BABSON PARK, Mass.—Senior Ryan Grund (Princeton Junction, N.J.) tallied a goal and an assist and classmate Samuel Smith (Farmington, Maine) scored in the 71st minute to break a 1-1 tie and No. 22 Babson College went on to a 3-1 victory over Western New England University in a non-conference men's soccer game at Hartwell-Rogers Field.

With the win, Babson improves to 3-1-1 overall while Western New England had a four-game unbeaten streak (3-0-1) snapped and drops to 3-2-1.

Grund and Smith both scored their first goals since 2019 and sophomore Lyndon Way (Atlanta, Ga.) notched his first goal of the season for the Beavers. Sophomore Louis Gazo (Colchester, Vt.), senior Mitchell Collins (Burlington, Mass.), junior Liam Rhatigan (Holderness, N.H.) and first-year James Modiano (Montclair, N.J.) collected assists, and sophomore keeper Walker White (Coral Gables, Fla.) made one save in goal to record the victory.

Sophomore Mike Milazzo (Old Lyme, Conn.) scored a goal for the second straight game for the Golden Bears, and first-year Shay O'Neill (Belchertown, Mass.) recorded an assist. Sophomore Jacob Wadas (Ludlow, Mass.) made three saves in goal in the setback.

The Beavers took a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute when Collins settled the ball in the middle of the field and passed to Gazo, who sent a looping pass into the left side of the box where Grund broke free and tapped a shot past a charging Wadas and into the near side of the goal just inside the post.

The lead lasted just six minutes as the Golden Bears responded when O'Neill sent a through ball over top of the Babson defense into the box, and Milazzo eluded a couple of defenders on the left side and buried a shot into the left side of the goal to tie the score.

Babson finished the first 45 minutes with a 9-2 advantage in shots but had to settle for a 1-1 deadlock. The hosts continued to pressure the Golden Bears after the break but couldn't break through for the first 25 minutes.

The Green and White finally broke through in the 71st minute when Grund sent a through ball to Rhatigan near the left goal line. Rhatigan dropped a pass back to Smith, who fired one past the keeper just inside the far post to break the tie.

The Beavers added an insurance goal in transition in the 88th minute when Modiano broke free near the top of the box, circled to his right and centered a pass to Way in the slot and Way finished off the play with a shot into the left side of the goal.

Babson finished with an 18-5 advantage in shots and took 10 of the game's 12 corner kicks.

Both teams return to action Saturday at 2 p.m. for conference play as Babson opens New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action with a visit to Wheaton and Western New England begins Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at Curry.

GAME NOTES
• The Beavers have won four straight games over WNE and own a 16-2-1 lead in the career series that dates back to 1990, including an 8-0-1 mark at Hartwell-Rogers Field.
• Smith's goal for Babson was his first since he scored in a 6-0 win over New England College on September 25, 2019, and Grund struck for his first since November 7, 2019 in a 2-1 win over Wheaton in the NEWMAC Tournament semifinals.
• The Green and White are 14-0-1 going back to last season when scoring the first goal of the game, and 36-4-3 since 2018 after leading 1-0.
• Babson is 38-4-10 since the beginning of the 2018 season when holding the opponent to one goal or fewer.