BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – The visiting University of Saint Joseph men's soccer team posted a 3-1 victory over Bridgewater State University on Wednesday night at Mazzaferro Field.
The Blue Jays improve to 2-0 on the young season, while the Bears fall to 0-1-1. The two teams were meeting for the first time.
Bridgewater State led 1-0 at the break as senior forward Will Halben (Attleboro, Mass.) potted his first goal of the season in the opening stanza. Halben headed home the rebound off a Carsten Boloz (Jr., Southborough, Mass.) header attempt in the 16th minute. Senior forward David Nelson (East Bridgewater, Mass.) set up the scoring opportunity with a nice cross to the top of the six.
The Bears had a glorious chance to extend the lead early in second half as Nelson got behind the defense in the 51st minute following a well-placed through ball from sophomore midfield Filippo Mucci (Vineyard Haven, Mass.). Saint Joseph junior goaltender El Hadji Anne (Bronx, N.Y.), however, came out to contest the scoring bid and made an outstanding kick save to keep it a one-goal game.
Anne's key stop seemed to ignite the Saint Joseph offense. The Blue Jays had a number of quality scoring chances over a five-minute stretch, but BSU graduate keeper William Russell (Sandwich, Mass.) was up to the task. Russell made five saves during that span including a pair of outstanding leaping stops.
Saint Joseph finally broke through with the tying goal in the 57th minute. Sophomore midfielder Jason Moleiro (Rocky Hill, Conn.) used some terrific ball-handling skills on the left side of the 18 to open up a shooting lane. Moleiro blasted a shot into the top right corner of the net for his first of the season.
Freshman midfielder Matthew Dima (Oxford, Conn.) gave the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead in the 78th minute with his first collegiate goal. Dima collected a loose ball well outside the 18, dribbled to his right and buried a perfectly placed shot from 25 yards out into the top right corner of the net.
Sophomore forward Emmanuel Ofori (East Hartford, Conn.) nearly gave the Blue Jays a two-goal advantage in the 81st minute as he beat the keeper one-on-one. Ofori's shot, however, was cleared off the line by BSU junior defender Jack O'Toole (Wilbraham, Mass.).
Saint Joseph put the finishing touches on the 3-1 victory with just 20 seconds showing on the scoreboard as graduate midfielder Michael Torres (Hartford, Conn.) scored off the rebound of a Dane Stephens (Sr., Linstead, Jamaica) shot. The goal marked Torres' first of the 2023 campaign.
The Blue Jays finished with a 20-11 shot advantage for the game including a 14-7 edge in the second half. Corner kicks attempts were also in favor of the visitors by a 7-1 margin.
Anne turned aside three shots in the win for Saint Joseph. Russell made nine saves between the pipes for the Bears. He was aided by a pair of team saves.
Both teams are back in action on Saturday. The Bears entertain the Leopards of Wentworth Institute of Technology at 11:00 AM, while the Blue Jays travel to Norwich University for a one o'clock Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) matchup with the Cadets.