CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Two of the nation's best men's soccer teams, Boston University and UMBC continued to impress last week as the Terriers won for third-straight time and the Retrievers extended the nation's longest win streak to nine. As a result BU's junior forward Aaron O'Neal (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) and UMBC's freshman goalkeeper Phil Saunders (Perry Hall, Md./Perry Hall) have earned weekly accolades for the period ending Sept. 27.
O’Neal, the Player of the Week, scored three times in a pair of Terriers wins last week. The 2007 America East Rookie of the Year, O’Neal added a second-half insurance goal in a 2-0 win over Holy Cross Wednesday then provided both Boston U. scores in a 2-1 win at Rhode Island Saturday. O’Neal, who has three multi-goal games this season, ranks third in America East in both points (16) and goals scored (7).
Saunders, the Rookie of the Week, led UMBC to two more victories last week and extended his shutout streak to 435 minutes. The freshman keeper made six saves in a 1-0 win over Loyola Tuesday, including five game-saving stops in the final 1:55 of the contest. Saunders then made five saves in a 3-0 win over La Salle Saturday, UMBC’s ninth straight win to start the season. Saunders, who also took home top rookie honors last week, leads America East and ranks among national leaders with a .340 goals against average and a .919 save percentage. He is also tied for the league lead with five shutouts.
Team Notebooks:
Albany (0-6-2, 0-0-0 America East) played crosstown-rival Siena to a 0-0 double-overtime draw in its only match this past week … Adrian Foncette (Arima, Trinidad/Fatima) made 10 saves in goal to help salvage the tie … It marked the second time this season that Foncette has recorded double-digit saves after setting a Division I program record for stopping 16 shots against Colgate on Friday, Sept. 11 … In addition, it was Foncette’s fourth career shutout and first of the season … The sophomore, who has played every minute in net this fall, has an .808 save percentage and a 1.64 goals against average … After ranking fifth in the nation and first in the conference in scoring in 2008, UAlbany is only averaging 0.50 goals per game this year … The team is trying to break out of a scoreless drought which has lasted over 300 minutes … Bo Jelovac (Belgrade, Serbia/Sveti Sava School) leads the Great Danes in scoring with two goals and one assist for five points … Ian Peach (South Hempstead, N.Y./South Side) and David Hawksworth (Sheffield, England/All Saints Catholic) have also scored goals … The Great Danes, who have had four of their eight matches decided in overtime, conclude their four-game road trip and wrap up non-conference play at Holy Cross on Tuesday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. … UAlbany will host Hartford in the America East Conference opener for both schools on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 3 p.m.
Boston University (6-2-1, 0-0-0 America East) extended its winning streak to three games with a 2-0 victory at home against Holy Cross followed by a 2-1 win at Rhode Island. The Terriers are off to their best start since 2006, when they began the year 5-1-3. Senior co-captain Richy Dorman (Flintshire, Wales/Hawarden) scored his first goal of the year against the Crusaders at 13:46 off an assist from sophomore Ben Berube (Somerset, Mass./Somerset). Dorman and freshman Ade Akinsanya (Sacramento, Calif./John F. Kennedy) then assisted on junior Aaron O’Neal’s (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) goal at 16:06 to put the game away. Senior goalie Hrafn Davidsson (Reykjavik, Iceland/University of Iceland) only needed one save for his fifth shutout of the season. The Terriers earned their sixth straight win against the Rams with O’Neal scoring both goals. The 2007 America East Rookie of the Year recorded his third multi-goal game of the season and now leads the team with seven goals and 16 points. The team will conclude the non-conference schedule at Brown on Wednesday and then host Stony Brook on Saturday. Both games will start at 7 p.m.
