Lions tame the Seahawks, 2-1

NEWPORT, R.I. - Liam Berlingieri staked regionally-ranked Salve Regina University men's soccer took a 1-0 lead midway through the first half but Eastern Nazarene College tied the score eight minutes later and scored the game-winner in the 69th minute to defeat the Seahawks, 2-1, in non-league action at Toppa Field on Tuesday night. 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Eastern Nazarene 2, Salve Regina 1
Records: Salve Regina (4-3), Eastern Nazarene (2-1-2)
All-Time Series: Salve Regina leads the all-time series, 27-6-2, while Eastern Nazarene has gone 2-1-1 since ending a 24-game skid against the Seahawks in 2019.

SUMMARY:

• 27:18 - Liam Berlingieri (2) earned his second goal of the season with an assist from Aidan Crean. | Salve Regina 1, Eastern Nazarene 0
• 35:10 - Emilio Magdon (1) took advantage of a Seahawk misplay and found the back of the net. | Salve Regina 1, Eastern Nazarene 1
• 68:50 - Nils Hesmer (1) carried the ball from the right side to the middle before unleashing a left-footed blast into the left corner. | Eastern Nazarene 2, Salve Regina 1

NOTEWORTHY:

• Zach Rock made one stop and it came off a penalty kick from Bryan Vargas.
• It was Rock's Yellow Card that resulted in the penalty kick.
• The visitors were called for six Yellow Cards while Salve Regina drew three.
• The Seahawks outshot the Lions, 10-6, including 4-3 on goal.
• Zeke Menendez had the last Seahawk shot when his header hit the left post.
• Both teams had a pair of corner kicks from the same end of the field, Salve Regina's in the first half and Eastern Nazarene's in the second half.
• Seahawks (3) and Lions (3) combined for six offsides flags.

POSTGAME THOUGHTS FROM COACH O'ROURKE

"Congratulations to Eastern Nazarene on securing this result and all the credit to them for capitalizing on their chances. For us, we will need to take a step back and seriously look at ourselves and analyze where those chances for our opponent came from. I think several players in our uniform were not up to the necessary standard this evening and I made a statement earlier today for a separate news release on how we not only needed to have a sense of commitment during our possession, but even more so when we were defending in terms of closing down the ball, applying pressure, and working hard to regain our defensive shape. Having watched my side's performance this evening, I don't think we were anywhere near producing those elements defensively in our match performance. This result needs to be a much needed bucket of cold water for my roster and in particular, for my team captains."

ON THE HORIZON:
The Seahawks host the Engineers of MIT at 1 p.m. on Saturday.