NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Sophomore Jack Heintzelman (Middleton, Mass.) knocked in a free kick from 25 yards out to draw even, but the Saint Anselm College men's soccer team fell to league powerhouse and 18th-ranked Merrimack College, 2-1, Tuesday night at Martone-Mejail Field in North Andover.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Heintzelman tagged his second goal of the season—and second score in free-kick fashion—Tuesday night. His nine season points are now a team-high this season.
• Junior Stephen McLeod (Chelmsford, Mass.) recorded four saves for the Hawks, falling to 2-10-2 overall.
For the Warriors…
• Jaime Cortes-Torres and Augusto Silva scored Merrimack's pair of goals.
• Goalkeeper Cody Russell tallied three saves for the Warriors.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Cortes-Torres opened the scoring with a header just past the 6-minute mark, putting away a header off a cross from Jonathan Fletcher.
• Saint Anselm earned a free kick 11 minutes later, where Heintzelman bent a tricky crack past Warrior keeper to tie the game at 1-1.
• Heintzelman nearly made it 2-1 Hawks at the 20:51 mark, but his second deep rocket of the game bounced off the crossbar out of harm's way.
• Saint Anselm buckled down defensively the rest of the first half, weathering a handful of Warrior attacks to hold the halftime draw.
• That weathering wouldn't last long, however, as Silva scored the would-be game-winner scored in heavy traffic after a corner entry. Cortes-Torres' original shot ricocheted off the right post to the foot of Paul Magazzu, who found Silva at the 56:32 mark to take the ultimate lead, 2-1.
• Saint Anselm earned a series of corner kicks midway through the second half, but couldn't make anything of the opportunities as the Warriors held on for the win.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
• Merrimack outshot Saint Anselm 16-6 on the evening, but only put two more shots on-goal than the Hawks.
• The Warriors also held a 10-6 advantage in corner kicks, including a 6-1 edge in the first half alone.
NOTES
• Saint Anselm has dropped five straight games to Merrimack, falling to 31-21-3 all-time with Tuesday's loss.
• Saint Anselm's winless streak moves to 13 straight games.
UP NEXT
• Saint Anselm will complete its 2015 campaign against NE-10 foe Stonehill College in a Friday afternoon matchup at Melucci Field. The six-member senior class will be recognized prior to Friday's 2 p.m. start.
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