Medford, MA ---
Savio Ketnouvong (Worcester, MA) made four saves, all in the opening half, as WPI men's soccer battled defending national champion and nationally ranked Tufts to a scoreless draw Friday afternoon at Bello Field.
The Engineers move to 0-4-4 on the season, while the Jumbos, who captured their fifth national title since 2014 last fall and are currently No. 11 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25, are now 4-1-2 overall.
Tufts generated nine shots during the opening 45 minutes, but Ketnouvong kept the hosts off the scoreboard. The junior turned aside attempts by
Henry Brown (Winter Park, FL),
Xavier Canfin (Tarrytown, NY) and
Ellis Denby (North Andover, MA), while another Canfin attempt went wide. WPI generated its lone first-half shot on goal when
Adin Pezo (Everett, MA) forced Tufts goalkeeper
Nikola Antic (Waltham, MA) into a save in the 29th minute.
WPI came out more aggressively following halftime, recording five shots during the second half.
Anir AitDowd (Harvard, MA) and
Nathan Araujo (Holliston, MA) each recorded early attempts, with Antic denying Araujo at 49:12.
Tedi Ajazi (Shrewsbury, MA) later put an attempt wide before Pezo forced another save from Antic in the 77th minute.
Nikolas Previte (Andover, MA) followed with a shot on target at 79:12, but Antic made the stop as the Jumbos kept the Crimson and Gray off the scoreboard.
Bijan Akhtarzandi-Das (Washington, DC) nearly won it for the Jumbos in the final minute, but the senior shot hit the crossbar with just 39 seconds remaining.
Ketnouvong finished with four saves for WPI, all coming during the opening half, while Antic also recorded four stops for Tufts. The shutout marked WPI's second of the season as the Boynton Hillers also played Endicott to a scoreless draw on opening night on September 1st.
Tufts finished with a 15-6 advantage in shots, while both teams placed four attempts on target. The Jumbos also held a 7-1 edge in corner kicks. Pezo led the Crimson and Gray with two shots, both on frame, while Previte and Araujo each added one shot on target.
WPI hosts UMass Boston Tuesday at 4pm at H. Carr Field, while Tufts closes out a six-game home stretch Monday evening, entertaining No. 5 Babson at 7pm at Bello Field.
