NIAGARA STORMS BACK VS BONA IN MEN’S SOCCER INSTANT CLASSIC
Saturday night was historic on the pitch at Niagara University, as the (2-5) Purple Eagles hosted (2-4) St. Bonaventure for a non-league, Little Three men’s soccer match. What started as a stalemate quickly turned into a match the hundreds of fans in attendance will remember forever.
It was the 50th time that the two WNY opponents would face each other in their programs’ histories, with the Bonnies holding a significant, 21 match advantage.
The first half was loaded with glorious opportunities, and stellar defense to counter. Both teams were held scoreless through 45 minutes, but both had shown flashes of high tempo offense leading to prime opportunities.
Six minutes into the second half, Niagara suffered an own goal against, as St Bonaventure’s attacker sent the ball into the box where it deflected off a Purple Eagle for the 1-0 lead.
The Bonnies added another tally 8 minutes later, as Rashid Aroza capitalized on a nifty feed from Will O’Connor to double the Bonnies lead with 30 minutes left to play. At that moment, it seemed inevitable that Niagara would lose its sixth match of the young season, wishing for the chances they missed in the first half back.
Play continued on with the Bonnies sitting back and Niagara starting to dial up the pressure. Finally, in the 78th minute, a foul was called on St Bonaventure inside their own 18, giving NU a penalty kick attempt. The Purple Eagles leading scorer Felix Kogler buried it, cutting the deficit in half. Niagara continued with possession, and less than three minutes later, Niagara’s Gerard Lopez Forner pounded home a cross from Dominic Cintra to tie the match at 2.
But that’s not all. 39 seconds after the match was knotted, Lopez Forner gave NU their first lead with less than 9 minutes to play… but again, he was not done. The graduate student from Silla, Spain notched his third goal of the match in the 84’, securing the Purple Eagles come-from-behind victory.
The Final: Niagara 4, St. Bonaventure 2.
UB WOMEN’S SOCCER PARTIES LIKE IT’S 1999; UNDEFEATED IN NON-CON
Sticking in DI Soccer, the UB Bulls Women defeated Northern Colorado 2-0 on Sunday, ending their non-conference schedule undefeated for the first time since 1999.
Bulls sophomore Defender Maya Galko bent in her second goal of the season off a corner kick, and later, junior Defender Ellie Simmons extended Buffalo’s lead in the second half, locking down the victory in the Rocky Mountains.
The 5-0-2 Bulls head to Akron on Thursday to open Mid American Conference play.
SABRES PROSPECT CHALLENGE UNDERWAY
The Prospects Challenge took over LECOM HarborCenter this weekend, as up-and-comers from six Eastern Conference teams began play in the exhibition showcase. Buffalo defeated Columbus 3-1 Friday night, then fell to New Jersey on Saturday.
Sabres forward Jiri Kulich has been the standout, compiling 3 goals and an assist thus far.
Buffalo closes the Challenge vs Pittsburgh, tonight at 7pm.
ST. JOE’S OUTLASTS JAMESTOWN IN WEEK 2 OF FNL
Once again, the Friday Night Lights crew took in the most high scoring game of the weekend in WNY, as St. Joe’s defeated Jamestown, 41-30, at Strider Field.
It was back-and-forth at the start, with the Monsignor Martin Association representative St. Joe’s taking a 7-0 lead, then again at 14-7. But Section VI’s Jamestown capitalized on a safety, followed by a go ahead touchdown, taking a 15-14 advantage into halftime.
The Red & Green added to their lead after forcing a punt on the first drive of the second half,. Jamestown junior Chase Bonta returned the punt for a touchdown. Jamestown’s 22-14 lead seemed secure as they forced another punt from the Marauders, who just couldn’t evade the Red & Green Defensive line.
However, the St. Joe’s D-Line, led by senior captain Peyton Brock, put on the pressure, forcing punts on 5 straight Jamestown drives, giving the offense time to get to work. It took just 9 offensive plays, and less than three minutes of possession time, for St. Joe’s to break the barrier, scoring touchdowns on four straight drives.
In the game, Marauders' receiver George Kunz ‘25 ended the game with 228 yards and 3 TDs, as (1-1) St. Joe’s defeated (1-1) Jamestown 41-30.
UB FOOTBALL HANDLES UMASS AT HOME
The (2-1) Buffalo Bulls football team defeated (0-3) UMass on Saturday, 34-3.
With the game broadcast to a national audience, Bulls defensive back Marquis Cooper returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown.
UB heads to Northern Illinois for the MAC opener on Saturday.
