Men's Soccer Advances to MASCAC Semifinals with 4-0 Shutout of Fitchburg State

FITCHBURG, Mass. – Sixth-seeded Bridgewater State University stunned #3 Fitchburg State University, 4-0, in the quarterfinal round of the 2019 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Men's Soccer Tournament on Tuesday night at Elliot Field.

With the win, Bridgewater State advances to the MASCAC Tournament semifinal round as the Bears (5-13-1) will travel to Salem State University on Friday afternoon to take on the second-seeded Vikings at four. Fitchburg State ends the season with an overall record of 7-10-2. The contest marked the 44th meeting of the two teams as Bridgewater holds a decided 34-9-2 advantage in the all-time series.

Senior forward Justin Borges (Milford, Mass.) tallied a pair of goals and an assists, and senior goaltender Nate Morgado (Dartmouth, Mass.) made a season-high 11 saves to lead the Bears to the win.

Borges converted a penalty kick in the 39th minute to break a scoreless tie. Sophomore midfielder Dan Rickson (West Warren, R.I.) drew the foul as he was taken down in the box.

Bridgewater State would take the 1-0 into halftime.

Following the break, the Bears doubled their advantage in the 57th minute when freshman forward David Nelson (East Bridgewater, Mass.) collected a feed from Borges outside the 18, dribbled in and beat the keeper one-on-one with a  shot inside the right post for his fourth tally of the year.

Borges would tack on an insurance marker for Bridgewater State in the 83rd minute for his second goal of the contest and team-leading seventh of the year off an assist from junior midfielder Stanislaus Sokolov (Reading, Mass.). Sokolov lofted a pass across the 18 and Borges' one-timer caromed off the back post and in.

Less than four minutes later, Rickson potted his first collegiate goal to put the finishing touches on the Bears' shutout victory. Off a pass from junior forward Kevin Roberts (Medway, Mass.), Rickson dribbled in uncontested from the right side and ripped a low shot low inside the back post.

Fitchburg State held a 20-14 shot advantage in the setback, The Falcons also finished with a 9-2 edge in corner kicks.

Morgado recorded his 26th career win and 15th shutout between the pipes for the Bears.

Junior Sebastian Jaramillo (Dracut, Mass.) made six saves in the setback for the Falcons.

Notes: The Bears will meet Salem State in the MASCAC Tournament semifinals for the second straight year. Last season, the Bears advanced on penalty kicks in a semifinal match at Swenson Field. The two teams have met nine times in MASCAC Tournament play with the Vikings holding a 6-2-1 advantage in those nine contests.