"Two games won, a star lost"

Two conference victories in one weekend is a feat that any team should celebrate without hesitation.

Losing a key player in one of those games puts a damper on the bliss.

The UB men's soccer team hosted Mid-American Conference games Friday and Sunday at UB Stadium and during Friday's 4-0 defeat of Bowling Green, sophomore forward Lee Catchpole went down with a head injury after a collision and did not suit up for Sunday's 1-0 victory over Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne.

Catchpole's condition and possible return could not be confirmed by head coach John Astudillo following Sunday's game.

"I don't know when he will be back until he sees a specialist (Monday) morning at 10 a.m.," Astudillo said. "The specialists will be the ones that make the call."

Buffalo saw its first MAC victory under the stadium lights on Friday night in true Bulls fashion, shutting out its sixth opponent this year. Two of UB's goals came off the foot of junior forward Braden Byler.

Catchpole sent a penalty kick into Bowling Green's net for the first goal of the game at the 25:24 mark, giving UB a 1-0 lead over the visiting Falcons. Junior midfielder Brian Knapp bolstered the Bulls' score further with a showy, almost-bicycle kick from a Catchpole assist.

"I thought it was fantastic," Astudillo said of Knapp's goal. "Just one shot into the net when they least expected it."

The Bulls were sitting pretty on a 2-0 lead when Byler shot his first goal into the net at the 37:22 mark. Freshman midfielder Elbrus Tambi took one of UB's six corner kicks and sent it high into the box where the ball met with the head of freshman forward Dezi Lara. Byler settled the ball before sending it to the back of the net for his second goal of the season and the third goal of the game.

"He played very, very well," Astudillo said of Byler. "He came off the bench and popped in a few goals we needed."

Byler scored the final goal of the game at 80:59 from a Matt Grabowski assist, expanding the Bulls' score to four and capturing the win.

All good things must come to an end and over the weekend, the three seniors of the men's soccer team suited up for their last regular season home game as UB Bulls.

Sunday afternoon's game against IPFW marked the final regular season home appearance for defender Mbwana Johnson, forward Greg Galemore and defender Matt Stuczynski.

Senior ceremonies started off the game for the men donning royal blue jerseys and the team gave themselves reason to celebrate further after holding its seventh team scoreless, defeating IPFW 1-0.

Junior forward Andrae Clarke nailed a shot into the goal just two minutes into the game, which became a fierce battle in the frigid weather at UB. The game concluded with 38 fouls and four yellow cards.

Violations and fouls aside, the Bulls defense kept the Mastadons away from the goal and junior goalkeeper Dan Bell. IPFW did not take a shot on goal until there was just five minutes remaining in the game.

"We play total team defense, more than just the three backs and the goalie," Astudillo said. "We did a really good job with starting and maintaining pressure on the ball."

Buffalo continues its MAC play this Friday at Western Michigan at 4 p.m. and will close its season on Sunday at Northern Illinois in a 1 p.m. match. November 8 marks the beginning of the quarterfinals for the MAC Tournament hosted at the venue of the number-four seed.