In its search for a spot in the Patriot League conference tournament, the men’s soccer team earned four points with its 1-1 tie at Colgate on Oct. 25 and 2-0 win against Lafayette at Emmitt Field on Oct. 29. The Orange and Blue entered the game against Colgate tied in fifth place, and needed to hold their ground to stay in the playoff hunt.

Only four shots were taken in the first half of the Colgate game, but the lone goal for the Bison came off the foot of forward Jesse Klug ’16 early on in the second half with an assist from Jonathan Grad ’15. His 20th career score gave the team the 1-0 lead less than four minutes into the half, and his seventh goal of the season leads all Bison.

It looked as if the Orange and Blue were going to leave Hamilton with three very important points, but a corner kick in the 85th minute with a Bison own goal led to the score being tied at the end of regulation.

The downpour of rain increased as overtime started, but a pair of goal-saving stops on the slippery field ensured there was no winner. Goalie Clarke Fox ’16 tipped a close-range shot over the bar in the first overtime period, while Klug was stopped by a diving save late in the second overtime period.

The teams were very even throughout, as the Bison held an 11-10 edge in shot attempts and each team had eight corner kicks.

The Bison were unfortunate not to earn three points that game, but they proved successful against Lafayette.

Mark Leibensperger ’15 scored his first goal of the season in the 36th minute. With only a few minutes remaining, Klug put in another goal to give them a two-goal lead. After scoring one goal over the previous three games before Colgate, the Orange and Blue notched three scores in their next two games.

Lafayette was unable to get onto the board, as Fox put together his third shutout this season. The defense has been a wall all season, and is a big reason the team is looking good as the Patriot League Tournament nears.

Head coach Brendan Nash now has 150 wins with the University. The Bison (7-9-1, 3-3-1 Patriot League) will next play at Holy Cross on Nov. 1 at 1:30 p.m.