CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Salem University men's soccer turned in a strong performance Wednesday night but came up just short in a 2-1 loss to nationally ranked University of Charleston.

The Golden Eagles struck first in the 19th minute when Tomas Petrungaro finished off a cross from Sam Newell, then doubled their lead two minutes later on another Petrungaro goal assisted by Martin Echarren.

Salem answered quickly in the 26th minute as Caleb Christner buried a shot from the right side off a pass from CJ Branch, cutting the deficit to one. The Tigers' defense tightened from there, limiting Charleston to just five shots in the first half and keeping the home side scoreless after halftime.

Goalkeeper Jason Barrientos anchored the effort with seven saves, including several key stops to deny Charleston in the closing minutes. Offensively, Salem generated eight shots and three first-half corners, with Copper West and Gabe Morales each testing the Golden Eagles' keeper.

Next up for the Tigers is a road contest against the Senators of Davis & Elkins on Saturday, October 11th.