Binghamton (5-3-0, 0-0-0 America East) has recorded three consecutive shutout victories. The Bearcats have outscored their opponents 7-0 during that span … senior goalkeeper Jason Stenta (Binghamton, N.Y./Chenango Valley) stopped a penalty kick in the Bearcats’ 2-0 win at Cornell on Wednesday. It was the first penalty kick faced by the Bearcats since Nov. 13, 2004 against Boston Univ. in the America East title game. In addition, it was the first time that a Binghamton goalkeeper has saved a penalty kick in a non-shootout situation since the program moved up to the NCAA Division I level in 2001 … after not recording a goal during his first three years with the Binghamton program, senior back Kyle Kucharski (Maine, N.Y./Maine-Endwell) scored goals in back-to-back games and helped lead the Bearcats to a pair of shutout victories this past week. Although he is a back, Kucharski nailed a free kick in the Bearcats’ 2-0 win over Cornell on Wednesday. He made another one in Binghamton’s 4-0 win against Niagara on Sunday. Defensively, Kucharski is part of a backline that has recorded three consecutive shutout victories. Kucharski now leads the Bearcats with eight total points … junior midfielder Scott Zobre ( Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Poughkeepsie) has two goals and an assist in the Bearcats’ last three games. Against Niagara on Sunday, he tallied a career-high three points (one goal, one assist). Both of Zobre’s goals have been game winners … Binghamton’s four-goal outburst against Niagara on Sunday represents its highest-scoring effort since defeating Maine 5-0 on Oct. 20, 2007 … Binghamton is now 16-1-1 all time at the Bearcats Sports Complex. In regular season games, the Bearcats are 14-0-1 on their current home field.
Hartford (3-4-1, 0-0-0 America East) dropped both of its non-conference matches last week … The Hawks fell to Boston College 2-1 at home on Tuesday and dropped a 2-1 decision at Temple on Saturday … Each of the Hawks’ four losses in 2009 have been decided by a single goal … Senior Carlos Villa (Las Conchas, Guatemala/Arrayanes/San Jacinto) notched a pair of goals, the Hawks’ only scores of the week … Despite dropping both contests, Hartford outshot its opponents 41-22 … After a scoreless first half, Boston College netted two-straight goals in the 52nd and 60th minute to take a quick advantage over the Hawks … Villa struck back less than a minute later as he unloaded a shot past the Eagles’ keeper to the far right post to keep the Hawks in the game at 2-1 … Hartford outshot Boston College 6-3 in the final minutes, but was unable to net the equalizer … Hartford keeper Nenad Cudic (Novi Sad, Serbia/Auburn University at Montgomery) made four saves in goal for the Hawks … The Hawks dropped their third-straight decision on Saturday, falling 2-1 to Temple … The Owls were first to light up the scoreboard in the 50th minute however the lead was short-lived as Villa knotted the score at one with his fourth goal of the season in the 57th minute … Villa received a ball from rookie James Stamopoulos (Mississauga, Ontario/Port Credit Secondary) and finished from six yards, tying the game at one goal apiece… Temple notched what proved to be the game-winner in the 67th minute … Despite seeing five chances in the closing minutes, Hartford was unsuccessful in putting the tying mark on the scoreboard … Cudic suffered his fourth loss between the posts, making five saves while allowing two goals … Hartford finishes non-conference play with in-state rival Central Connecticut State on Tuesday and opens the conference schedule on the road at Albany on Saturday.
