BETHLEHEM, Pa. -
Hatungimana Salem (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty ) scored 3 goals to help lead the Northampton men's soccer team to a 5-3 victory over Delaware County Community College on Tuesday afternoon at Spartan Field.
Salem got the Spartans on the board in the high-scoring affair just 15 minutes into the contest, knocking home a direct kick from just outside the box to give Northampton a 1-0 lead.
Salem converted another set piece at the 30 minute mark, finding the upper 90 of the goal to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead.
The Phantoms got the board just 4 minutes later with a head ball past Northampton goalkeeper
Wingate Hopkins (Ponte Vedra Beach, FL/Ponte Vedra (FL)) to cut the margin to 2-1, and then converted another head ball with just 5 minutes remaining before halftime, to tie the contest at 2-2.
On the ensuring kick-off,
Gabe Lawler (Bangor, PA/Bangor ) played the ball wide and found a streaking
Derek Filipkowski (Bangor, PA/Bangor ) in the box, who was fouled.
Sohaib Aglaguel (Casablanca, Morocco/Moulay Idriss) converted the penalty kick to give Northampton a 3-2 halftime advantage.
The second half was marked by physical play, but the Spartans started to dominate possession and were putting constant pressure on the Delaware goal. At the 63 minute mark Filipkowski finished a close range goal to give Northampton a 4-2 advantage.
The Phantoms responded, converting a penalty kick to cut the margin to 4-3 with 15 minutes remaining.
Salem shut the door on the Phantoms at the 82 minute mark, once again converting a direct kick from outside the box, to make the score 5-2.
"Exciting game overall," commented Head Coach
Mario Barrantes, "we found some weak points with our defense that we need to address, but overall a very solid win to get us back to .500 overall."
Wingate Hopkins (Ponte Vedra Beach, FL/Ponte Vedra (FL)) recorded 2 saves in the first half, while
Drake Brackett (Easton, PA/Wilson Area) made 8 saves in the second half for Northampton.
The victory brings Northampton to 3-3-0 overall, 2-3-0 in Region 19 and 2-0-0 in the EPAC.
Delaware falls to 1-2-0 overall.
The Spartans, who are undefeated at home, host Raritan Valley in a a crucial Region 19 matchup on Saturday at noon.
