Men’s soccer splits conference openers

The Geneseo men’s soccer team may have began its SUNYAC campaign with a rough start against SUNY Fredonia, but the Knights made up for it with a 2-1 win against Buffalo State. The Knights lost to Fredonia 1-0 Sept. 26, holding off Fredonia’s offense up until the final minutes of the game.

“Fredonia is having a pretty good year and they had a good run of form lately,” head coach Dominic Oliveri said.

The game was the first conference game of the season and Oliveri said that he had expected to see a high level of intensity during the game.

“I was trying to get the team to realize that the game was going to be much more intense and physical; that we needed to be much more engaged,” he said.

Geneseo and Fredonia battled for possession and exchanged opportunities to score throughout the entire game. Fredonia outshot the Knights 11-9, but Oliveri thought Geneseo played at a higher level for at least part of the game.

“I thought we were the better team in the second half,” he said. “We had four or five really good chances, whereas they had one or two.”

Despite these opportunities, Geneseo has not been able to put the ball into the back of the net this season.

“We’re getting quality chances—which are a good thing—but we’re not finishing,” Oliveri said. “Mentality-wise, it’s getting to our heads.”

Going into the game against Buffalo State, Oliveri needed his team to bounce back strong.

“You can’t afford to lose back-to-back games in a weekend,” he said. “As soon as the Fredonia game was over, I told them to move on and look forward to tomorrow.”

The Knights confidence was initially shaken after Buffalo State scored three minutes into the first half. Geneseo went into halftime down 1-0, but they were able to turn it around by scoring two goals in the second half.

Oliveri said that after he substituted a few players, the team was able to win the game back. Junior defender Brad Campion and sophomore midfielder John Leva both scored, securing the win for the Knights.

Oliveri said that he is looking forward to the next SUNYAC games against SUNY New Paltz and SUNY Oneonta on Friday Oct. 3 and Saturday Oct. 4, respectively.

Editor’s note:

The Knights beat Nazareth College 3-0 on Tuesday Sept. 30.

Women’s soccer prepares for tough weekend of SUNYAC play

Going into SUNYAC openers against SUNY Fredonia and Buffalo State, the Geneseo women’s soccer team had high expectations. The Knights had a 6-1-1 record and were going against two teams that had played average soccer to that point. The Knights were only able to come out of Sept. 26 and Saturday Sept. 27 with one win—losing to Fredonia 2-1 and beating Buffalo State in overtime 2-1.

Despite the tough start to SUNYAC play, head coach Nate Wiley sees the games in a positive light as a whole.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t get both of the results that we were looking for,” he said. “But I think we did make the statement that we were looking to make.”

That statement, according to Wiley, was establishing that the Knights as one of the top teams in the conference. Despite the loss to Fredonia, Geneseo dominated possession for the majority of the game. Both of the goals the Knights allowed against the Blue Devils came after long Geneseo possessions.

“I didn’t feel like, at really any point in the game, that they were being dangerous in terms of their possession,” Wiley said. “Unfortunately, soccer is a game where you can dominate the game and have a couple of minor letdowns or slight mistakes and lose the game because of it.”

Against the Bengals, the Knights played a very similar game. They dominated possession and the number of shots on goal. According to Wiley, however, there was one very important difference.

“We don’t need 18 shots [like we had against Fredonia],” he said. “What we need is nine quality shots and I thought we did a better job of that [against Buffalo State].”

Quality shots were difficult to come by against the Blue Devils. Although the Knights took plenty of shots on goal in the second half, very few truly challenged Fredonia’s goalkeeper.

With the first weekend of SUNYAC play in their rearview mirror, the Knights now have to prepare for what should be their toughest weekend all season. Both SUNY New Paltz and SUNY Oneonta are strong opponents. That Geneseo has to play both on the road does not bode well for the Knights.

Still, no team in the SUNYAC won both of their games in the opening weekend of conference play. Geneseo sits just one point behind SUNY Oswego and SUNY Cortland––the Knights still have the highest overall winning percentage in the conference.

