WORCESTER, Mass. – October 6, 2007 -- Chad Bonnell's (Hazlet, N.J.) goal in the 69th minute stood up as the Springfield College men's soccer team picked up a key conference win at Clark University in New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Saturday at Granger Field.

With the loss, Clark falls to 4-3-4 overall and 1-2-1 in league play. Springfield, which has beaten Clark in its last three meetings, improves to 5-6-1 (2-2 NEWMAC).

A senior forward, Bonnell netted the lone goal of the match in the 69th minute as Springfield posted its second straight victory. Junior Bret Drake (Enfield, Conn.) dribbled the ball from the midfield on the right side where he slid it to Bonnell who calmly placed a shot to the lower left corner of the net for a 1-0 edge.

Clark pressed hard for the equalizer in the final minutes. With 30 seconds remaining, Lino Goncalves’ (Newton, Mass.) header in front bounced off Pride goalie BJ Sturdivant’s (Bear, Del.) hands to preserve the one-goal advantage.

The best scoring opportunity for Clark came in the first half when senior Marc Labbe (Waterville, Me.) chipped a pass to classmate David Blum (Irvington, N.Y.) whose bid was snatched by Sturdivant to keep the game at a stalemate.

In the second half, Clark’s Greg Jancarik (Swansea, Mass.) broke in alone, but a sliding Sturdivant took a short shot to the chest to maintain a scoreless game. Shots (4-2 Springfield), corners (1-1) and saves (2-1 Clark) were nearly even in the first half. However, Springfield outshot Clark, 15-4, in the game.

Junior Peter Wise (Providence, R.I.) made six saves for Clark. Sturdivant stopped three key shots for Springfield to post his third shutout of the season.

Springfield will travel to Williams College on Wednesday for a non-conference matchup that kicks off at 3:30 p.m.

published: 10/06/2007