Sowe's Game Winner Lifts Vikings Past Bears

SALEM, Mass. – Paa Sowe (Lynn, Mass.) broke a 1-1 tie with less than two minutes remaining to lift Salem State to a hard fought 2-1 victory over Bridgewater State in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) contest on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field. The Vikings have now ripped off four wins in a row and stand at 8-4 on the season and remain unbeaten in the MASCAC (4-0). The Bears slide to 2-10-1 and go to 2-2 in conference.  

In a tightly played contest in which 23 fouls were called, 11 by the Bears in the second half, Bridgewater State managed to erase a 1-0 Salem State lead in the 68^th minute when Justin Borges (Milford, Mass.) headed in a loose ball off a throw-in.

With the clock winding into the final minute, and the game heading towards overtime.  Sowe, broke behind the Bears' defense, unable to get off a shot initially, the forward worked the ball back to the middle and after regaining possession, he curled a shot inside the bottom left post for the game-winner.

Both keepers, Salem State's Christopher Jimenez (Nashua, N.H.) and Bridgewater State's Nate Morgado (Dartmouth, Mass.) made critical saves in the second half, thwarting good scoring chances by both sides. Each team was also denied once in the second half by the crossbar.

Lucas Amaral (Peabody, Mass.) put Salem State on top in the first half when laced in a free kick from the left side for his second goal of the season which gave Salem State a 1-0 lead in the 5^th minute. Nick Ramos (Middleboro, Mass.) nearly extended the lead four minutes later, but his attempt met the crossbar as Salem State maintained a 1-0 lead into halftime. The Vikings controlled possession for most of the half, limiting the Bears to just three shots, with none on net.

Jimenez made two saves in the win, while Morgado stopped four shots on goal for Bridgewater State.