Eddie Conroy scored two goals to help lead the St. Thomas Aquinas boys soccer team to a 3-1 win over Portsmouth in the Division II opener for both teams Friday.
Jeff King also had a goal for the Saints, while Mike Kubiczki had an assist. Portsmouth’s lone goal was scored by Collin Siverts.
King started the scoring a little more than nine minutes into the game when he headed a corner kick by Kubiczki past Clipeprs’ goalie Jacob Lehoux, who finished with 14 saves. St. Thomas made it 2-0 eight minutes later when Conroy took the ball from a Portsmouth midfielder and moved to defenders before beating Lehoux.
Siverts got the Clippers within one, scoring with two minutes to go before halftime, but the Saints answered right back. Lehoux couldn’t control the rebound off a shot by JJ Brunelle and Conroy moved in to send the ball home.
The Saints got solid defense from Kubiczki and David Ham, along with sophomores Noah Schwaegerle and TJ Tetreault, who were both making their first varsity start. Seldon Cook made nine saves in goal for St. Thomas.
Peter Roginski and Jon Nartif both had good scoring chances for the Saints, while Jon Kiskinis, Mike Fort, Jon DiPietro and Dan Perreault also played well for St. Thomas.
The Saints will head to Coe-Brown on Tuesday for a rematch of last year’s Class I semifinal, while Portsmouth plays host to Oyster River.