BRIDGEWATER, Mass. - Freshman forward Chris Swindell (Milford, MA) netted his first collegiate hat trick to lead the Bridgewater State College men's soccer team to a convincing 5-1 victory over visiting Mitchell College this afternoon from Swenson Field in Bridgewater.
The win marked the 57th career coaching victory for Bridgewater State skipper Brendan Adams as he surpassed Luis Reis as the Bears' all-time winningest coach. In seven seasons at the helm of the men's soccer program, Adams has produced a career mark of 57-50-10. Reis recorded 56 coaching wins at Bridgewater from 1992 to 1996.
After spotting the Mariners a 1-0 lead, Swindell went to work as he netted the equalizing goal in the 37th minute. Sophomore midfielder Mike White (Canton, MA) collected the ball off a goal kick and chipped a pass into the box. Swindell one-timed a shot passed the Mitchell keeper for his first collegiate goal.
The Bears took the lead for good in the opening minute of the second half as Swindell rifled home his second goal off a cross from junior forward Luke Brewer (Edgartown, MA). Swindell completed his hat trick in the 78th minute as he and Brewer hooked up again. Brewer, coming down the right sideline, hit a through ball to a streaking Swindell who split two defenders and ripped a shot into the right-side of the goal.
Brewer and Swindell would connect one final time with Brewer being the recipient of a nice through ball from Swindell in the 81st minute. Brewer got behind the Mitchell defense and easily beat the Mariner's netminder for his first goal in a BSC uniform.
The Bears capped off the scoring on a goal by freshman forward Josh Whitney (Southborough, MA) with just under three minutes remaining in the game. Whitney netted his first collegiate goal as he knocked home the rebound of a Stephen Sciara (Scituate, MA) shot which banged off the far post. White collected his second assist of the day as he set up Sciara's scoring attempt.
Swindell finished with three goals and assist for a seven-point performance, while Brewer added a goal and two assists.
Senior midfielder Josh Griffo (Higganum, CT) potted the only goal of the game for Mitchell as he opened the scoring in the 19th minute off an assist from freshman midfielder Thomas Derosier (Brooklyn, CT).
The Bears outshot the Mariners by a margin of 35-7, with 18 shots coming in the first half and 17 in the second. Bridgewater also held an 11-2 advantage in corner kicks.
Senior goaltender Ryan Seifert (Ludlow, MA) recorded his third win of the season as he turned aside three shots. Mitchell junior netminder Andrew Hall (Natick, MA) notched 11 saves in the losing effort.
Bridgewater is now 5-0 all-time versus Mitchell since the teams first met in 2004. The last time BSC scored five or more goals in a game was on October 18, 2005, a 6-0 win over Mass. Maritime Academy.
The Bears (3-1) travel to Plymouth State University on Saturday for a 2 o'clock non-conference match with the Panthers. Mitchell (1-2) heads to Johnson State College on Saturday to take on the Badgers at 1 PM.