Men’s Soccer: Terriers Come Out on Top Against Bucknell with New Faces on The Field
Featured Image by Jenny Chen
By Jane Guay
Boston University Men’s Soccer (5-3-0, 2-1-0 PL) added another tally to the win column after facing the Bucknell Bison (5-2-1, 1-1-1 PL) Saturday afternoon in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
Continuing to support their early projection of finishing number one in the Patriot League this season, the Terriers defeated No. 24 Bucknell 3-2.
In a strugglesome start for the Terriers, Bison midfielder Zane Domsohn and defender Jack Luca scored two goals.
The Terriers’ newest starting goalkeeper Shera Saadat collected five saves — including two back-to-back shots — with 15 minutes left in the first half. Saadat is the third different goalkeeper to start for BU this season.
On the offensive end, midfielder Pharis Petrica went long for the Terriers’ first goal of the match in the 11th minute.
Still, BU’s rough start in the first half was partly due to fouling, as junior forward Andrea Di Blasio had three fouls called on him in the first 37 minutes — two of which were within one minute of each other.
The Bison were able to use fouling trouble to their advantage. Midfielder Ethan Gill committed a foul prompting Lucas to take a penalty kick, putting the Bison 2-1. Three goals were scored not even in the first 15 minutes of the match.
The Bisons’ high defensive line in the first half caused consistent offsides issues for the Terriers, limiting their scoring chances.
After Lucas’ penalty kick to put the Bison up, the Terriers easily gained some momentum to end the first half on a 2-0 run. Gill leveled the score with a strong drive past Bison goalkeeper Freddie Lapworth — his second goal of the season.
Just moments later, freshman midfielder Sebastian Otero scored his second goal of the season, giving the Terriers their first and only lead of the match.
The Terriers ended the first half with 10 committed fouls as compared to the Bisons’ four. The fouling struggles for BU made no change in the second half, as the team ended up committing a total of 17 fouls — while the Bison had nine.
The second half itself is where pace for both teams died down, as neither team would end up scoring in the second half entirely. While the Terriers strengthened their defense compared to the first half, they had eight total shots by the end of the match — less than half of the Bisons’ 18.
Saadat remained valuable in defending the Terriers’ goal in the second half, saving another four goals, with the last one coming from the Bisons’ rushed shot in the last 12 seconds to potentially end up tying the game.
After ending the game victorious, the Terriers look to face the Harvard Crimson on Sept. 30 at 7 p.m. in Allston.