Leopards Blanked by Salve Regina

(Courtesy of Salve Regina Sports Information)

MIDDLETOWN, R.I. – Senior tri-captain Ken Johnson (Colonia, N.J.) scored a pair of first-half goals to lead Salve Regina University to a 2-0 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology in The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) men's soccer action Saturday afternoon at Gaudet Field.

The win extends the Seahawks (4-2, 2-0 TCCC) win streak to four and their all-time mark against the Leopards (3-3, 1-1 TCCC) to 19-11-1. Salve Regina entered the match having dropped three of its last four contests with their visitors from Boston, and the shutout was its third in its last four games.

The reigning TCCC Player of the Week, Johnson picked up his fourth marker of the season at 13:08 when he took a feed from junior Chris Knoth (East Islip, N.Y.) and broke in alone on senior goalkeeper Brian Pearsall (Sanford, Maine). Johnson lofted the ball into the net from 20 yards out as Pearsall came out to challenge the one-on-one.

Johnson pushed the lead to 2-0 at 27:46 on a close turn-around shot on a play that started with a free kick by junior Ian Jentgen (Columbus, Ohio). He played the ball from beyond midfield towards the WIT box, where junior Max Starace (Fort Lee, N.J.) fed a pass to Johnson, who turned and beat Pearsall for his fifth of the season.

Sophomore Devin O'Gorman (Canton, Mass.) made six saves to earn his third win of the season while Pearsall recorded four saves. He falls to 3-3 with the loss. Each team took 15 shots.

The Seahawks return to action on Wednesday when they travel to Bristol for a 4 p.m. contest with Roger Williams. The Leopards host Western New England Tuesday at 7 p.m.