Stonehill Shoots Past Mercy, 6-3

Campagnano hat trick sparks Skyhawks to third-straight win
Skyhawks open with three wins for first time since 1988

Sophomore Mark Bolster registered a goal and assist to help lead Stonehill to its third-straight win to start the season.

Boxscore 

EASTON, Mass. (September 4, 2009) - Stonehill College erased a two-goal first half deficit with a five-goal second half blitz to defeat Mercy College 6-3 in non-conference men's soccer action at Skyhawk Field this afternoon. 

Freshman Anthony Campagnano netted his first collegiate goal and added two more as his hat trick sparked the Skyhawks comeback from two goals down.

Stonehill has won its first three matches of the season for the first time since the Skyhawks posted a 4-0 mark in 1988. Freshman Anthony Campagnano (Schenectady, N.Y./Guilderland) sparked the Skyhawks to victory with his first collegiate goal and went on to add two more for a hat trick effort. Five of Stonehill's six goals came from its reserves as sophomore Mark Bolster (Narragansett, R.I./Narragansett) added a goal and assist and classmate Kevin Conti (Cohoes, N.Y./Shaker) chipped in with a goal. Senior co-captain Shaun Keeley (Woburn, Mass./Woburn) also contributed a goal on the afternoon.  

Sophomore Ben Latchford (Solihull, England) netted a pair of goals for Mercy, while junior Hugo Bernal (Guadalajara, Mexico) added a goal.

Junior goalkeeper Brandon McFarlane (Norwich, Conn./Norwich Free Academy) made two saves in goal for Stonehill, who finished with a 19-10 advantage in shots for the match - including an 11-6 clip in the second half. Sophomore Martin Walsh (Dublin, Ireland) finished with four stops for Mercy.

Mercy jumped on the board with a pair of goals less than two minutes apart as the match neared the mid-way point of the first half. Latchford netted both Maverick goals, first taking a pass from junior Raldino Powell (Yonkers, N.Y./Garvey Maceo) and blasting the opening goal at 21:58. Latchford then one-timed as pass from grad student Vjekoslav Lubric (Pleasantville, N.Y./SUNY Cortland) past McFarlane 1:54 later at the 23:52 mark.

Stonehill got a goal back just before halftime when Campagnano opened his Stonehill scoring account with a header in the center of the 18 off a cross from the right side by sophomore Ross McWiliams (Kingston, R.I./South Kingstown) at 40:31. Campagnano netted the equalizer 8:15 into the second half after Bolster found him after a long carry down the right side. Campagnano rounded out the hat trick just over ten minutes later, off a pass from junior Todd Shigo (Naples, Maine/Lake Region), to put the Skyhawks in front in the 64^th minute.

Keeley gave Stonehill a two-goal cushion with his second goal of the season, assisted by senior Ryan Hess (Springfield, Mass./Springfield Cathedral) and junior Michael Bridges (Sandwich, Mass./Sandwich) in the 69^th minute.

While the match was drawing to a close, the teams weren't finished scoring as the teams combined for three goals in the final five minutes. Bolster netted an unassisted goal in the 86^th minute when he caused a turnover at midfield and broke in one-on-one with Walsh for his first goal of the season. Mercy got a goal back just over a minute later when Bernal headed in a cross from the left side by senior Mohammed Diallo (Bronx, N.Y./BMCC). Conti rounded out the scoring when he knocked his own rebound into an open net after Walsh stopped his initial shot on a long breakaway with just five seconds to play.

Stonehill (3-0-0, 0-0-0 NE-10) is right back in action tomorrow afternoon when it hosts Nyack College for another non-conference match at 2 p.m. Mercy (0-2-0, 0-0-0 ECC) hosts Concordia (N.Y.) College on Wednesday at 4 p.m.