The women's soccer team headed into two weekend matches looking to improve its Mid-American Conference record after winning only one of its first four matches to start the conference season.
Sophomore goalkeeper Ainsley Wheldon's play has been the one constant aspect of the Bulls season – the star continues to carry the team.
Buffalo figured to have its way in the first of two home matches against Northern Illinois (2-9-2, 1-4 MAC) in the weekend opener, but the Bulls dropped a 1-0 nail biter, giving the Huskies their first conference win of the season. Fans in attendance on Sunday saw an offensive explosion, as the Bulls bested Western Michigan (7-7, 3-3 MAC), 3-2. The first half against the Huskies was marked by aggressive play and missed opportunities from both sides. The Bulls played swarming defense and constantly pressured the Northern Illinois attackers.
Northern Illinois missed a golden opportunity to score with 20:32 on the clock in the first half. Wheldon was forced to vacate the net to make a save as the ball bounced around the box in front of the goal line. The Bulls' defense was miraculously able to clear the ball and keep the match scoreless.
The Bulls missed plenty of opportunities as well.
Early on, freshman defender Sophie Therien had an open look on goal from less than 10 yards out, but her shot flew over the goal.
The Bulls would miss many more chances as the game continued, a flaw that head coach Michael Thomas hopes to eliminate moving forward.
"It's just [about] calming down a little in front of the net, making sure that we take that extra step, moving the foot that extra half inch so that those great chances turn into goals," Thomas said.
With 23:41 remaining, Northern Illinois midfielder Shelbi Johnson found midfielder Kayra Thompson, who shot the ball past Wheldon for her first goal of the season. The goal put the Huskies up and the goal proved to be all that they would need.
The Bulls outshot the Huskies 20-16, but only six of their shots were on goal. Buffalo also had four corner kicks to Northern Illinois' three, but the Bulls were unable to capitalize.
Wheldon put together another strong performance, allowing only one goal in nine shots on net.
Buffalo showed its resiliency in its game against Western Michigan, coming back from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to secure the victory.
Thomas was very pleased by the effort put out by his tenacious Bulls squad.
"I couldn't be prouder today," Thomas said. "There were about 18 million times when it could have been easy to quit and pack it in. But [the team] came back and they kept responding and kept playing hard and kept coming back from adversity. How can you not like that as a coach?"
It was a tough start for Buffalo, as the Broncos seized control early. Buffalo had a tough time keeping the ball under control and the Broncos took advantage.
The Broncos netted what looked to be an early goal by forward Anina Cicerone, but she was called offsides. Minutes later, forward Brittney Pavlica laced a shot to the left side of the goal, but a diving Wheldon snatched the ball out of the air for the save. The sophomore goalkeeper finished with six saves out of eight attempted shots in 52 minutes of play before being replaced by freshman goalkeeper McKenzie White.
With the score knotted at two goals apiece, the Bulls were able to take control of the game. In the 61st minute, freshman forward Katie Roberts landed the fatal blow to the Broncos with her second goal of the contest and fifth on the season. This goal came off of a pass by freshman midfielder Megan Giesen, and it was her first assist of the season.
The victory ended the Bulls three-game losing streak against MAC opponents.
The Bulls will be on the road for the next three games, starting Friday when they take on the Ball State Cardinals (9-4-1, 4-1 MAC) in Muncie, Ind. Game time is 4 p.m.
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