PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — The Salem University men's soccer team delivered a dominant performance Wednesday evening, defeating Shawnee State University 4-0 at Shawnee Turf behind a hat trick from Junior Lormera and a clean sheet from goalkeeper Jason Barrientos.
The Tigers scored twice in each half to secure the victory, improving to 4-8-2 overall and 2-7-1 in conference play.
Salem opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Tommy Sowinski found the back of the net at 21:48, giving the Tigers a 1-0 advantage. Salem continued to pressure the Shawnee State defense, and Lormera doubled the lead just before halftime. Assisted by Arokya Shrestha, Lormera scored at 41:41 to send Salem into the break with a 2-0 advantage.
Lormera took over in the second half, adding two more goals to complete his hat trick. He struck again in the 74th minute at 73:33 before finding the net for a third time at 78:15, with Shrestha once again providing the assist. The two goals in quick succession extended Salem's lead to 4-0 and put the match out of reach.
Shrestha finished with two assists, contributing to three of Salem's four goals. Sowinski's first-half strike marked his second goal of the season, while Lormera recorded his first three goals of the campaign.
Defensively, Barrientos turned in an outstanding performance, recording 15 saves to preserve the shutout despite facing 19 shots from the Bears, including 15 on target. His effort earned him the win in goal as Salem limited Shawnee State to zero goals.
The Tigers finished with 17 shots, placing 10 on target, and held a 60% share of possession. Salem also earned three corner kicks and drew 17 fouls from Shawnee State, which finished the match with eight yellow cards and a red card.
Salem's four-goal performance marked a strong result on the road as the Tigers look to build momentum through the remainder of the season.
