2003 Season Stories

TWELVE PLAYERS NAMED TO UCAA ACADEMIC TEAM

Twelve members of the St. Lawrence University men's soccer team were named to the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association All Academic team.

To be honored, players must maintain an overall 3.2 grade point average and must have sophomore standing at St. Lawrence.

Included on the All-Academic team are Charlie Bour, spanish & environmental science, Eric Bunyan, economics, Joe Domingo, economis, Nate Farrell, history, Garrett Huntley, economics, Phillip Koshi, history & spanish, Kyle Krueger, psychology, John Loftus, religion, Mark McIntire, spanish & music, Ryan O'Dowd, government, Elliott Savitz, undeclared and Evan Schutt, history.

SCHUTT, HUNTLEY AND TEAM AWARDED FOR EFFORTS OFF THE FIELD

Jan. 14: A total of 340 intercollegiate soccer programs including, 74 and 266 women, posted a team grade point average of 3.0 or higher, thereby earning the NSCAA Team Academic Award for the 2002-03 school year.

Of that total, 48 schools had both their men’s and women’s programs recognized, including St. Lawrence University. Of the 48 schools that had both teams receiving the award, seven have the same coach for both the men’s and women’s teams: Anderson University (Scott Fridley), Carleton College (Bob Carlson), Emmanuel College (Jimmy Stephens), Macalester College (John Leaney), Mount Union College (Scott Langone), Piedmont College (Jason P. Smith) and Urbana University (Jim Wendling).

The awards will be presented at the College Coaches Luncheon on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2004, as part of the 57th Annual NSCAA Convention, to be held in Charlotte, N.C., Jan. 14-18, 2004.

Two members of the St. Lawrence University men's soccer team were individually recognized for their outstanding dedication and talent in the classroom.

Junior defender Evan Schutt was named to the first team NCSAA/adidas 2003 Scholar All-America team. Schutt is a history major at St. Lawrence with a 3.66 cumulative grade point average.

Junior midfielder Garrett Huntley was given honorable mention in the same category. He is an economics major with a 3.42 grade point average.

SCHUTT NAMED 2ND TEAM ALL AMERICA

Dec. 16: St. Lawrence University junior defender Evan Schutt has been named a second team All America on the NCSAA/adidas 2003 Men's Division III All America team.

Schutt (Webster, NY/Webster High School) scored one goal and assisted on five others as a back for the Saints and helped SLU compile a 0.49 team goals against average overall in 20 games and a 0.25 goals against average in Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association competition where the Saints allowed just two goals in eight games.

Also a first-team all UCAA selection, three of his assists came on game winning goals for the Saints, who went 17-3-0 and earned the NCAA regional finals for the sixth straight season.

SAINTS FALL 3-2 IN REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Nov. 16-Matt Ristuccia scored two goals, including the game winner, as Wheaton College downed St. Lawrence University 3-2 in the NCAA Regional Championship held on Sandy MacAllaster Field Sunday afternoon.

Wheaton, 18-3-1, moved the ball down the field and was caught up in the Saint defense before Ristuccia took control of it and shot it past a diving Jordan James to drop a shot into the left side of the net 23:01 into the game for the first goal of the day. With only twenty seconds to go in the first half Oliver Brocard fed the ball to Matt Mancini who shot it high and just under the crossbar to put the Lyons up 2-0 at halftime.

Ristuccia scored what seemed to be an insurance goal just over two minutes into the second half as Andrew Hench dribbled down the field and completed a steady pass to Ristuccia who one-touched it into the upper left hand side of the net as James tried to come out and make the grab. It turned into the game winner as the Saints battled back.

The Saints, 17-3-0, answered back as Steve Watson headed in a flip throw from Phil Koshi at the 71:47 mark. Watson finished the season as the Saints' leading goal scorer with six.

Just over four minutes later the crowd came alive as a Saint player was pushed from behind inside the 18 yard box which sent Evan Schutt to the penalty line. Schutt made it a one goal game as he shot the ball just to the left of goalie Matt Pachniuk's reach.

