Men's Soccer Falls to #18 Amherst in NCAA Tournament

AMHERST, Mass. --The Bridgewater State University men's soccer dropped a tough 1-0 decision to No. 18 Amherst College in the opening round of the 2018 NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament on Saturday at Gooding Field in Amherst.

With the win, Amherst improves to 13-4-1 and advances to the NCAA second round, while Bridgewater State closes out the 2018 season with a 11-8-1 overall ledger. Amherst will play Saint Joseph's College tomorrow at 1 p.m. at home with a spot in the NCAA Sectionals on the line.

After a quick start by the Mammoths the Bears earned their lone scoring opportunity of the first half at the 8:17 mark, with a header attempt by senior Kessy Alves after a corner kick deflecting off the shoulder of a defender and just wide of target.

Upping the offensive pressure, freshman German Giammattei earned solid scoring chances for the Mammoths with 32:02 and 20:05 on the clock, sending a one-time shot inches right of the far right post on a 3-v-1 and ripping a blast from 25 yards out off the crossbar.

Finally breaking through at the 34:40 mark, NESCAC Rookie of the Year Giammattei put the Mammoths ahead 1-0 with an assist from sophomore Cutler Coleman. Corralling the ball inside Bears territory, Coleman dished a pass to Giammattei streaking down the left sideline who powered a shot off a Bears defender and over the goal line.

In between the pipes, freshman Bernie White (11-2-1) made one stop in the winning effort for Amherst, while senior Nate Morgado (11-8-1) registered 10 saves in the loss. 

The Mammoths owned the advantage in shots on target, 11-1 and corner kicks, 8-3 and were whistled for 13 fouls, while the Bears were called for 10 infractions.

Notes: Bridgewater State was making its sixth NCAA Tournament appearance. The Bears also competed at the national tournament in 1990, 2004, 2007, 2013 and 2015….Bridgewater State is 1-6 in NCAA Tournament play. The Bears' lone win came in 2004, a 2-0 first round win over Baruch College.