The men’s soccer team traveled to Buffalo, N.Y. this past weekend to face off against Canisius and Buffalo. The Bison were riding late momentum heading into New York as they were coming off two wins against St. Francis (Pa.) and Hartwick. A 1-0 defeat at the hands of Canisius on Sept. 5 was followed by a 2-0 victory over Buffalo on Sept. 7.

Last season, the Bison fought hard against Canisius but lost 3-2 in the season opener and beat Buffalo 1-0. Unfortunately, history repeated itself as the Bison fell to Canisius. The loss ended their two-game winning streak and their 10-game regular season unbeaten streak in road games, dating back to last season. Canisius scored the lone goal in the 20th minute.

“The team was discouraged following our narrow loss Friday night at Canisius–a game we felt we should have won. That bitterness motivated us to a well-deserved victory over a talented Buffalo team on Sunday,” goalkeeper Clarke Fox ’16 said.

The Bison rebounded against Buffalo by scoring two goals in the second half. Great film study and recent success against Buffalo kept the Bison motivated after a slow first half. 

“Although we started slowly, we knew they tended to break down and give up goals in the second half,” midfielder Chris Thorsheim ’16  said.

The Orange and Blue were able to capitalize in the second half. In the 60th minute, Jesse Klug ’16 placed one into the left corner, scoring his second goal of the season. Forward Pat Plourde ’15 scored 18 minutes later to put the game away for the Bison.

Head coach Brendan Nash saw the Bison return to form after failing to score against Canisius. The Bison now lead the all-time series against Buffalo (4-3-1). The 1-1 weekend brings their regular season record to 3-2. The Bison remain confident regardless of the one loss this weekend, since they opened the 2013 season with a 3-2 record as well.

“We know that we have the talent to have another spectacular year, and winning Sunday leaves us confident going into our next game,” Thorsheim said. 

The Bison will return to Emmitt Field tomorrow against Howard at 2 p.m.