The Saints, however, were unable to tie it up despite a number of late attempts. Watson had the last shot of the day which came at the last second of play right into Pachniuk's arms.

James made one save on the day while Pachniuk saved eight as the Saints out shot the Lyons 15-8. Wheaton now advances to the quarterfinals next weekend.

SAINTS ADVANCE TO REGIONAL FINAL, 1-0

Nov. 15: St. Lawrence University's men's soccer team advanced to the NCAA Division III regional championship game for the sixth straight year Saturday as the Saints turned back Cortland 1-0 in an NCAA second round game.

The Saints, now 17-2-0, will meet Wheaton (MA) in Sunday's regional final on MacAllaster Field in Canton. Wheaton advanced with a win on penalty kicks, 9-8, after battling Bowdoin to a 0-0 tie through two overtimes.

Cortland had a ten game unbeaten streak (9-0-1) snapped and was shut out for the first time in 23 games this season. The Dragons finish their season 16-5-2.

St. Lawrence dominated play and outshot Cortland 20-3 including a 12-1 margin in the second half. Cortland goaltender Sean Trask made nine saves while Saint goalie Jordan James needed just one save for his 12th shutout of the season.

Junior forward Mark McIntire scored his fifth goal of the season and his third game-winning goal for the Saints as he took a pass from sophomore Joe Domingo and dribbled toward net. Trask came out to try to cut the angle, but McIntire's shot slid past both Trask and a charging defender and rolled into the left side of the goal at the 56:06 mark.

St. Lawrence, which beat Cortland 5-2 early in the season, is now 5-0-1 in second round games since 1998 and all six games have been played in Canton.

"When you get to this point in the season and the level of play of an NCAA tournament, it is a whole different game," said Saint coach Bob Durocher. "Cortland came in on a hot streak and played well, but we were able to control the ball and limit their opportunities."

The Saints had several chances to expand their lead, including a upfield run by back Brendan Tougher which set up Phil Koshi's shot which slid just outside the post. Trask also came up big on Charlie Bour in the first half, making a diving save as Bour shot to the lower right corner of the cage.

St. Lawrence will be out to advance to the quarterfinals for the fifth time in their run of six straight appearances. The Saints, semifinalists a year ago, will take a 12-3-2 NCAA tournament record into Sunday's third round game.

WHEATON ADVANCES 9-8 IN SHOOT OUT

In an epic contest that featured 110 minutes of play and 13 rounds of penalty kicks, the Wheaton College Lyons out-shot the Bowdoin College men's soccer team 9-8 to advance in the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championship. The Lyons (17-3-1) will play St. Lawrence tomorrow at noon for the regional title as Bowdoin ends their season with a mark of 13-2-3.

The two squads played even through the first ten minutes, but the Lyons garnered the first good chance as Barry Finnerty played a corner to James Greenslit in the box. Greenslit headed the ball wide of the post as the game remained scoreless. Minutes later, Bowdoin's Andrew Russo fed a through ball to a closely-marked Tom Bresnehan, who toed a ball wide of the net. On the ensuing possession, Polar Bear Danny Sullivan's spot kick from 40 yards out found the head of Ethan Roth, but again the ball skimmed past the side of the goal.

Wheaton countered with a great opportunity in the 17th minute, but a spectacular save on the goal line by Travis Derr kept the game tied. In the 20th minute, Wheaton's Matt Ristuccia found himself wide open on the doorstep, but the ball went off the side of his foot as the Lyons began to control the pace of play. The Polar Bears countered in the 29th minute, as Bowdoin gained a corner and a shot from inside the box by Bobby Desilets was saved by Matt Pachniuk. For the remainder of the half, play was dominated in the midfield as the game remained scoreless into intermission.

