EAST BOSTON – Matthew Belluardo lifted the fourth-seeded Suffolk men's soccer team to a 1-0 CCC Quarterfinals victory over the fifth-seeded Endicott Gulls with a goal in the 86th minute Saturday afternoon at James A. Sartori Stadium at East Boston Memorial Park.  

With the win, the advance to the CCC Semifinals Tuesday, Oct. 31 at top-seeded Western New England. 

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 1 | Endicott 0
RECORDS: Suffolk (10-5-3) | Endicott (8-7-4)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
After a scoreless 85 minutes, a long throw-in by Tommy Handelsman set up the lone score of the day. The ball met Jack Phelps on the opposite side of the net. The Gulls defense moved over, which allowed the senior defenseman to slip a pass to a waiting Belluardo in front of Endicott's net. Belluardo's high kick came just inside the cross bar and met the back of the twine to put the only tally on the board with 4:20 left on the clock. 

Konrad Krysztoforski managed to test Xander Balog with 1:32 remaining in regulation, however, Suffolk's keeper made the save to keep the lead and win in Suffolk's favor at the final buzzer.  

KEEPING UP WITH THE KEEPERS

• Balog registered a five-save effort in the cleansheet. 
• Kevin Pelletier stopped three of the four shots he faced. 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Belluardo was responsible for the lone goal of the game. 
• Phelps had one assist. 
• Suffolk outshot Endicott, 15-9, however Endicott held the edge in shots on target, 5-4.
• The Gulls had an seven corner kicks compared to the blue-and-gold's one.  

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk made its 21st overall and third straight CCC postseason appearance Saturday. 
• Suffolk secured its first-ever CCC Quarterfinals win. 
• The Rams improved to 2-3-1 all-time in the CCC postseason. 
• The blue-and-gold punched its ticket to the league semifinals for the second straight season and seventh time overall. 
• It is the first time Suffolk will play in the conference semifinals in back-to-back seasons in program history.  
• Suffolk is 9-5 when competing as the fourth seed. 
• The Rams hosted their sixth-ever conference postseason contest. 
• As the home team, the Rams are 5-1-0 in a conference tournament. 
• The Rams are now 2-3-1 in the postseason in the Bill Maddock era. 
• 18 of Suffolk's 28 postseason games have come via shutouts. The Rams are 4-14-0 in shutouts in a conference postseason. At home, the Rams are 3-1-0 in postseason shutouts with two of those triumphs coming over Endicott. 
• Suffolk has won four games in a row against the Gulls to take a 4-3-0 edge in the all-time series. 
• There have been four shutouts in the all-time series between Suffolk and Endicott. The Rams are 4-1-0 versus the Gulls when a team is kept off the scoreboard. 
• In Eastie, Suffolk sports a 2-1-0 ledger against Endicott. 
• Suffolk is 4-1-0 against Endicott with Maddock on the bench. 
• Suffolk is unbeaten, 2-0-0, versus Endicott in the CCC postseason. 
• The Rams and Gulls tangled in the CCC Quarterfinals for the first time. 
• Balog had his fifth shutout of the season, 17th of his collegiate career. 
• Belluardo had his fourth game-winning goal of the season. 
• Phelps dished out his first collegiate assist, it is his first point since his sophomore season in 2021.  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk heads to Springfield, Massachusetts, Tuesday, Oct. 31 for the CCC Semifinals at top-seeded Western New England. The Halloween kick-off is set for 2 p.m.