No. 5 Southern Connecticut Battles Past Franklin Pierce, 3-1

Segovia nets pair as Owls claim seventh-straight victory over Ravens

RINDGE, N.H. (October 20, 2001) - Southern Connecticut State University, ranked No. 5 in this week's National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Division II poll, used a pair of goals midway through the second half to pick up a key 3-1 victory over Franklin Pierce in Northeast-10 Conference men's soccer action at Crystal Field this afternoon.

Senior Keith Segovia netted two goals and sophomore Chris Theodorou dished two assists to lead the Owls to their seventh-straight victory over Franklin Pierce, dating back to 1995.

The two sides played through a scoreless first half as Franklin Pierce had the best opportunity to take a lead, but sophomore Bjorgolfer Takefusa's (Reykjavik, Iceland/Vt.-Business) saw his shot deflect harmlessly off the right post.

Southern got on the board first as Segovia tucked a direct kick into the upper left-hand corner of the net at 54:23. The Owls were awarded the kick after a careless Franklin Pierce foul just outside the penalty area.

The Ravens bounced back, but a bid by junior Tate Travis (Detroit, Mich./UC Santa Barbara) that was ticketed for the lower right-hand corner was punched away at the last second by Southern's junior goalkeeper Andrew Olivieri.

Southern netted what would prove to be the gamewinning goal at 61:39, when Theodorou found sophomore Oliver Medina wide open in the box for a shot into the upper-right corner.

Franklin Pierce crept back to within one when seniorChris Schwarz (Babenhausen, Germany/Viktoria Aschaffenburg) knocked in his own rebound after his penalty kick attempt was stopped by Olivieri. Franklin Pierce was awarded the kick when sophomore Felix Brillant (Montreal, Quebec/College Francais) was taken down in the SCSU box by a pair of defenders.

Segovia gave Southern some insurance, when he headed in a cross from Theodorou at the right post with just 4:36 remaining in regulation.

Olivieri finished the match with three saves, while Franklin Pierce sophomore Dominico Roma (Windsor, Ontario/Ste. Annes) also registered three stops.

Franklin Pierce (10-5, 6-5 NE-10) returns to action on Tuesday when it travels to Albany, N.Y., for a match with the College of Saint Rose at 5 p.m. Southern Connecticut (12-2-2, 9-1-1 NE-10) hosts Merrimack College on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

Scoring Summary:
SCSU: Keith Segovia (unassisted), 54:23; SCSU: Oliver Medina (Chris Theodorou), 61:39; FP: Chris Schwarz (unassisted), 76:14; SCSU: Segovia (Theodorou), 85:24.

Goalkeepers:
SCSU: Andrew Olivieri (90:00), three saves; FP: Dominico Roma (90:00), three saves

Shots:
SCSU: 11, FP: 7.