Just five minutes into the half, Bowdoin's Bobby Desilets had a pair of great chances within moments, first rifling a shot and then tracking down a loose ball in box. Both shots were saved by Pachniuk as the Wheaton netminder continued to frustrate the Bears. Twenty minutes into the second half, a loose ball in the Bowdoin defensive zone was lofted towards the net by Wheaton's George Thomas.

Bowdoin's Willy Waters headed the ball on the end line over the net, saving a goal. Wheaton got off another good shot on the ensuing corner kick, but Travis Derr made another solid save to keep the game scoreless. With twenty minutes remaining, Tom Bresnehan collected a loose ball on the wing and centered a ball to Desilets, who knocked the ball wide of the goal. With just five minutes left, Desilets again came loose in the box and headed a ball that deflected off the crossbar. A rebound shot by Bowdoin was headed off the goal line by Wheaton as the game seemed destined for overtime.

Bresnehan had the first good chance of overtime as a long ball into the box was deflected wide of the goal. The Polar Bears controlled the play in overtime, but could not find the game-winner as the game headed to the second extra session. The second overtime closed without any scoring as the game moved to penalty kicks.

Wheaton took a seemingly insurmountable 3-0 lead in the best-of-five round of kicks, but Bowdoin netminder Derr stopped the final two Wheaton tries and converted a penalty kick of his own to deadlock the kicks at 3-3. The two teams proceeded to trade makes and missed until the 13th round, when Wheaton's Andrew Hench buried a shot inside the right post and Desilets' try sailed just wide of the post for the Polar Bears.

Bowdoin's Derr made five saves overall, while Pachniuk stopped three shots for Wheaton

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SAINTS EARN 6th STRAIGHT NCAA BERTH

Nov. 9- The St. Lawrence University men’s soccer team won in dramatic fashion as they defeated Hobart College 1-0 in double overtime to win the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association Championship on Sunday afternoon on Sandy MacAllaster field.

This marks the second straight UCAA Tournament title for the Saints and the seventh UCAA Championship in nine seasons. With the win, the Saints have earned their sixth straight bid in the NCAA Tournament. The Saints will host the NCAA Regional for the sixth straight year this weekend and will play Cortland, a 3-0 winner in a first-round game against Worcester State in the 11 a.m. game on MacAllaster Field on Saturday. Bowdoin will play Wheaton, MA, which beat CCNY 6-1, with the second round winners to meet in a regional championship game on Sandy MacAllaster Field. The regional championship game is Sunday at 1 p.m.

In an evenly matched nail-biter, the Saints took 23 shots, 18 in regulation play while Hobart had eight in the first two periods but neither team was able to convert.

The bench players really contributed for the Saints as coach Bob Durocher explains, "The key for us was that we went deep on the bench and were able to keep the play going which helped us dramatically."

In the 102nd minute of play Elliott Savitz took a penalty kick for the Saints. Hobart goalkeeper Carl Fried deflected the low flying kick back into play before being cleared out by a defender.

Just six minutes later senior captain Eric Bunyan broke through the stacked defense and crossed to Mark McIntire who dove and headed the ball past a lunging Fried for the game winner.

The most important thing for the Saints right now is to rest up and remain healthy for this weekend's NCAA Tournament.

"The UCAA Tournament helped us to tune up for the NCAA Tournament. We have never played in overtime this year and now I know that the players can handle it, " Durocher said.

Hobart is not a stranger to overtime action as they played three games in regular season in extra periods, two of which went into the double over times.

Fried made seven saves for Hobart while Jordan James grabbed three.

The UCAA Championship All-Tournament team was announced Sunday after the Championship match between St. Lawrence University and Hobart College.

The Saints named senior goalkeeper Jordan James, junior defenseman Evan Schutt, senior co-captain Eric Bunyan and junior forward Mark McIntire to the team.

Goalkeeper Carl Fried, Farid Hafsia and Ricky Koltz were selected for Hobart while James Parke and Deimitry Maurice were selected for Hamilton College. Tony Aniello and Mark Melly were picked from Skidmore College’s team.

