SUNYAC Game of the Week: Buffalo State men's soccer upsets #6 Cortland
CORTLAND, N.Y. - The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) has selected the men's soccer match on October 7, between nationally sixth-ranked Cortland and Buffalo State as its game of the week.
Defense was the theme of the game throughout the first half of play. Cortland controlled the ball for the majority of the game, but strong goaltending and solid defense by both squads brought the game into halftime deadlocked at zero.
Minutes into the second half, Buffalo State junior forward, Sofiane Hamadi, received a pass from senior forward and SUNYAC Men's Soccer Offensive Athlete of the Week, Luke Pavone, and booted a goal past Cortland senior goalie, Connor Young, from about eighteen yards out.
The Red Dragons had one last chance to convert a free kick with three minutes remaining, but Buffalo State goalie and SUNYAC Men's Soccer Defensive Athlete of the Week, Andreas Queen, saved the shot and the lead to earn his sixth shutout of the season.
The only goal of the game was enough for the Bengals to complete their upset victory over the sixth-ranked Red Dragons and also earned them a spot in the NCAA Division III national rankings, debuting at seventeenth on the poll. The loss snapped both an eight-game winning streak on the season and a fifteen-game conference-winning streak dating back to last season.
Buffalo State has reached the ten-win mark for the third consecutive season. With an overall record of 10-1-2 and sitting third in the conference standings with eleven points at 3-0-2, the Bengals are on their way to making some serious noise in the SUNYAC championships later this fall.
As for the Red Dragons, they still sit tied with Oneonta atop the SUNYAC standings with fifteen points and a 5-1 conference record. They are 11-2 overall on the season and will look to start a new winning streak when they host Geneseo and Brockport at home this weekend.
