A fresh, rested Central Connecticut side scored early and often as the Massachusetts men’s soccer team fell 5-1 to the Blue Devils in a Sunday afternoon matinee. Freddy Metellus scored twice to lead all scorers and set the pace for Central Connecticut.

The Minutemen (0-4) fell behind early after the Blue Devils connected on a corner kick in the eighth minute of the game, as freshman Ben Knight headed home his first goal of the season after a nice delivery from corner taker Filosmar Cordeiro.  Just 12 minutes later, Central Connecticut (1-1) struck again when Metellus scored his first of the day.

Freshman midfielder Rob Cohen had the best scoring chance of the opening half for UMass in the 30th minute on a free kick from 23 yards out, but Blue Devils goalkeeper Nick Valleca made the stop to keep the Minutemen scoreless.

Just before half time, in the 43rd minute, Central Connecticut struck for a back-breaking tally to make the score 3-0 and effectively ice the game before the halfway point. Sophomore Ryan Taylor scored the crucial goal off an assist from Knight.

In the second half, the Blue Devils wasted no time increasing their lead. Metellus headed home his second goal of the afternoon to push the margin to 4-0 in the 54th minute.

In what was their fourth game of 2015, the Minutemen finally broke through for their first goal of the season Sunday in the 65th minute. Lenoir Sery scored to make it 4-1 after a set-up from Alex DeSantis, but that would be all for UMass on the afternoon.

Louis Beddouri recorded the final goal of the game in the 80th minute to cap Central Connecticut’s first victory of the season.

It was a disappointing game defensively for the Minutemen after a decent start to the season that saw five total goals allowed in three games. The defense performed well against Utah Valley and Columbia, allowing just one goal in each matchup.

After Sunday’s loss, UMass coach Fran O’Leary said his fatigued squad had trouble keeping up with the Blue Devils. The latest matchup marked the Minutemen’s second game in three days and fourth in nine days.

“It was one game too many for us (Sunday),” O’Leary said. “We had a lot of fatigued players after four games in nine days.”

Sunday afternoon’s matchup was the third of a four-game road trip for the Minutemen, who lost 1-0 to Columbia Friday afternoon in New York City. UMass also fell 3-0 to Saint Peters on Aug. 31 in New Jersey to start the trip.

Central Connecticut, on the other hand, was playing just the second game of its season and first since Aug. 28.

“We didn’t have any legs today,” O’Leary said. “We just had a lot of exhausted players.”

The loss leaves O’Leary – who is in his first year at the helm of UMass but his third decade of coaching college and professional soccer – still searching for his first win with the Minutemen. But after the game, he insisted there was no frustration setting in for him or the team.

“Guys are disappointed, but you have to be realistic,” O’Leary said. “(We) know we’re moving in the right direction. We know we’re getting better.”

UMass will get its next chance to show its progress on Thursday, Aug. 10 at Albany. O’Leary said the upcoming week represents a chance for the Minutemen to recover physically and move on mentally from Sunday’s blowout loss.

“Games in a college season come thick and fast,” O’Leary said. “You have to have short term memory. If you lose, you have to put it behind you and move on.”

Ross Gienieczko can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @RossGien.