled much of the play in the second half but could not break through as the Hawks and Suffolk played to a scoreless period to close out regulation. Neither team capitalized on its chances, heading into overtime at 1-1.
After a scoreless extra-time period, the Hawks led things off in the penalty shootout, with Carter Sewell in goal for the Rams. Rodriguez buried the first goal before Suffolk's Matthew Belluardo did the same.
In the second attempts, Patenaude missed for the Hawks, while Dylan Trachtenburg finished his to give Suffolk the 2-1 lead. Aidan Jennings (San Diego, Calif.) levelled the score, 2-2, as Diego Pierantozzi missed Suffolk's third attempt.
After both squads made their fourth attempts, Jorge Beltran (Madrid, Spain) scored to bring the Hawks to a 4-3 lead. Eliot Panaccione (Pepperell, Mass.) made the save to seal the Championship for the Hawks, stopping Suffolk's last attempt.
Roger Williams (13-1-6, 8-1-1 CNE) will await the location of the program's NCAA Tournament appearance on Monday, Nov. 10 at 11:30 AM.
