The men's soccer team extended their unbeaten streak to four games after dismantling local rival Canisius 3-0 at the Demske Athletic Complex on Wednesday. The Bulls are 3-0-1 in their last four games.
Buffalo (7-2-1, 1-0-0 Mid-American Conference) came out fighting early as junior forward Dan Bulley earned his first goal of the season at the 3:03 mark off a corner kick by the Bulls.
"It's the first time we even had scoring from our forwards," said head coach John Astudillo. "Our backs and midfielders have been scoring up until this point but tonight our forwards were on target and doing a great job finishing their shots."
Canisius (2-5-1) couldn't stop the mayhem as the Bulls added to their first half lead when junior midfielder Justin Fredsell scored his first goal of the 2008 campaign at 23:46 after a blocked shot from senior defender Dezi Lara.
Junior midfielder Mateo Escobar scored the final Buffalo goal at 52:17 on an unassisted breakaway, netting his first goal of the 2008 season as well.
Astudillo feels that the Bulls had the game under control from the moment the game began.
"We dominated them, pretty much in every aspect of the game," he said. "On defense, offense, on some set plays; we definitely had control of the game."
Bulls junior goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth extended his consecutive scoreless minutes streak to 369, adding 73 minutes between the pipes for Buffalo.
The Bulls earned a season-high 25 shots with eight attempts on goal.
While the Bulls had an ideal victory, Astudillo was worried that the game against the Golden Griffins might become a bumpy one.
"We were concerned about ourselves because we have had quite a few changes in personnel," Astudillo said. "We have quite a few people injured, so we had to have some new people come in and play their spots - and to be honest with you, they did a great job."
With only eight games left before the MAC Quarterfinals, Astudillo is getting his team focused on the big picture.
"We're concentrating on doing what we do best, better," Astudillo said.
"We're concentrating on making sure some of our weak spots in the past are worked on."
With the Bulls already preparing for their next game against St. Bonaventure, Astudillo guarantees that their game will be a thriller.
"The fans can expect a real exciting game," Astudillo said. "Right now, we have a lot of momentum going. We are playing well... which is fun for fans to watch because they are going to see a lot of attacks and a lot of goals hopefully and I expect nothing but good play."
The Bulls host St. Bunaventure at UB Stadium on Friday. Game time is 5 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
