When the women's soccer team arrived in California for the Puma Classic, they must have lost their luggage, as the players arrived with two left feet.
In the first game of the tournament, the Bulls faced the UC Riverside Highlanders, who handily took care of the Bulls, 4-1. The Bulls were shorthanded coming into the tournament as key player junior Heidi Griffiths was not with the team due to injury. This proved to be a disadvantage during the first game as the Bulls faced a strong team that was riding a three-game winning streak coming into the tournament.
"We were without Heidi (Griffiths) and we had to make adjustments," said Bulls head coach Jean-A Tassy.
UCR got off to an early lead with a goal by midfielder Lindsay Allen in the 13th minute. Later in the half, a corner kick led to another UCR goal on a header by Jenna Leonti, which was notched in the 34th minute.
Despite the two-goal halftime deficit, Tassy wanted his team to maintain its focus and stick with the game plan.
"In the first half, we gave up two goals," Tassy said. "I told the girls (at halftime) we need to maintain our discipline and attack."
However, about five minutes into the second half, Tessa Lennala scored a third goal for UCR to dampen any Bulls hopes of a comeback.
In the 58th minute, Bulls senior Jessica Roesch crossed to freshman Cheyra Bell to put Buffalo on the scoreboard. On the play, Highlander goalkeeper Tawny Poggio suffered an injury and was replaced by sophomore Brittany Goetz. It was also Bell's first career goal. Yet, Buffalo couldn't capitalize on the new keeper, as Goetz held the Bulls scoreless for the rest of the game.
UCR's Heather Miller added the Highlanders' final goal with only a few minutes left in the match.
"We played the second half with the same intensity." Tassy said. "We pushed so hard to get the second goal and then we allowed another one."
Buffalo was outshot 17-7, with shots on goal ending up 12-2 in favor of the Highlanders.
In the second game, Buffalo (2-4) lost to the UC Irvine Anteaters (1-5) by a score of 1-0. Makenzie Beahm scored the lone goal of the close game in the 28th minute.
The referees didn't give the Bulls any breaks on the scoring play. There was some debate as to whether or not the ball fully crossed the line, but the call went in favor of the Anteaters.
Redshirt freshman Amy Coron played well in net, making six saves in the match. Anteaters' sophomore, Erin Henry, made five saves for the shutout.
The Bulls showed tremendous effort, but couldn't put the ball in the net. Bell led Buffalo with 2 shots on goal.
Buffalo finished with 13 total shots, compared to 15 for the Anteaters. UC Irvine also held a slight edge in shots on goal 7-5.
"That's a game I felt we should have had," Tassy said. "We had our share of opportunities. The defense played really great and the midfield played well. That's something we can carry with us to the next game."
Two players from the Bulls were named to the Puma Classic All-Tournament Team. Roesch and sophomore Brooke McCalla received the honors for their outstanding play during the two matches.
Despite the two losses, Coach Tassy remained optimistic about the whole experience.
"The reason we scheduled the trip was to give the girls the opportunity to be challenged by those teams," Tassy said. "The girls in California were really big and strong. Our girls needed to adjust to their style of play."
Tassy believes that playing this tougher competition will prepare the Bulls to be a contender in the Mid-American Conference.
"We are growing by playing better competition to get us ready for the MAC schedule," Tassy said. "I would like to think it had a major impact on the girls to see the competition we will be facing when we make it to the NCAA's."
The Bulls hope to rebound in its next game on Friday. Buffalo hosts Canisius at UB Stadium at 4 p.m. This will be Buffalo's last game before starting MAC play on September 22 at Miami (OH).
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
