Terrible weather elements were no match for the men's soccer team as it used home field advantage to claim two victories over the weekend. Buffalo captured first place in the Buffalo Fall Classic.
On Friday night, Buffalo (3-2-0) took the field against Siena (0-2-1) and battled against heavy rain, strong winds and overtime. The Bulls showed their fortitude in a 101-minute marathon of a match, before coming away with a 1-0 victory.
The Bulls came out flat in the first half, only totaling three shots. Buffalo finally got pressure on the Saints in the second half and into overtime, out-shooting the Saints 11-1 in that span.
"We were more tentative in the first half," said head coach John Astudillo. "We decided that we wanted to throw everything forward and to sustain the offense in the second half."
Buffalo had a great opportunity to score the first goal late in the second half but sophomore Dan Bulley's header hit the crossbar and went over the net.
The biggest play of the game came 11 seconds into the first overtime when the Saints picked up a red card, putting them one man down for the remainder of the contest.
The Bulls wasted no time coming into the second overtime, scoring the lone goal right off the kickoff. Junior Dominic Oppong got open on the right side of the box and fed a pass to sophomore Alex Marrello, who put it past goalkeeper Steve Skonieczny. The goal was Marrello's first in a Bulls uniform.
"Alex has been working hard," Astudillo said. "He is the type of kid that keeps his play simple and will do the dirty work and get his nose bloodied if he needs to win the ball."
Junior Robert Shuttleworth picked up two saves to record his second consecutive shutout.
"Our back four (defenders) are really supporting Robbie out there," Astudillo said. "They did not allow many opportunities and did well in the transition play to support our offense."
The tournament reached its climax with Sunday's game, pitting the Bulls against Central Connecticut State.
The Blue Devils (1-2) were riding the high of their first win of the Classic, a 1-0 victory over St. Bonaventure (1-2-1) on Friday afternoon.
Once again, inclement weather played a major factor in the title game. A steady rain persisted throughout the match, affecting how both teams moved the ball. Buffalo was able to adjust to the slick pitch, and came away with a 1-0 victory.
Buffalo came out strong from the beginning of the game, out-shooting the Blue Devils 5-2 in the first half. At the final whistle, Buffalo held a 10-6 advantage in shots.
The only goal came in the 40th minute off a header from freshman Juha Kaartoluoma. The play started from the right side of the field when a cross was sent into the box. The ball bounced multiple times before it was finally hit by Kaartoluoma five yards out to find its way into the back of the net.
"Juha had a good performance in today's game," Astudillo said. "He played mistake free soccer and took advantage of his playing time."
With his third straight shutout, Shuttleworth has not allowed a goal in over 300 minutes of play. This streak dates back to the Bulls' first game of the season for the sophomore goalkeeper.
"Robbie is playing at a high quality right now. We are lucky to have two equally skilled goalies to choose from for a game," Astdillo said.
Even with three straight victories, Astudillo knows that his team won't be able to win every game 1-0 and that the offensive side of the ball needs to continue to improve.
"We need to work on finishing better and taking advantage of our opportunities," Astudillo said. "With so many new faces and getting everybody healthy, we need to work together on both sides of the ball to have a good balanced game."
Senior Dan Stevens and Shuttleworth both earned All-Tournament Most Valuable Players. Stevens, the offensive MVP, had three shots in the two games. For his efforts, Shuttleworth was not only recognized as the defensive MVP of the Classic, but was also named Mid-American Conference Player of the Week.
Sophomore Steffen Thoresen, junior Dan Gwyther, senior Dave Chojnowski, Bulley, and Marrello were among the other Bulls named to the All-Tournament Team.
The Bulls resume their schedule on Friday, Sept. 14 when they travel to face local rival St. Bonaventure. The match is slated to begin at 4 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
