Men's Soccer Falls at Salem State 2-1

Salem, Mass. - Salem State's Eryk Fernandez (NipYmo, CA) turned in a multi-goal performance to lead the Vikings to a 2-1 victory over the Framingham State Rams in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) men's soccer action at Alumni Field on Saturday afternoon.

Salem State evens its record at 4-4 and remains unbeaten in conference with a 2-0 record while Framingham State slips to 1-4-2 overall and 1-1 in the MASCAC.

In the first half, Salem State's Samir Zepaj (Peabody, Mass.) almost gave the Vikings an early lead, but his shot hit the left goal post and went out of bounds.  Later, at the 36:21 mark Carlos Escobar (Malden, Mass.) assisted Fernandez who rifled in a shot to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead going into the half.

The second half started with a controversial no-goal that looked like it went into the Salem State net.  However, the ball did not cross the line to make it an official goal for the Rams. 

The Vikings' Fernandez then scored his second goal of the game at the 53:54 mark to increase his team's lead to 2-0. 

Framingham State's Jepherson Cardoso (Framingham, Mass.) finally answered to put his team on the board after scoring off on an assist by Cory Cardiero (Westport, Mass.) to make it a 2-1 game in the 61st minute.  Salem State then clamped down the rest of the way on defense to prevent the Rams from the tying goal.

Salem State's Kevin O'Loughlin (Milford, Mass.) had 10 saves while Framingham State's Sam Yoder (Southbridge, Mass.) stopped nine shots.

Salem State's next game will be home against Eastern Connecticut State at 7 p.m. on Wednesday. Framingham State will also play on their home field Wednesday against Rhode Island College at 4 p.m.

Release courtesy of SSU Sports Information.