SAINTS ADVANCE TO UCAA FINAL WITH 6-0 WIN

Nov. 8: St. Lawrence University's men's soccer team moved one step closer to its second straight Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association soccer tournament championship as six different players scored goals in a 6-0 semifinal victory over Skidmore on Sandy MacAllaster Field Saturday.

The Saints, now 15-2-0, will play the winner of the second semifinal game between Hamilton and Hobart in the 1 p.m. championship game on MacAllaster Field on Sunday. The winner receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III championship tournament, and the Saints will be after their sixth straight NCAA tournament berth and their seventh UCAA championship in the nine years of the conference.

The scoring balance in the Skidmore game was much the same as the scoring balance has been throughout the season for the Saints. Two Saints scored their first goal of the season to run the total of Saint players with goals to 14 and two players scored their fifth of the season to grab a share of the Saint goal-scoring lead.

Junior Charlie Bour opened the scoring 12:54 into play when he lifted a high shot into the upper left hand corner of the net for his fifth of the season. Elliott Savitz, the only player with multiple points in the game then sent a cross to Ryan O'Dowd who scored his fourth of the season from 18 yards out with 28:38 gone. Phil Koshi then made it a 3-0 game at the half as he scored his first goal of the year on a corner kick as Ezequiel Rodrigo set up the play with 5:20 to go in the half.

It took just 3:22 for the Saints to make it a 4-0 game as Steve Watson scored his fifth of the year, heading home a cross by Eric Bunyan and Savitz made it a 5-0 game just under eight minutes later when he scored on a penalty kick. Jason Wagner completed the scoring when he arched a shot over the head of Skidmore goalkeeper Mike D'Aleo at the 71:59 mark. It was Wagner's third goal of the season.

The Saints outshot Skidmore 20-7 and had 11 corner kicks to three for the Thoroughbreds. Jordan James made three saves for his tenth shutout of the year while Rollie Kielman had five saves and allowed five goals and D'Aleo had one save and a single goal allowed for Skidmore, which finished its season with a 9-8-2 record.

HOBART TO FACE ST. LAWRENCE

Nov. 8- Hobart College will advance to the Championship round of the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association as they get set to face St. Lawrence University Sunday at 1 p.m. on Sandy MacAllaster field.

The third seed Statesmen (14-5-1) defeated second seed Hamilton Continentals in the second playoff game of the day 1-0.

Freshman Ben Crosky scored the lone goal of the game within the first 10 minutes of the game. Mickie Subotowicz carried the ball down the field and set up a wide open Crosky who maneuvered past a Hamilton defender to blast one past goalkeeper Gregory Zalasky at the 9:38 mark.

Zalasky and Anthony Tripicchio made a combined seven saves for the Continentals while Carl Fried had five in the win.

SEVEN SAINTS AWARDED UCAA HONORS

Nov. 7 - Seven members of the St. Lawrence University Men's soccer team were named to the 2003 All-Conference Team.

Charlie Bogosian was named UCAA Co-Rookie of the Year as he leads the Saints in shots with 44 and is tied for second place in points (11), goals (4), and assists (3). Bogosian is part of the Saint offense that has taken 309 shots on its opponents, 125 in conference play.

Also included in that stunning offense are forwards Charlie Bour, Ryan O'Dowd, Nick Mangee and Elliott Savitz.

Bour and defensive player Evan Schutt were named to the All-Conference First team while Bogosian, O'Dowd, Mangee, Savitz and defensive player Macky Diop were selected for the All-Conference Second Team.

SAINTS CLOSE OUT REGULAR SEASON WITH RAINY 4-1 VICTORY

Oct. 29 - The Saints men's soccer team (14-2-0) earned a 4-1 victory over visiting Plattsburgh for its two seniors this afternoon. Today's game marks the end of the regular season for the Saints. They will be off until Nov. 8 as they prepare for the UCAA Tournament.

