The Brockport men’s soccer team faced a tough loss Monday, being defeated by Buffalo State 2-0 in a non-conference matchup. This is the first time since leaving the SUNYAC that the Golden Eagles have faced their old conference rival.
A physical, defensive battle from the start, the game would remain scoreless until halfway through the first half. Buffalo State’s Manu Prieto would find the back of the net, chipping Brockport’s keeper Andrew Taylor to give Buffalo State a 1-0 lead.
DJ Taylor was a key part of Brockport’s defensive effort.
“After their goal, I think we responded well,” DJ Taylor said. “We created a lot of chances after we went down, so I have no complaints about our response.”
The Golden Eagles would keep the offensive pressure up, creating multiple chances, but were still unable to finish. Brockport’s Max Voyer sent a shot wide of the net, and Gael Beraldi put a header over the crossbar.
Brockport assistant Dan Lynd was optimistic about his team’s offensive potential.
“We’re competing at a high level,” Lynd said. “We’ve just got to put it all together and finish in the final third. We’re still moving the ball well in the midfield. We had a couple of defensive mishaps, but we’re still continuing to train hard.”
Brockport ended the half still trailing.
The second half was much of the same. The Bengals kept pushing Brockport’s back line, and Taylor was forced to make several saves to keep Brockport in the game. Taylor finished with eight saves on the day.
Buffalo State would seal their victory with just under nine minutes left to play. In a similar situation to the first goal, Prieto again found himself in a breakaway, and easily chipped it over the rushing Taylor to secure a victory for the Bengals.
“We’ve been scored on quite a few times with balls over the top,” DJ Taylor said. “I think we have some young guys back there that are still trying to figure out the game. But those were the two chances they got all game and they were able to capitalize. It’s stuff we’ll just have to keep working on.”
The Golden Eagles now sit at 1-4-1 on the season and have lost their last four games. They will be looking to get back on track Saturday, when they travel to Keuka for a critical conference matchup.
