STANDISH, Maine – Freshman forward Mattheus Silva (Acton, Mass.) netted his first collegiate goal in the 75th minute to lift Saint Joseph's College (4-6-0, 4-2-0 GNAC) past New England College (6-5-1, 2-4-1 GNAC), 1-0, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's soccer action at the SJC Athletics Complex on Tuesday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The first half featured plenty of back-and-forth play, with the Pilgrims creating the more dangerous scoring opportunities. Saint Joseph's senior goalkeeper Logan Davis (Naples, Maine) stood tall, recording several key saves, including a highlight stop on a point-blank header by freshman Ezekiel Weir (St. George, Utah) with 3:47 before the break.

NEC nearly broke through late in the period when senior Anthony Galdi (Las Vegas, Nev.) drilled a shot off the right post.

The Monks capitalized in the 74th minute, as Silva weaved through multiple defenders and buried a shot into the top-right corner. Junior Diego Robinson (Hinesburg, Vt.) sparked the decisive play with a long lead pass out of the defensive end.

TEAM STATS:

Saint Joseph's held advantages in shots (20-14), shots on goal (14-6), and corner kicks (9-4).

THE KEEPERS:

Davis posted the first shutout of his NCAA career with five saves for the Monks. NEC junior Matt Guzman (San Bernardino, Calif.) kept his team in contention with 13 stops in the setback.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the victory, Saint Joseph's evens the all-time series at 2-2-1 against New England College. The two programs battled to a scoreless draw last fall in Henniker.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's travels to Norwich University on Saturday for a 1:00 PM GNAC matchup.