Alves, McNally Carry Nighthawks to Semi-Finals

Leicester, Mass.- In New England Collegiate Conference men's playoff action the sixth seeded Newbury Nighthawks upset the third seeded Becker Hawks in penalty kicks.

Becker broke the scoreless tie with 24:19 remaining in regulation when Brandon Frey (Sound Beach, N.Y.) passed to Aldo Karkanjozi (Sterling Heights, Mich.) down the left sideline, Karkanjozi drove a shot just passed the dive of Newbury goalkeeper William McNally (Grafton, Mass.). The Hawks lead was short lived as the Nighthawks got in the board with 21:41 remaining when Bret Alves (Riverside, RI.) collected his own rebound, ripping it past Becker goalkeeper Tim McDonald (Holden, Mass.).

Becker and Newbury battled through two, ten minute overtimes before heading into penalty kicks. The two teams played through the first five penalty kicks without a winner being determined. On the sixth penalty shot Matheaus Souza's (Framingham, Mass.) shot was saved by William McNally, giving Newbury the chance to advance on their next shot.  Alex Chappell (East Haddam, Conn.) lined up for Newbury and nailed the crossbar with his shot, giving Becker another life. Brandon Frey took the next attempt for the Hawks and shot it over the net, putting the pressure back on Becker. Brent Alves (Riverside, R.I.), who scored the game tying goal in regulation, sent Newbury into the NECC semifinals after scoring the game winning penalty kick past the dive of Tim McDonald.

Tim McDonald made three saves in a losing effort. Becker finishes its season with a record of 10-7-2 overall. Newbury goalkeeper William McNally made seven saves as the Nighthawks advance to play Daniel Webster on Friday afternoon in the NECC semifinals. Newbury is now 4-13-2 on the season.

- Game Photo by: Sly Photography

- Game story provided by: Becker Sports Information