Men's Soccer Posts 3-1 Win Over UMD on Senior Night

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University men's soccer team posted a 3-1 victory over visiting UMass Dartmouth on Senior Night at Swenson Field.

The Bears improve to 4-7-2 on the season with their second straight win, while the Corsairs fall to 0-9-5. Bridgewater State is now 25-12-6 versus UMass since 1979.

UMass opened the scoring in the tenth minute. Sophomore forward Lucas Passaro's (Wellesley, Mass.) header goal off the rebound of a Cameron Jacob (So., Fall River, Mass.) shot staked the Corsairs to the early 1-0 lead.

Sophomore forward Ethan Lafontant (Chelmsford, Mass.) nearly tied it for the Bears in the 18th minute as he slipped a shot just wide of the far post from the left side of the 18.

BSU junior defender Jacob Ramos (New Bedford, Mass.) converted a header goal off a restart in the 24th minute to knot the score at 1-1. Sophomore midfielder Nicolas Matias (Milford, Mass.) sent the indirect kick inside the six and Ramos' header deflected off the bottom of the crossbar and into the back of the net for his first goal of the season.

Senior forward Robson Montrond (Brockton, Mass.) drew and converted a penalty kick in the 29th minute to give the Bears a 2-1 lead. For Montrond, the goal marked his fourth of the season and 16th of his career.

BSU senior netminder William Russell (Sandwich, Mass.) made an outstanding diving stop on shot labeled for inside the right post by junior midfielder Brayan Rivas Martinez (Amherst, Mass.) in the 30th minute. Russell also punched out a dangerous ball off a restart in the closing minutes of the first half.

Bridgewater would take a 2-1 lead into the break after a fairly evenly played opening 45 minutes.

The Corsairs had a great opportunity to tie the game in the 80th minute, but sophomore midfielder Justin Petrillo's (Marshfield, Mass.) close-range, one-timer sailed high and wide of the net.

Moments later, BSU freshman midfielder Filippo Mucci (Vineyard Haven, Mass.) converted off a restart to give the Bears' a two-goal cushion in the 81st minute. Junior midfielder Joseph Kingara (New Beford, Mass.) assisted on the strike as he corralled a loose ball inside the 18 and sent a shot towards the net. Mucci collected the deflected shot and beat the UMD netminder for his second goal of the season.

Bridgewater held a slight 17-16 shot advantage for the game, while corner kick attempts were even at six apiece.

Russell turned aside six shots on the evening to record his fourth win of the season. Along with his two key stops in the first half, Russell also made a diving save on a shot by junior forward Joey Paiva (Dartmouth, Mass.) in the 57th minute with the Bears clinging to the 2-1 lead.

Junior goalkeeper Jack Waterhouse (Lowell, Mass.) made six saves in the setback for the Corsairs.

Prior to the start of the game, the Bears honored Montrond, Russell and fellow seniors Dan Rickson (West Warren, Mass.) and Joseph Madden Jr. (Milford, Mass.).

In upcoming action, the Bears travel to Mass. Maritime Academy on Friday evening for a seven o'clock Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) game with the Buccaneers. The Corsairs head to Castleton University on Saturday to take on the Spartans at noon in a Little East Conference affair.