The Buffalo State men’s soccer team lost two close SUNYAC games this past weekend, falling
2-0 to Cortland (6-4-2, 4-0-1 SUNYAC) on Friday, and 1-0 to Oswego (3-8-1, 2-3-1 SUNYAC)
on Saturday.
With the two losses, the Bengals scoreless drought moved to six games, which has covered 633
minutes and 48 seconds, leaving the coaches and players searching for answers.
“You are allowed to score goals in soccer and we can’t do that at the moment, and mistakes
have been our problem since day one” head coach Rudy Pompert said. “Individual mistakes are
something we run across every game and it’s tough considering the talent we have.”
Assistant head coach Mike Chieffo agreed.
“We are improving as a team, but we have to get rid of the mental lapses we have every game,”
he said.
On Friday, the Bengals (1-10-1, 0-4-1 SUNYAC) were outshot 17-8, and had one corner kick to
Cortland’s eight. The Red Dragons scored in the 25th minute while adding an insurance marker
in the second half.
“For the most part we played well, but we had one mental lapse on defense where there was a
miscommunication that led to the goal for them” defender Brett Lanham said. “We had scoring
chances but just couldn’t put them away.”
Sophomore goalkeeper Ian Huntoon finished with four saves for the Bengals, while Tim
Beauvais had three saves to preserve the shutout for Cortland.
Saturday, the Bengals played an even game through the first half until Michael Fuss scored in the
57th minute from 25 yards out for the Oswego game-winner.
Both teams ended the game with 10 shots on goal, but the one goal was the deciding factor in a
tough loss for the Bengals.
“We had control all game and they honestly got lucky on the goal” said junior defender Brett
Lanham. “Our goalie sort of lost track of it but we as a team have to help him out by scoring
ourselves.”
Junior goalkeeper Ben Spilman finished with five saves, while P.J. Goodwin had two saves in
the shutout for Oswego.
“It’s tough to swallow when the same mistakes are constantly coming up game after game,
especially when we have just as much talent as our opponents,” Pompert said.
Pompert noted that the team is hurting their chances for wins because of their mistakes.
“It’s everything, mental, physical, we’re not getting the job done because we are kicking
ourselves in the butt,” Pompert said.
“It’s almost like we’re giving the other team more chances to score then we give ourselves,”
Lanham agreed.
Pompert also added that maybe his team is lacking quality at this point due to the repeated
amount of mistakes that constantly occur. He said the last couple of games will serve as a
measuring stick for what must be done for next season.
The Bengals will look to end its goalless drought at 4 p.m Friday when it hosts Potsdam. Buffalo
State will also host Plattsburgh at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Aubrey Gibert can be reached by email at gibert.record@live.com.