Courtesy Framingham State Sports Information

Click here for Framingham State-Westfield State box score   

The top seeded Framingham State University men’s soccer team defeated fourth seed Westfield State 4-3 this afternoon in one semi-final of the 2011 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) men’s soccer Championship at Maple Street Field.     

With the win, Framingham State improves to 7-8-3 on the year and will meet the winner of the other semi-final, which is being played later this afternoon between Salem State and Worcester State, in the Championship round on Saturday afternoon at Framingham at 1 p.m. The winner of the Championship Round receives the MASCAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championships.

The Rams took a 1-0 lead just two minutes into the game as sophomore Ronaldo Vieira (Framingham, Mass.) took a pass and carried the ball into the box beating the Owls goal keeper who had come off his line with a well-placed shot in the far corner.

Ten minutes later, the Owls had two chances to tie the score, but FSU goalkeeper Sam Yoder (Southbridge, Mass.) came up with a pair of big saves.  First senior Tim Parsons (Buzzards Bay, Mass.) sent a cross to junior Bill Lund (Monson, Mass.) in the box and Lund fired a shot on net, but Yoder came across the goal making a kick save to preserve the one goal lead. Just two minutes later, a Westfield shot deflected off a Ram defender and was headed towards the net, but Yoder was again able to knock the ball away.

The Rams were able to extend their lead to 2-0 in the 29^th minute of action when freshman Bryan DaSilva (Milford, Mass.) found the back of the net on a direct kick just outside the box.

The Owls would cut the Rams lead in half with 6:38 remaining in the first.  Senior Justin Laliberte (Easthampton, Mass.) sent a shot on net that was knocked away by Yoder; classmate Nick Gale (Cheshire, Mass.) corralled the rebound and sent another shot on goal.  Yoder made the save, but the rebound deflected to sophomore Kristian Driscoll (Lexington, Mass.) and Driscoll found the back of the net cutting the Rams lead to 2-1 at the half.

Framingham State pushed the lead back to two in the opening minutes of the second half. Senior Steve Lesiczka (Haverhill, Mass.) hit sophomore Romulo Carvalho (Milford, Mass.) with a pass on the right side and Carvalho placed a shot inside the far post for his 4^th goal of the seaon.

The Owls answered with a pair of goals to tie the game at 3-3 with 30 minutes remaining. In the 52^nd minute Laliberte took a throw in on the left sideline that Lund controlled in the box.  Lund’s shot slipped under the diving keeper cutting the deficit to one.  In the 60^th minute Laliberte sent a corner into the box that junior Bill Reagan (Oak Bluffs, Mass.) redirected into the goal for the equalizer.

The Rams would break the deadlock five minutes later in the 60^th minute when DaSilva scored his second of the game.  Freshman Cory Cardeiro (Fall River, Mass.) controlled the ball at midfield and dribbled into the Owls half laying a pass off to DaSilva.  DaSilva fired a shot on net that the Owls keeper got his hands on, but the ball slipped through his fingers and into the goal for what proved to be the game-winner.

Both teams took 17 shots in the game, with the Owls holding a 5-0 edge in corner kicks. Yoder finished the game with nine saves for the Rams as he picked up his 6^th win of the season.  Westfield State goalkeeper Jeff Pepoli made seven saves and picked up the loss.

Courtesy Salem State Sports Information

Click here for Salem State-Worcester State box score

Salem, MA -- Saimir Zempaj (Peabody, MA) scored with 6:32 remaining in overtime to send the Salem State Vikings to their third straight conference finals.

Zepaj fired the game-winner past goalie Evan Wilga (Dudley, MA) as the Vikings won 1-0 over Worcester State to win their sixth straight game. Their victory sets up a rematch of last year's MASCAC title game with No. 1 Framingham State, which defeated No. 4 seed Westfield State 4-3 in the MASCAC's other semi-final game.

Salem State, the No. seed 2, which has won back-to-back post-season titles, peppered Worcester State goalie Wilga relentlessly after halftime trying to secure the win. Wilga made several outstanding saves to keep the Lancers in the game as the Vikings outshot their opponent 22-10, including 12-1 after halftime.

However, it was not until Zepaj found the back of the net in overtime that Salem State finally put away a determined Worcester State team.

Maxime Mondestin (Salem, MA) almost gave the Vikings a 1-0 lead in the opening half in the 10th minute when he fired point-blank from five yards out. However, Wilga was in perfect position to snare the bullet.

Brian Cormier (Hudson, MA) appeared to give the Lancers the lead in the 20th minute, but his goal was waived off due to an offsides call.

Mondestin also had another opprtunity at 33:18 but Wilga made another great play to prevent the Vikings from scoring a goal.

Coach Goodwin was impressed with Worcester State's effort. He was equally impressed with his teams response to the challenge and their ability to fight for the win. 

Salem State dominated play after halftime. Rafael Santos (East Boston, MA) had two great opportunities to give the Vikings the lead in regulation. He made a nifty move to break free and shot a laser that went just to the right with twenty minutes remaining in the second period. Later he took a pass and juked Lancers' goalie Wilga, who came out to make a play. Santos had a window to sneak the ball into the wide open net, but Wilga did not give up and prevented Santos from taking a clean shot.

The Lancers could never get untracked in the second half against the conference's second- ranked defense. Salem State held Worcester State's leading-scorer Alex Wolfel (Unionville, CT) to only four shots and just one on goal.

Wilga, who played tremendously in net was credited with 10 saves for the Lancers, who end their season with an 8-8-2 record. Scott Hall (Waltham, MA) made four saves in the victory for Salem State, which improved to 12-6.

The Vikings will now travel to play No.1 seed Framingham State, for the MASCAC championship. Game time is scheduled for 1:00 PM.

Salem State defeated the Rams 3-0 in last year's championship game.