Mike Figliola opened up the scoring for Plattsburgh in the 27th minute. Figliola's goal was unassisted as he put the Cardinals ahead of the Saints 1-0. Junior Steve Watson evened the score in the 44th minute off a helper from junior Evan Schutt.

Freshman Charlie Bogosian pushed the Saints ahead 2-1 with what proved to be the game winner in the 57th minute. Schutt collected his second assist of the day on Bogosian's goal.

In the 76th minute, junior Charlie Bour put the Saints up 3-1 of a pass from junior Ryan O'Dowd. And in the 90th minute, junior Mark McIntire closed out the game off a helper from junior Jason Wagner.

Senior goaltender Jordan James made three saves in his final regular season appearance at MacAllaster field.

VASSAR BLANKS SLU 1-0 IN LAST UCAA MATCH-UP

Oct. 25- Vassar College handed St. Lawrence University their first conference loss of the season on Sandy MacAllaster field Saturday afternoon. The Brewers only had two shots the entire game, but one was all it took as they defeated the Saints 1-0.

Aldis Butler scored for the Brewer, 9-3-1, 2-3-1, just 5:58 minutes into the game after dribbling 30 yards up and launching the ball from the left side of the field into the upper right hand corner of the net just past the hands of Saint keeper Jordan James.

In what was a rugged contest, two players were ejected from the field. The Saints played one man down after losing Jason Koshi who was handed a red card for violent conduct 42:40 into the game. Vassar’s Amandeep Kalsi was taken out of the game after receiving two yellow cards for unsportsmanlike conduct. Kalsi’s first yellow card occurred in the first half while the second came 66:12 minutes into the contest.

The Saints offense rallied in the second half as they took 10 shots while the Saints defense denied the Brewers a single shot. There was great excitement when Chalie Bour and Elliott Savitz each got off a rebound shot late in the second half but Vassar’s goalkeeper, Paul Conners, was impermeable.

Conners made all seven of his saves in the second half while James made his single save of the afternoon in the first half.

The Saints, 13-2-0, 6-1-0, remain number one in the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association despite the loss and will close out their regular season at home on Wednesday at 3 p.m. against Plattsburgh.

SAINTS EARN # 1 SEED IN UCAA

Oct. 24- The Saints defeated the Rensselaer Red Hawks 2-1 on Sandy MacAllaster field Friday afternoon. With this win, and Hamilton's tie with Skidmore 1-1, the Saints have earned the number one spot in the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association while maintaining a perfect 6-0-0 record in their conference.

The Saints, 13-1-0, tallied 16 shots in the game while the dazzling defense held the Red Hawks to only two shots the entire game, both occurring in the first half.

Charlie Bour headed his third goal of the season 23:37 into the game from a cross by Eric Bunyan.

Gil Schaper secured the win for the Saints as he converted a corner kick taken by Ezequiel Rodrigo with just under two minutes left to play in the second half. That goal was also the third for Schaper.

Jordan James had just one save in the game while the Red Hawk’s goalkeeper Greg Goehle made three as their record drops to 5-8-0, 0-5-0.

The Saints welcome UCAA opponent Vassar Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.

TWO SAINTS NAMED PERFORMER OF THE WEEK

Junior Ezequiel Rodrigo and classmate Evan Schutt were named UCAA Performers of the Week based on their performances in last weekend’s UCAA conference match ups.

Rodrigo scored the only goal in the Saints 1-0 victory over the undefeated Hami lton Continentals on Friday. Schutt led a Saint defense that held the previously undefeated Continentals without a shot attempted and blanked the potent Hobart offense on Saturday. Schutt blocked a shot early in the game against Hobart that had eluded goalkeeper Jordan James. With the weekend sweep the Saints now stand at number one in UCAA standings with a perfect 5-0-0 record.

SAINTS SWEEP UCAA WEEKEND

Oct. 11- Mark McIntire scored his second goal of the season as the Saints, 12-1-0 overall and 5-0-0 in UCAA play went on to defeat the Hobart Statesmen 1-0 on Sandy MacAllaster field Saturday afternoon.

