The Bison men’s and women’s soccer teams built on developing seasons on Sept. 3, with the women’s team traveling to Rider and the men’s team traveling south to Stetson. In an overtime thriller, the women pulled out a 2-1 victory over the Broncs. The men’s team , however, fell to Stetson 0-3 in a challenging loss.

The women’s team was searching for their first win of the 2017 season after becoming Patriot League Champions just one year prior. Controlling the pace of the game early and often, the Bison not only earned 17 corner kicks, but also took 17 shots.

But despite pressure from the Bison, Rider struck first, scoring a goal just three minutes into the second half. Just a few minutes later, the Bison evened the score when captain Megan Holtz ’17 volleyed a beautiful ball into the top of the net from the top of the 18-yard-box. The team earned multiple chances to end the contest, one of which came from freshmen Alexandra Catanzarite ’21, but no one could cash in. After battling for the remainder of regulation, the game went into overtime.

The play that secured the victory began with a punt from the opposing end. After Carly Baggott ’19 won a header in the midfield, Holtz again took initiative and moved the ball up the field. Following a broken play, Holtz chipped a ball over the heads of the defenders right into the feet of Brianna Kropinack ’21, who confidently collected the ball and sent it into the back of the net. This was Kropinack’s first collegiate goal.

“We’re really excited about getting our first win of the season. I think it’s good momentum going forward into two tough games this week. While we want to avoid overtime, I think getting the experience is beneficial to the team before league play,” Holtz said.

Meanwhile, in Florida, the men attempted to defeat Stetson. Despite leading in shots throughout the game, the Bison failed to convert on any of their attempts toward goal and dropped the contest by a final score of 3-1. Leading the team in shots was Nick King ’20.

Facing a halftime deficit of one goal, the Orange and Blue needed more momentum on their side. Ultimately, this force never came as their opponents scored an additional two goals in the second half. Ryan Ott ’19 made two saves throughout the contest with Emmett Witmer ’20 finishing the remainder of the game.

“Today was a learning experience and we know that we have a lot of work to do. With this in mind, we’ll be ready for Patriot League play when it rolls around,” King said.

The women’s team will be back in action on Sept. 9 when they face Penn in Philadelphia. The men’s team also plays on Sept. 9 against Duquesne at a 4 p.m home game.