Simon Enstrom tallied his first career hat-trick in a 3-1 win at Harvard, helping Boston College men’s soccer snap a four-game losing streak on Tuesday afternoon.
It also broke a scoring drought for Enstrom, the Eagles’ junior captain charged with leading their offense—often with little help up top. The Swedish striker did convert a penalty kick in a Sept. 17 victory against Providence, but he hadn’t scored from the run of play in over five weeks.
Against a Crimson (2-7-2) squad still winless at home, Enstrom got back on track. Early in the first half, he redirected a Younes Boudadi cross through a small seam to put BC (4-8) on the board. Then, in the 36st minute, he leaked out behind the Harvard back line on a counterattack, receiving a clearance from Adam French that set up a one-on-one with the keeper. Enstrom’s shot snuck in between the goalie’s legs to give the Eagles a 2-0 lead entering halftime.
Fifteen minutes into the second half, head coach Ed Kelly decided he wanted to give his workhorse a rest. Enstrom, however, saw his substitute looming on the sidelines and pushed forward for one final attack. Boudadi and French combined for a give-and-go, leaving Boudadi with enough space to send in a cross. His ball found the head of Enstrom, who flicked it above the keeper to complete his first-ever three-goal match. The goal also gave Boudadi his team-leading eighth assist of the season, and second of the game.
The Crimson chipped into the deficit in the 76th minute, after Christian Sady rocketed a shot that deflected off Mohammed Moro’s arm in the box, resulting in a penalty kick. Sady finished the chance past Antonio Chavez Borrelli, but it was the only time that the freshman was beat in goal.
Chavez Borrelli only made one save, thanks to the lockdown effort of BC’s back line. With Heidar Aegisson, Nikita Bondar, Lasse Lehmann, and Len Zeugner all out due to injury or illness, French notched his first two assists in a career-high 59 minutes.
It was a must-win, to say the least, for the Eagles, which now need to go undefeated in their final four games in order to crawl back to .500. It’s not a shock that they have such a dismal record in such a stacked conference—after all, the ACC is home to six of the top seven teams in the country, according to RPI. But one would expect at least one signature upset win for Kelly & Co. with this talented, young group. Luckily for them, it’s not too late: Awaiting them in the last two weeks of the season are Syracuse, UConn, Wake Forest, and NC State, and BC has the opportunity to turn heads as an underdog in nearly every one of those matchups.
Featured Image by Jake Evans / Heights Staff