After playing at New Paltz and Oneonta on Friday Oct. 3 and Saturday Oct. 4, the Knights will return home for a non-conference game against Elmira College on Oct. 8.

Men's soccer faces 'biggest weekend' of season

The postseason became unclear for Geneseo’s men’s soccer team after a 0-1-1 weekend on Friday Oct. 18 and Saturday Oct. 19 against SUNY Cortland and SUNY Oswego. The week before, however, the Knights sealed a 2-1 win against undefeated and then nationally ranked SUNY Brockport.

Head coach Dominic Oliveri said the win against Brockport boosted the confidence of the team. He hoped that the Knights were able to have that self-assurance as they played Cortland and Oswego.

“My worry was, coming off a victory like that, if we can carry our morale psychologically and mentally into the next weekend,” Oliveri said.

The Knights were unable to “carry” that success against Cortland as they lost 2-0. Despite going scoreless in the game, the Knights outshot the Red Dragons 19-13, with seven on goal for Geneseo and only four for Cortland.

Oliveri said that inconsistency between halves had something to do with the loss.

“In the first half, we came in extremely sluggish, and I was disappointed in our effort,” he said. “Second half, we were in desperation mode, and we played extremely well. We created numerous offensive opportunities.”

The following day, Geneseo tied the winless Oswego team 1-1.

“From a talent standpoint, we were more talented,” Oliveri said. “In the stats, we controlled the game.”

The Knights dominated in front of goal by tallying 28 shots as opposed to six from Oswego. Geneseo’s goalkeeper sophomore Logan Calvey recorded three saves on the day.

The two weekend games mean that the Knights fell to fifth in the SUNYAC standings. The upcoming matches against SUNY Potsdam and SUNY Plattsburgh will have the possibility to decide their fate.

“We’re at a very vulnerable point in the conference standing right now at fifth place. Top six makes the playoffs,” Oliveri said. “Two games on Friday and Saturday, and we can finish anywhere from second to third to completely out. The teams below us inch closer to us due to our performance this past weekend.”

Going into the weekend, Potsdam is in seventh place and Plattsburgh in third.

The Knights’ situation is tricky. If everything goes well and they win both games, they will automatically be in the playoffs.

“It’s the biggest weekend of the year,” Oliveri said. “It will determine if we will make the playoffs or not.”

Women's soccer playoff implications in limbo

With two SUNYAC games remaining in the season, the Geneseo women’s soccer team is transitioning into a must-win mindset. Despite a winless record over the past three games, the Knights hold the coveted sixth spot in SUNYAC standings. “A lot of our focus is just going to be on how we play – not focusing on wins and losses. Those things will take care of themselves,” head coach Nate Wiley said about the upcoming weekend. “Good soccer will win games for us. I think we’ve lost sight of that.”

Now is definitely the time for the Knights to regain that focus. Their last two conference games are Friday Oct. 25 at SUNY Potsdam and Saturday Oct. 26 at SUNY Plattsburgh – both opponents within two points of the Knights for the final playoff spot.

The way for the Knights to clinch a spot in the playoffs is pretty complicated. If they win both games, they’re in. If the Knights lose one game, they’re out. If they tie either game and win the other, then SUNY Fredonia has to lose or tie at least one of its games. The same goes for SUNY Brockport.

Basically, there are five teams playing for two spots: Brockport, Fredonia, Plattsburgh, Potsdam and Geneseo. All of those teams will play two games over the weekend.

With the intensified competition, the Knights are very lucky to have experienced goalkeeper senior Julia Sanger in net.

“She has certainly stood on her head at times and really given us an opportunity to stay in games and given us a chance to win virtually every game she’s stepped in net,” Wiley said.

Sanger has stepped up even more in her senior season. The Rochester native is fourth in SUNYAC in goals against average (.608), shutouts per game (.333) and saves per game (4.13). With her seven shutouts, she is undoubtedly the leader of this defensive-minded team.

Sanger is no stranger to winning either. In 2010, she helped the Fairport Red Raiders win the Section V Championship. That experience will be key to potential SUNYAC and NCAA tournament runs.

The SUNYAC tournament begins with a play-in on Nov. 2.

