It was a stellar weekend for the women's soccer team, as it added two road victories to its Mid-American Conference record and a milestone victory for Buffalo's head coach Jean-A. Tassy.
The victories this weekend marked coach Tassy's 100th and 101st career wins. The Bulls opened the weekend on Friday with a solid victory over the Western Michigan Broncos, and concluded their weekend with a just as successful triumph over the Northern Illinois Huskies on Sunday.
"I wasn't aware of the achievement (100th career win), it was not my major concern," Tassy said. "My main goal is to get the team to the NCAA Championship."
The victorious weekend had a huge start as the Bulls (6-7, 3-3 MAC) defeated the Broncos (2-10-1, 1-4 MAC) in a 4-2 landside. The Bulls dominated the majority of the game, scoring four goals in the first half. Yet the Bulls allowed the Broncos to battle back for two goals.
Junior Ashley Turner started the Bulls' offense, scoring with a goal off a pass from junior Heidi Griffiths just eight minutes into the game.
Sophomore Brooke McCalla added a great deal of the Bulls' scoring power as she netted two goals and notched one assist. Freshmen Caitlin Higgins also pitched in, as she headed in a goal of her own off a cross into the box.
"I thought we played a superb first half," Tassy said. "We are creating some great opportunities but we are not always taking the initiative to finish."
Although they were down by four goals, the Western Michigan Broncos fought back in the second half. Western Michigan's Thalia Marsh was vital to the Broncos comeback attempt, as she scored both of the Bronco's goals.
"My major concern having a young team is how they will handle themselves in the second half, and there has been somewhat of a struggle," Tassy said. "It is our goal to work on that and overcome the second half block."
Although the Bulls were out shot, 20-17, sophomore goalkeeper Amy Coron trumped the majority of the Broncos efforts as she stopped seven WMU shots on goal.
Buffalo's defense worked well to stop the Broncos offensive drive. The team worked the offside trap well and caught the Broncos offside 10 times.
The Bulls continued their winning ways on Sunday, as they beat the Northern Illinois Huskies (3-8-2, 2-4 MAC), by a count of 2-1. In a performance much like their Friday game, the Bulls started off strong and were the first to mark a goal on the board.
Sophomores Andrea Vescio and Jenessa Banwell worked together for the goal. Vescio recorded the goal and Banwell was credited with the assist.
Turner answered once again for the Bulls to bring the score to 2-0 and McCalla marked her sixth point for the weekend as she provided the assist.
Late in the game, the Huskies' Karen Enockson capitalized on a Bulls' defensive error and finished a penalty kick, which was awarded for a foul in the box.
The Bulls were once again out shot 15-13 and Coron made nine saves to seal the win.
It was a well-fought weekend that Tassy felt was a team victory.
"As a team we need to credit the support players for pushing the starters," Tassy said. "I understand some of our players can get frustrated, because we don't always see results. I think it will come, we need to remain disciplined and results will come. We have to continue to push them to maintain their level of excellence and consistency in play."
After such a successful weekend the Bulls were happy to see their hours of practice were paying off.
"When you practice something and you practice something and you practice something, you have to see your level of success increase," Tassy said. "The girls knew what we were doing works, it was just a matter of time."
The Bulls return home to face the Toledo Rockets on Friday night. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. at UB Stadium.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
