Click here for Salem State-Westfield State box score

Courtesy Salem State Sports Information

Salem, MA—The third-seeded Westfield State Owls upset the top-seeded Salem State Vikings 3-0 on Sunday afternoon to claim the 2012 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Championship at Alumni Field.

Westfield State (9-9-2) earns their first conference crown since 2006, and will now represent the MASCAC in the NCAA Tournament next weekend. Salem State, which has reached the conference title game the past four years, ends their season with an 11-7-1 record.

The Owls were able to strike early when Jon Principato (Stoneham, MA) beat the defense and headed a cross from Bill Lund (Monson, MA) in the 7th minute. The Vikings' almost tied the score in the 20th minute when Saimir Zepaj (Peabody, MA) passed to Matt Figueiredo (Wilmington, MA) whose header went just wide. Westfield State missed a scoring chance later in the half when Matt O'Neill (Southwick, MA) countered with a rocket at point-blank range, but Salem State goalie Scott Hall (Waltham, MA) made a terrific stop to preserve the 1-0 score.

The Owls later increased their lead to 2-0 when Dan Brady (Wilbraham, MA) put a loose ball in front of the Vikings' goal into the back of the net to give his team the lead at halftime. Westfield State dominated possession in the first half, and controlled the tempo by limiting the Vikings' leading-scorer Eryk Fernandez (Nipomo, CA) to just one shot on goal in the half.

Salem State came out strong in the second half, but Fernandez was denied when Owl's goalie Kris Carrington (Agawam, MA) made a finger-tip save on a shot attempt into the top right corner. Westfield State played strong on the back end and limited the Vikings scoring chances until Zepaj had another opportunity for Salem State, but his shot just arced over the crossbar with Salem State still trailing 2-0 late in the period.

Westfield State's O'Neill finally put the game away when he assisted Mike Stackhouse (Wakefield, MA) on a score in the 86th minute, which secured the 3-0 the win.

Hall gave a strong effort in net for the Vikings with six saves while the Owls' Carrington stopped five shots in the shutout. Salem State held a slight 15-13 edge in shots, and took five corners to Westfield State's two.

Bill Lund (Monson, MA) of the Owls' was named the 2012 MASCAC Tournament MVP.