Women's soccer in hunt for top of SUNYAC table

Headed into the final month of regular season play, the women’s soccer team is right where it needs to be: the top half of the SUNYAC standings. To get there, the Knights beat SUNY Fredonia 1-0 on Saturday Sept. 28 and lost to Buffalo State College 1-0 the previous day.

“I think these are teams that we felt like we could have beaten both,” head coach Nate Wiley said.

Over both games, the Knights combined for 21 shots, four of which were from forward/midfielder freshman Erin O’Connor. O’Connor also had the go-ahead goal for the Knights against Fredonia, her third of the year.

“For [O’Connor] specifically, it was a matter of just getting herself closer to goal,” Wiley said. O’Connor’s ability to get behind defense lies mainly in her speed. In May, she ran a 60.73 second 400-meter dash - a time worthy of many Division I track teams.

On the defensive side of the ball, Wiley seemed pleased with how the team played in both games.

“We’re a little bit young in the back, but I think we’ve got the [high] quality of players,” Wiley said. “Having [goalie] senior [Julie Sanger], who’s having a great year, aids in the success that we have … The low number of goals against [us] is not a surprise.”

Sanger certainly is an asset to the Knights. She has allowed only five goals in nine games this season and ranks second in SUNYAC in save percentage.

Now that SUNYAC play has started, the games are becoming more important and the Knights have four of their next five games held at home after not having played a game in Geneseo since Sept. 14.

“I think we’ll be that much more excited to play at home,” Wiley said. Although he complimented the fans for traveling well, he said there is something different about playing at home.

“There will be a little bit extra motivation and some extra pride in playing at home and playing in front of a home crowd,” he said.

On Friday Oct. 4, the Knights will face first-place SUNY Oneonta and on Saturday Oct. 5 they will take on SUNY New Paltz – two important games that could knock Geneseo out of SUNYAC contention.

Defense great women's soccer, offense still struggles

On Saturday Sept. 21, the women’s soccer team found itself a second-straight draw, tying the St. Lawrence University Saints 0-0. There are mixed signals coming from this result, a theme that seems to surround the team this season. Goalkeeper senior Julia Sanger had five saves to keep the Knights alive. The conference recognized her efforts, naming her the SUNYAC women’s soccer defensive player of the week on Monday Sept. 23.

Sanger has not allowed a goal in nearly six hours of playing time. Head coach Nate Wiley said it’s her leadership that really sets her apart from other players. He added that her saves in one-on-one situations have been boosting the team.

But of course, it takes more than one player to keep a streak like that alive.

“Defending is key to our success,” Wiley said. He added that Geneseo’s four starting defenders have been playing beyond their years, and there will always be a “learning curve” when playing with two freshmen, a sophomore and a junior.

While the defense seems to have things figured out, the offense continues to struggle. In the last seven games, the Knights have scored eight goals. Not a bad ratio until you learn that seven of those goals came in one game. This inconsistency is what the team struggles with.

“That’s something we’ve been working quite a bit on,” Wiley added. He pointed out that the team has made plenty of opportunities but just hasn’t finished.

One player who has had more opportunities than most is forward and midfielder freshman Erin O’Connor.

The Remsen, N.Y., native has “great pace,” Wiley said.

“When she puts together her eye for through balls and her ability to recognize gaps, she will be able to put away more shots,” he said.

In many situations, numbers can only say so much but they seem to be telling the whole story for Geneseo here. They need to get on the good side of the statistics sheet and things will likely turn around then.

The Knights begin SUNYAC play Friday Sept. 27 at Buffalo State College, so time is running out for them to work on what has been troubling them.

Going into the weekend, the Knights have the sixth-best record in the conference.

Men's soccer still having hard time against set pieces

The Geneseo men’s soccer team continued its losing streak this week as the team lost to Hobart College on Saturday Sept 21. Being the third loss out of four games for the Knights, it seems as though the team might have to head back to the drawing board. Head coach Dominic Oliveri said that he was tense about the game against Hobart because of the team’s performance against the University of Rochester as well as the similarity in playing styles.

“In formation, they play very attack-oriented soccer, they’re very technical and their movement off the ball is really good,” Oliveri said.

