Scots stun Seahawks in semis

COMMONWEALTH COAST CONFERENCE
SEAHAWK MEN'S SOCCER RESULTS
No. 3 Gordon 4, No. 2 Salve Regina 2
Toppa Field - Newport, R.I.
Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Summary
NEWPORT, R.I. - No. 3 Gordon College scored three goals to begin the second half of a scoreless game to take a 4-2 victory over No. 2 Salve Regina University in the semifinals of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) tournament Wednesday evening.

Series and Streaks
Gordon holds a 20-12-3 record in the all-time series.

Three Stars of the Game

1. Gordon freshman Luckson Dambo (Belmont, Mass.) scored what proved to be the game-winning goal in the 63rd minute to give the Scots a 3-0 lead.
2. Salve Regina sophomore Owen Stevenson (Middletown, Conn.) scored his 13th of the season in the 74th minute to bring the Seahawks within a single score.
3. Gordon sophomore Wesley Sprague (Naperville, Ill.) made eight saves in net for the Scots to improve to 9-5-0 on the season.

Key Stat of the Game
The Scots scored four goals on five shots on net

Turning Point
After falling behind 3-0 the Seahawks scored two quick goals to get right back into the game. Matthew O'Donnell (Pittsburgh, Pa.) scored on a penalty kick, then 2:31 later Owen Stevenson fired home a shot on a setup from Rich Ventura (Floral Park, N.Y.) to make it a 3-2 deficit in the 74th minute. The Seahawks continued to press in search of the equalizer, but Jarvin Ramirez's (Milton, Ga.) score in the 80th minute stole back momentum for the visitors who were able to hang on for a 4-2 victory.

Quick Hits

• The Scots scored two goals in the span of 34 seconds to open up the scoring in the second half. Micah Craig (Corvallis, Ore.) broke a scoreless tie in the 57th minute then shortly thereafter Tyler Modzeleski (Cazenovia, N.Y.) stroked a long distance shot to make it 2-0 Gordon.
• Senior keeper Michael Payan made one save in the loss to fall to 16-1-2 in net.
• The Seahawks held a 23-11 advantage in shots and 11-5 in shots on goal.
• Salve Regina had a 5-3 edge in corner kicks.

Quote
"No matter how you lose, it's always a tough way to end your season.  And unfortunately, for the vast majority of teams and athletes who make it to post-season play, your season ends on a loss as there can only be one champion in a true tournament format.  The tough part for our group is that this is our first loss of the season.  After a remarkable run in the regular season that saw us go through 18-matches undefeated, having our season end tonight and in this way just feels very hollow and anti-climactic.  Honestly, I'm still in shock, and I've been doing this long enough that I can typically move through the stages and accept the inevitably of the outcome rather quickly but I guess with this group and what they were able to produce this year game-in and game-out. I just honestly believed in my heart that we would still be playing tomorrow and well into November.  This was one of the best, if not the best team that I have ever coached.  This ensemble of young men produced a caliber of soccer this season that I think directly reflects everything that I want Salve Regina Soccer to be known for – an organized and disciplined possession-based system of attacking soccer, a collective team defensive-shape that is very difficult to crack, and an overall sense, belief, and comradery of team spirit; they just love being together.  Perhaps that is the toughest part for us, with this loss, we now don't have a reason to be together tomorrow afternoon on the field. And for me, while I knew that it had to happen and was going to come eventually, I just did not want this run to end." - head coach Craig O'Rourke II

Next Up
Gordon (11-6-1) will host Roger Williams on Saturday, November 3, in the CCC Championship game. Salve Regina's season comes to a close with a final mark of 16-1-3.