STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (6-2-7, 5-0-6 GNAC) defeated Mitchell College (1-12-3, 1-8-2 GNAC), 5-0, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's soccer action on Senior Day Saturday at the SJC Athletics Complex.
Senior Cole Bishop (Gorham, Maine) tallied two goals and an assist, while classmates Divin Mpinga (Kinshasa, DRC) and Patricio Mowa (Luanda, Angola) also scored as the Monks completed an unbeaten conference regular season.
SENIOR DAY:
Prior to the start of the match, Saint Joseph's held a brief ceremony to celebrate its seniors and their contributions to the program. The senior group includes Mowa, Bishop, Alex Bachmann (Scarborough, Maine), Nate Needle (Scarborough, Maine), Diego Robinson (Hinesburg, Vt.), Mpinga, Zander Haskell (Scarborough, Maine), Aidan Sugrue (Spring Lake Heights, N.J.), Damir Brkic (South Portland, Maine) (senior academically), Godin Ndayishimiye (Bujumbura, Burundi), Haytham Ramadan (Khartoum, Sudan), and team manager Jack Moreau (Scarborough, Maine).
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Brkic broke the deadlock with an unassisted goal at 28:45, giving Saint Joseph's a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
Bishop and Brkic connected twice early in the second half to extend the advantage. Bishop scored off a Brkic assist at 47:11 before the pair combined again at 54:09 to make it 3-0.
Bishop added an assist at 68:59, setting up Mpinga's first goal of the season. Mowa capped the scoring with his first tally of the year at 89:09, assisted by freshman Khalil Ghosheh (Scarborough, Maine).
Bishop finished with five points, while Brkic contributed a goal and two assists. The Monks controlled the second half, scoring four times and holding the Mariners without a shot.
TEAM STATS:
Saint Joseph's held the advantage in shots (28-5), shots on goal (18-3), and corner kicks (12-3). Brkic led the Monks with five shots, while Mpinga, Sugrue, and Ramadan attempted four apiece.
THE KEEPERS:
Bachmann made three saves in 72:39 before sophomore Connor Messervey (Hermon, Maine) completed the combined shutout with 17:21 of scoreless relief.
Mitchell starter Jesse Jenkins recorded 10 saves in 85:57, while Dylan Johns added two saves over the final 4:03. The Mariners also registered a team save.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
Saint Joseph's improved to 6-2 all-time against Mitchell with its fifth consecutive victory in the series. The Monks have shut out the Mariners in each of the last four meetings.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's awaits its GNAC Tournament seeding and quarterfinal matchup. The conference tournament bracket will be announced on Tuesday evening after all GNAC contests have been completed.
