Maselli and Nobrega Spark Trailblazers Road Victory

The MCLA men's soccer team registered two goals in the opening half and maintained its lead posting a 2-0 victory over Fitchburg State University at Elliot Field this afternoon.

Junior Chris Nobrega (Mattapoisett, Mass./New Bedford) and Mitch Maselli (Clarksburg, Mass./Drury) combined for a pair of goals, leading MCLA to its third conference victory of the season. Nobrega gave the Trailblazers the early 1-0 lead in the first half as he deposited a loose-ball rebound off Rick Massey's (Cheshire, Mass./Saint Josephs) rebound for his second goal of the season. Maselli finished off the game's scoring late in the first period as he nailed home a free kick from ten yards out for a 2-0 lead at the break.

Fitchburg State battled all second half with a 13-4 margin in shots, but the Falcons were kept off the scoreboard due to the stellar play of senior goalkeeper Adam Tarsa (Adams, Mass./Hoosac Valley). Senior Robbie Pacini (Stoneham, Mass./Stoneham) had a great scoring chance for Fitchburg State late in the stanza, but saw his left channel attempt from 12 yards out sail wide.

With the victory, Tarsa collected his fourth shutout of the season with six saves throughout the contest, while senior Alex Ivanov (Carlisle, Mass./Concord-Carlisle) also posted six stops for Fitchburg State. The Falcons held a slim 18-17 advantage in shots for the game, while boasting a 9-0 advantage in corner kicks.

Fitchburg State (3-10-0, 1-4-0 MASCAC) will be in action again on Saturday as it travels to Framingham State at 11 a.m. MCLA (7-5-1, 3-2-0 MASCAC) will host Green Mountain College on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.