By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The last time a team had won three straight outright Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference men's soccer regular-season championships was 1989-91.

More than three decades later, that feat has been accomplished again, this time by Bridgewater State University.

The Bears went 6-1-1 in the conference to edge out the Massachusetts Maritime Academy and win their third consecutive MASCAC crown.

The last team to three-peat outright was Salem State from 1989-91. Worcester State finished first six years in a row from 2000-05, but shared the championship twice in that span.

BSU (11-5-1) is once again the No. 1 seed in the MASCAC tournament and will open on Friday at 6:30 p.m. against fourth-seeded Salem State (9-3-6) at Mazzaferro Field.

"I give a lot of credit to the guys," said coach Brendan Adams of the three straight titles. "We've had a good core of guys throughout the years that kind of continued it. We lose some quality players, we gain some quality players. The consistency in that core of guys has been pretty good."

BSU and Salem State also met in the semifinal round a year ago with the Vikings advancing on penalty kicks, 4-2, after a 0-0 tie through 110 minutes.

The Vikings will arrive at BSU with a 12-game unbeaten streak, going 7-0-5 since late September. They have not lost since Sept. 17, a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Dean College.

The Bears enter the tourney on a four-game winning streak and have recorded shutouts in seven of their last eight victories.

"We're playing well," said Adams. "We had some injuries here and there. Some guys kind of stepped up and filled the void, which has been fantastic, and we're getting consistency. They've done a good job. I can't complain."

The Bears have allowed 28 goals in 18 games. Since the start of October, BSU has given up more than one goal only once, in a 3-3 tie with Salem State on Oct. 11.

Junior goalkeeper Kyle Sullivan (Enfield, Conn.), a transfer from Division I Merrimack College, has a 1.46 goals against average with seven shutouts in 16 games.

"He's done well," said Adams. "He's a kid who was playing at Merrimack as a backup. He really hadn't played in a couple of years. He's definitely a quality player and he's been stable for us in the back.

"He's really been a rock for us. He's been very consistent."

The defense has been led by junior Hector Bucio (Easton, Mass.).

"Hector has done a very good job as the center back," said Adams. "The midfield has controlled the play for the most part."

The scoring has been balanced with senior Filippo Mucci (Vineyard Haven, Mass.) leading the way with 19 points (five goals, nine assists).

Junior Tyler Chang (Acushnet, Mass.) has five goals to go with four assists while senior Gavin Norton (Rockland, Mass.) has three goals and five assists.

Also contributing are junior Nicholas Ribeiro (Bellingham, Mass.) and freshman Cameron Walty (Weymouth, Mass.) with five goals and an assist each, senior Melvin Alves (Brockton, Mass.) with three goals and four assists, and freshman Ansley Glemaud (Dorchester Center, Mass.) and junior Connor Wesloski (Wilbraham, Mass.) with two goals and three assists apiece.

Eight different Bears have recorded game-winning goals led by Ribeiro with three. Ribeiro, however, has been sidelined due to injury since potting the game-winner in a 2-0 shutout of Emerson on September 23rd.

Salem State advanced on Wednesday night with a 3-1 win over fifth-seeded Anna Maria.

The Vikings made it to the MASCAC final a year ago, losing to Westfield State.

Salem State is led by Iago De Sousa-Vieira (Medford, Mass.), a Stonehill College transfer who has 16 goals and 33 points.

"It's always tough," said Adams of the tourney. "Any of the teams could win it. Salem went on a good run last year and lost in the final and is on a good run this year. Westfield is talented and Mass. Maritime works so hard. Anyone of those four can win.

"It really ends up who works the hardest, who keeps their heads the best, and you need a little bit of luck on your side."

This is the fourth time since 2018 that BSU and Salem State are meeting in the semifinal round.

The three previous games were decided by penalty kicks with the Vikings winning twice (2019 and 2024) and the Bears once (2018).

The other semifinal-round pairing Friday night has second-seeded Mass. Maritime (10-4-3) hosting fourth-seeded Westfield State (10-3-4).

The winners will meet on Sunday afternoon with a bid in next week's NCAA Division III tourney on the line.