Nevertheless, Oliveri said that he felt the team performed well against Hobart despite the score. He said that the team played differently and with more effort against the Statesmen.

“Honestly, I think my [players] are a little embarrassed after Tuesday’s performance,” he added. “The effort was embarrassing [against Rochester], and I think that stayed in their head. They knew they had to come out and play a better ball game.”

Even though Oliveri said that Geneseo played well against Hobart, the team still has not improved its defense on set pieces. Both goals by the Statesmen were allowed off corner kicks. Six out of the 13 goals against the Knights this season came from set pieces. In the game against Hobart, Geneseo surrendered eight corner kicks, while the Statesmen did not allow any.

Because of this, Oliveri said he has started to rethink how the Knights defend set pieces.

“So I play man to man, but I think, starting today, I’m going to start playing more zonally-approach defensively and see if that gets them engaged mentally on set pieces,” Oliveri said. “Hopefully that will work.”

Oliveri also said that he hopes to tackle the problem by working on the formation of the team as well as the type of defense when playing against corner kicks.

“[The team] wanted to play a traditional 4-4-2 formation,” Oliveri said about one of the team’s improvements during the game.

Although the formation change has only been implemented against Hobart, Oliveri said he hopes the team will feel more comfortable playing in the formation.

The Knights can test out their new formation on Friday Sept. 27 against Buffalo State College and Saturday Sept. 28 against SUNY Fredonia.

Men's soccer struggles in Drew tournament

The Geneseo men’s soccer team opened the season up with the Drew University Men’s Soccer Fall Festival in Madison, N.J. Although the team did not achieve the results that it desired, head coach Dominic Oliveri said the team garnered some valuable experience. “This past weekend, we probably went to the toughest tournament we’ve been to in a long time,” Oliveri said. The Knights played against Johns Hopkins University and Haverford College, who Oliveri said are “both really strong clubs.”

Geneseo’s tournament campaign started on Friday Aug. 30 against Johns Hopkins with a 2-2 tie. Johns Hopkins senior Danny Reategui and Geneseo junior Richard Bellusci scored both of their teams’ respective goals. Sophomore goalie Logan Calvey saved three shots for the Knights.

Oliveri said that he was impressed with his team’s resolve despite starting the game with a goal down.

“Usually teams can’t get motivated when they’re a goal down, but this group came right back,” he said. “We tied the game 1-1, and it was really a competitive game from then on.”

The most important name of the game for Geneseo was Bellusci. The striker scored one unassisted goal and another assisted goal by midfielder senior Craig Schackner.

“[Bellusci] is one of those guys who comes off the bench for me who’s one of those really athletic guys,” Oliveri said. “He’s like a fireball for us.”

Despite the comeback effort from the Knights, they were still unable to come out with a win.

The Drew tournament continued on Saturday Aug. 31 against Haverford. Again, the Knights started off slowly when senior forward Ford Bohrmann scored the opening goal for Haverford. Geneseo answered with a goal of its own, scored by none other than Bellusci.

Despite balancing the game at one point apiece, the Knights were unable to hang on as Haverford scored two more goals before the final whistle.

“[Haverford was] a little better than Johns Hopkins. [The players] were technical and they liked getting the ball wide,” Oliveri said. “We struggled with that.”

The Knights bowed out of the tournament with a 0-1-1 start. Oliveri said the team needs to improve on its sluggish starts.

“It might have to do with personnel I’m choosing. But we’re not going to be able to afford, considering the schedule ahead of us, to take 25 to 30 minutes to get really emotionally involved in the game,” he said.

Oliveri also included defense as another aspect to improve upon.

“Our marking in the center of the pitch is lacking right now,” Oliveri said. “One-on-one defending down the flanks needs to improve too.”

The Knights head to Clarkson University Friday Sept. 6 and St. Lawrence University Saturday Sept. 7.

Oliveri said he expects the game against St. Lawrence to be a battle, since the Saints started the year as a top-25 Division III team.

“They’re a technical team that possesses the ball a lot, so it will be a big challenge on Saturday,” he said.