NEWPORT, R.I. – Senior Evan MacDonald (Candia, N.H.) netted a pair of goals in a span of 10:31 to break a scoreless tie and help the Salve Regina University men's soccer team (12-4-3, 6-0-2 Commonwealth Coast Conference) capture its second straight Commonwealth Coast Conference Regular-Season Championship with a 4-0 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology (9-7-2, 5-3-0) in the regular-season finale for both squads.
THE BASICS:
SCORING: SRU – Evan MacDonald (Nathan Costantino), 56:19; SRU – MacDonald (penalty kick), 66:50; SRU – Alessandro Oggiano (unassisted), 70:29; Dylan Sock (Michael Manousos), 89:42
SHOTS (ON GOAL): WIT 7 (3); SRU, 24 (8)
CORNER KICKS: WIT 5; SRU, 11
SAVES: WIT – Robbie West, 4; SRU – Seth Wollins, 3
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Salve Regina had a 10-3 shot advantage in the first half, with three of those 10 shots going on net while Wentworth had zero shots on net.
- At the 56:19 mark, the Seahawks were awarded a throw in, deep in Leopard territory. Freshman Nathan Costantino (North Andover, Mass.) sent the throw towards MacDonald, who made a move around a defender and sent the ball inside the left post.
- Wentworth had a pair of corner kicks in the 58th and 59th minutes of play, however, could not generate any scoring chances. Junior Nathan Gosselin (Hudson, N.H.) put a shot on net in the 63rd minute which was saved by freshman Seth Wollins (Wake Forest, N.C.).
- At 66:50, Wentworth was called for a foul low in the box, which resulted in a penalty kick. MacDonald stepped up to the line and scored his second of the game.
- Salve Regina continued to apply pressure and sophomore Alessandro Oggiano broke through at 70:29 to make it a 3-0 game.
- Freshman Dylan Sock (Newtown, Conn.) completed the scoring when he converted a pass from classmate Michael Manousos (Wethersfield, Conn.) with 18 seconds left.
- Wollins made three saves for the Seahawks while sophomore Robbie West (Weymouth, Mass.) turned aside four shots in the loss.
- Salve Regina had advantages in shots (24-7) and corner kicks (11-5).
SERIES NOTES:
- Today marked the 39th known meeting between the two programs with Salve Regina winning its second straight series meeting to hold a 20-15-4 series edge.
NEXT UP:
- Wentworth will be the number three seed for the upcoming CCC Tournament, which commences on Saturday, November 2. The Leopards will host sixth-seeded Roger Williams at 2:00 p.m. In the regular-season meeting between the two teams back on October 12, Wentworth rallied for a 2-1 win. The overall series between the two schools has Roger Williams leading, 19-15-4, with the Leopards holding a 4-0-1 advantage in the last five meetings. The last time the two teams met in the postseason was a 2-0 win in the semifinals of the 2009 CCC Tournament in Bristol, R.I. The last time the two met on Sweeney Field in the postseason, Wentworth won its lone conference championship to date with a 3-2, overtime win 23 years ago (November 2, 1996).
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