UMBC (9-0-0, 0-0-0 America East) is now ranked No. 25 in Soccer America’s Men’s Soccer poll and up to No. 20 (from 27) in College Soccer News’ poll this week... Sophomore forward Andrew Bulls (Millersville, Md./McDonogh) scored a pair of first half goals, leading the visiting Retrievers to a 3-0 victory over La Salle (3-4-1) in the team’s first road contest of the season… Bulls, the nation’s leading scorer entering play this week, netted his 11th and 12th goals of the season in the 22nd and 29th minutes and freshman Matt Knight (Kent, England) added an insurance goal in the 89th minute to extend UMBC’s school-record winning streak to start a campaign…UMBC freshman goalkeeper Phil Saunders (Perry Hall, Md./Perry Hall) made five saves to record his fourth consecutive shutout and his fifth of the season… He has a save percentage of .919 and a goals against average of .340 which should vault him into the top 20 in both categories nationally this week… Bulls’ first goal was set up by junior forward Levi Houapeu (Germantown, Md./Watkins Mill), who recorded his seventh assist of the season… The Retrievers have not allowed a goal in the last 435 minutes… Bulls scored on a free kick in the 44th minute and Saunders made three outstanding saves in the final two minutes as UMBC edged Loyola (3-3-2), 1-0, before 1,505 fans at UMBC Stadium on Tuesday… Saunders finished with six saves… It was UMBC’s first-ever win over Loyola on home turf… The Greyhounds lead the series, 18-2-2, with the Retrievers’ lone previous win occurring at Towson in 2003…UMBC was just 1-8-2 in its last 11 night contests entering the game, but is now 38-9-14 in its last 60 home games… The Retrievers’ 9-0-0 start is the best in the school history and the longest winning streak since 1999, when the NCAA-bound team won 13 straight contests… Bulls now has 20 career goals in 26 games and his 12 goals is the most in a season since Derek McElligott tallied 15 in the 2003 campaign… UMBC snapped an 11-game road winless streak, which dated back to the 2007 season… The Retrievers last recorded four consecutive shutouts in the 2005 season. UMBC has outscored its opponents, 27-4, through nine games this season… The Retrievers open America East Conference play at Vermont on Saturday, Oct. 3… UMBC is 0-7-2 in its last nine America East road games, with its last win occurring at Maine in 2006.
New Hampshire (3-4-1, 0-0-0 America East) netted two goals within six minutes of one another to propel the men’s soccer team to victory over Bryant University, 2-0, Saturday afternoon at the Bryant Turf Complex … Chris Banks (Westborough, Mass./Westborough) netted the second of two goals in the 80th minute to propel the Wildcats to victory … The Wildcats posted 13 shots in the game, while the Bulldogs had 5 … The Wildcats also held the advantage in shots on goal with nine, while the Bulldogs compiled just one … Joe Corsello (York, Maine/York) led the Wildcats with three shots in the game, while Banks notched two shots in the contest … The final goal was set up by Brad Hilton (Merrimack, N.H./Merrimack) who tallied his first assist on the season … Alex Russell (Harrisburg, Pa./ Central Dauphin East) also notched a goal against Bryant, for his first collegiate goal … Earlier in the week Banks led the Wildcats in shots against Harvard as he tallied a total of four … Colin O’Donnell (Springfield, Mass./ Minnechaug Regional) tied his season best total with five saves in the match against the Crimson … The Wildcats return to action when they travel to Fairfield, Conn. to take on the Fairfield University Stags on Saturday, Sept. 30 at 7 p.m.
Stony Brook (1-7-2, 0-0-0 America East) went 0-1-1 last week… In a 1-1 double overtime tie at Quinnipiac, the Seawolves outshot the Bobcats, 28-8… Freshman Kyle Schlesinger (Selden, N.Y./Newfield) scored 1:09 before halftime to tie the game at one and redshirt freshman Anthony Rogic (Boonton, N.J./Morris Catholic) preserved it with two outstanding saves in the second half… It was Schlesinger’s first goal of his career and the sixth different Stony Brook men’s soccer player to score this year… Senior Damion Brown (Kingston, Jamaica/Francis Lewis) made it seven players when his header gave the Seawolves an early 1-0 lead over Adelphi… Sophomore Wilber Bonilla (Brentwood, N.Y./Hartwick) could have made Stony Brook 4-for-4 in penalty kicks this year but his attempt was saved in the 28th minute… Stony Brook out shot Adelphi, 17-14… It opens up conference play on Saturday evening at 7 p.m. at Boston University.
Vermont (0-5-3, 0-0-0 America East) traveled to Hamden, Conn., to take on Quinnipiac on Saturday… After a scoreless first half, the Bobcats found the net twice in five minutes, in the 55th and 60th minutes to gain a 2-0 lead … Senior Matt Hennessey recorded his first goal of the season to cut the lead to 2-1, but the Catamounts could not muster another goal … On Wednesday Sept. 30, UVM travels to Dartmouth for its last non-conference game … On Sunday Vermont opens America East play with UMBC.