Although the Saints had many opportunities to put scores on the board, McIntire was the only one who could convert into real numbers. McIntire scored off a pass from Jason Wagner with just under four minutes left to play in the first half. He dribbled down the field to rocket one in the upper right hand side of the net past Hobart’s goalkeeper Carl Fried’s reach.

Macky Diop had one penalty kick attempt but his aim was too high as the ball hit the cross bar and bounced back into play.

Fried had nine saves while Jordan James made three saves for the Saints.

This win, which puts the Saints atop the UCAA standings with a perfect record of 5-0, means that the Saints need to only win one of their next two UCAA conference games in order to host the UCAA tournament to be held the weekend of November 7th.

The Saints have almost two weeks off before they host Rensselaer on October 24 at 4:00 p.m.

SAINTS STAY UNDEFEATED IN UCAA

Oct. 10- St. Lawrence maintained their perfect UCAA record,now 4-0, after beating the undefeated Hamilton Continentals, now 7-1-0 overall and 3-1-0 in UCAA play, at home on Friday night.

St. Lawrence, the number four nationally ranked team, was defensively able to shut down Hamilton’s offense as the Continentals were unable to get off a single shot while the Saints had a total of 18 shots on the night.

It wasn’t until the second half of the game that the Saints were able to convert a goal. Gil Scaper played the ball in to Ezequiel Rodrigo who then drilled past Hamilton’s defense and shot from 25 yards out, hitting the inside far post and knocking it into the back of the net.

Gregory Zalasky and Lars Hedberg combined for eleven saves.

The Saints continue their UCAA play at home against Hobart Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.

WATSON NAMED UCAA PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Oct. 6- Junior Steve Watson was named UCAA offensive player of the week for his performance against conference rival Clarkson Golden Knights this past weekend.

In his first game back since a season-ending injury during the 2001 quarterfinals, Watson scored three goals as he and teammate Macky Diop led the Saints to a 6-0 victory over the Golden Knights.

Watson headed his first goal of the game off a corner kick taken by Ezequiel Rodrigo. Minutes later he scored again while his third happened during the 77th minute of the play to wrap up a phenomenal come back.

WATSON SCORES THREE IN

SAINTS UCAA VICTORY

Oct. 4- Junior Steve Watson scored three goals as he and the St. Lawrence Saints crushed Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association (UCAA) rivals the Clarkson Golden Knights 6-0 on Sandy MacAllaster field Saturday afternoon.

The Saints (10-1-0 over all and 3-0 in UCAA play) out shot the Golden Knights (2-6-2 and 2-1-0) 27-2 as they handed Clarkson their worst loss of the season.

Macky Diop opened the floodgates 28:17 into the first half off a penalty kick. Within the next eight minutes Watson scored two goals in his first game back from injury since playing in the quarterfinals in 2001. Watson headed the first of his goals in at 32:00 from a corner kick taken by teammate Ezequiel Rodrigo. Four minutes later Watson struck again as he nailed a shot past Clarkson's goalkeeper David Hennessey on a pass from Evan Schutt.

Diop scored once more at the 64:02 mark of the second half from a feed by Charlie Bour. Watson closed out his season opener by scoring an unassisted goal at 77:49. Less than two minutes later Gil Schaper wrapped up the game for St. Lawrence on a goal with assists by Mark McIntire and Charlie Bogosian.

It wasn't until the last minute of play that Saints goalkeeper Jordan James made his first and only save of the game. David Hennessey and Greg Dunton combined for four and two saves respectively for the Golden Knights.

The Saints will host UCAA contests next weekend with Hamilton on Friday and Hobart on Saturday.

DIOP SCORES 2, SAINTS WIN 3-0

Oct. 1- The Saints didn't have to travel far to claim their next win as they defeated the neighboring Golden Bears of the State University of New York at Potsdam.

The nationally ranked Saints, 9-1-0 over all and 2-0 in UCAA play, outshot the Bears 38-5 but only needed one goal on Wednesday night to take home the win.

