The women's soccer team, fresh off its 2-0 win over Colgate (2-3), was looking to start the season 4-0 for the first time since 2008.
St. Bonaventure had other plans.
The Bonnies (3-2-0) withstood an early deficit and rallied to a 3-2 victory over the Bulls (3-1) on Saturday night at UB Stadium.
The Bulls dominated the pitch early, with junior midfielder Taylor Thompson striking first in the sixth minute off a flawless pass from freshman defender Sophie Therien. The pass gave Thompson the opportunity to make an agile move on St. Bonaventure goalie Megan Junker, and Thompson slipped the ball into the left side of the net for her first score of the year.
During the early part of the game, the Bulls dominated ball possession and the tempo. The Bonnies regrouped, however, and rallied midway through the opening half.
Midfielder Alyssa Lapp scored over the outstretched arms of sophomore goaltender Ainsley Wheldon in the 26th minute. It was the first goal given up by the Bulls in over 284 minutes of game time this season. While the Bulls were still recovering, the visitors took advantage, striking again just over 90 seconds later. Defender Taylor Broderick scored off a free kick pass from forward Hannah Lapp. The ball deflected off the hands of Wheldon, giving the Bonnies a 2-1 advantage.
The Bulls kept up the frenetic pace of the game, and evened up the score just four minutes later off a free kick from junior defender Shannon Algoe. The ball took a David Beckham-like curve from about 25 yards outside the net.
Going into the half, the Bulls squandered a golden opportunity to take the lead when freshman forward Katie Roberts missed a shot from point blank range and hit the left crossbar. Missed opportunities seemed to be the theme for the Bulls as time went on, as they had plenty of chances to score throughout the game.
The Bonnies would make them pay early in the second half when midfielder Alicia Elwell scored an unassisted goal off a scrum in front of the net, which put the Bonnies ahead for good.
Despite the loss, head coach Michael Thomas praised his team's play.
"We had some great moments, some great chances," Thomas said. "It easily could have have gone either way...There was a lack of sharpness in our passing, a bit of reacting instead of anticipating, but having said that we still gave ourselves enough chances that we easily could have won this game."
It is the first loss of the season for the Bulls.
"I thought we didn't have it today, but we kept working, and we had a chance, even at the end," Thomas said. "We'll find out a lot about our team in the next week to see how we handle adversity."
Late in the first half, senior defender Angela Nicholas hurt her knee when she was kicked by a St. Bonaventure player in a battle for the ball. Nicholas was confirmed to be OK by the coach, and Thomas said she shouldn't miss any time.
The Bulls play game two of their three-game home stand on Friday against Temple at UB Stadium. Game time is 7 p.m.
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Photo: Courtesy of UB Athletics
