Wheaton Soccer Falls at Bridgewater State After Serious Injury on Field

The Wheaton College men's soccer team finished its regular season road slate on a down note Wednesday afternoon, as the Lyons dropped a 4-2 decision to non-conference foe Bridgewater State University at Swenson Field.

NECN reported that a player, now known as freshman goalie Matt Dickey, was transported by ground to South Shore hospital for a serious injury. Medflight was called but none was available. Dickey's condition is unknown at this time.

Marking just the second loss in 19 meetings against the Bears, Wheaton fell to 7-6-4 on the season, while Bridgewater State improved to 6-7-1.

The hosts took an initial 1-0 lead at 11:37 before the teams combined to score three goals in a 4:07 span.  The Bears made the score 2-0 at 28:28, but the Lyons halved their deficit 3:40 later when sophomore Travis Blair's cross found freshman Kevin Gil for his sixth goal of the season.

However, just 27 ticks after Gil tallied, Bridgewater State extended its advantage back to goals in carrying a 3-1 lead into the intermission.

With less than 10 minutes to play in regulation, sophomore Jacob Battipaglia narrowed the Blue and White's gap to one, but the Bears again answered.  With 1:05 left in regulation, Bridgewater State put the game out of reach.

Wheaton managed to get one final shot off with 14 seconds to go, but freshman Michael Williams' shot went wide.

Freshman goalie Matt Dickey allowed two goals with two saves in 28:28 to take the loss before leaving the game with an injury, while sophomore Jeff Paer notched two stops while surrendering two goals in 61:32.

Bear junior Matt Bagley turned aside seven saves in the victory.

Wheaton finished with a 19-17 edge in shots, including a 15-8 second-half margin, and a 6-5 advantage in corner kicks.

The Lyons host New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) foe Clark University on Saturday at 1 p.m. during Wheaton's league finale.