Men's Soccer falls to Salem 2-0

Courtesy of Salem Sports Information

SALEM, Mass. - Grace Dos Santos (Brockton, Mass.) provided a two-goal performance as the Salem State Vikings beat the MCLA Trailblazers 2-0 on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field. It was a tale of two halves as MCLA controlled possession in the first half with Dos Santos scoring both goals in the second half. Salem State elevates to 6-4 on the season and 3-0 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC). The Trailblazers fall to 1-8 on the year and 0-3 in the MASCAC.

In the first half, MCLA pressured the Vikings' defense. A foul gave the Trailblazers the first good scoring chance of the game on a free-kick, but Rafael Castro's (Cartegena, Colombia) shot soared over the crossbar. Later in the half, Lucas Amaral (Peabody, Mass.) countered with a free-kick for the Vikings, but goalie Sam Edge (Williamstown, Mass.) made a nice save.

The teams entered halftime tied 0-0. Each team attempted three shots in the first half. The Trailblazers had one shot on target while the Vikings had two. MCLA picked up 14 fouls and Salem State committed five fouls.

In the 49th minute, Dylan Senra (Dartmouth, Mass.) took a corner for the Vikings and Dos Santos put Salem State on top as he headed in his first goal of the season.

Later, the Trailblazers took a corner and Peter Sherman (Old Lyme, CT) headed the ball towards goalkeeper Christopher Jimenez (Nashua, NH), who saved it with the tip of his fingers to keep the Vikings' one-goal lead. In the 75th minute, MCLA was called for a handball in the box. Dos Santos took the penalty and went right as Salem State went ahead 2-0.

The Vikings were the more aggressive team in the second half, taking eight corners with a total of nine for the game. Salem State attempted 12 shots with seven on target. MCLA took seven shots with three being on target.

The Trailblazers committed 22 fouls on the day, while the Vikings had 12.

Jimenez earned the win (5-4) in goal with a three-save performance of. Edge took the loss (1-8) with two goals allowed and five saves.