The Saints, however, were able to score three as Macky Diop taped his first one of the game in off Potsdam goalkeepers Adam Youmelle's hands at the 17:46 mark early in the first half. Ryan O'Dowd was accredited with the assist.

Diop then went on to kick the ball in the net as it bounced back from the goal post. Diop's goal was assisted by Nick Mangee and Gil Schaper.

Garrett Huntley scored his second of the season with under four minutes remaining in the game from Jason Wagner's previous kick attempt.

Jordan James had five saves to record his ninth win of the season. Youmelle had ten saves on the night.

The Saints next face North Country and UCAA rival Clarkson at 3:00 p.m. on Sandy MacAllaster field.

SAINTS 2-0 IN UCAA PLAY

Sept. 27- St. Lawrence University moved to 2-0 in Upstate Collegiate Athletic Associatin play with a 2-0 win over Skidmore College, Saturday afternoon at Skidmore Stadium.

Joe Domingo's goal off a rebound from Ryan O'Dowd at 11:18 was all the Saints needed. Charlie Bogosian scored an insurance goal from a feed off the foot of Macky Diop at 78:24 to make it 2-0. Jordan James had one save for the shutout. St. Lawrence, ranked third nationally, is 8-1 overall.

Rollie Kielman had 10 saves for Skidmore.

SAINTS WIN 2-1 AT UNION

Sept. 26- St. Lawrence scored a pair of first-half goals then held off a furious rush by Union as the Saints held on for a 2-1 men’s soccer victory in the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association opener for both teams Friday on Garis Field.

The Saints, 7-1, took a 2-0 lead into halftime on goals by Charlie Bour and Gil Schaper.

The scored remained that way until Union’s Aaron Iskowitz took a feed from Matt Acciani. The ball bounced around the net as the Saints were able to clear it away twice, but were not able to control it the third time around.

Bour scored 14:07 into the game off a pass from Ryan O’Dowd. Shaper scored his first of the year off a corner kick taken by Ezequiel Rodrigo

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“We still need to work better on finishing opportunities. When it was 2-0 the defense played like the game was over. When we play more competitive teams this could be a scoring opportunity for those opponents and we just can’t give them that chance,” noted head coach Bob Durocher.

Saints goalkeeper Jordan James had four saves as Union’s keeper had six saves.

The Saints play on the road at Skidmore tomorrow at 2 p.m.

SAINTS LOSE FIRST GAME OF SEASON

Sept. 20- The St. Lawrence Saints, 6-1-0, lost their first game of the season in an upsetting 1-0 match against the visiting Ithaca Bombers.

The Bombers, 6-1-1, snapped the Saints 27 game winning streak on Sandy MacAllaster field in a heartbreaking competition during St. Lawrence's family weekend.

Roughly 750 spectators, the largest of the 2003 soccer season by far, were there to witness the loss.

The game started out very slowly and it wasn't until the 35:40 mark of the first period that the Saints Joe Domingo was able to pick up the pace and get the crowd's momentum revved up. Domingo intercepted a goal kick off Ithaca's foot for the breakaway shot that just nicked the cross bar as it sailed over.

At the 69:30 mark the Saints Ryan O'Dowd was tripped just outside of the penalty box. The Saints tried to capitalize on the kick as Kyle Krueger headed the ball just over top of the net.

Just ten minutes later Ithaca's Glen Palilla scored the first and only goal of the game. Palilla headed the ball just past Saints goalkeeper Nate Farrell's hands for an unassisted goal.

With only seven minutes left to play in the game the Saints had the opportunity to tie the game as Charlie Bogosian had a break away shot that hit the cross bar, bounced back and was kicked in the upper right hand of the net. The referees had called a foul on the Saints prior to the shot which gave control back to the Bombers.

"Ithaca played their best possible game against us and beat us 1-0. We simply lost our composure out there towards the end of the game. Instead of playing our game, the boys were too focused on trying to score," commented assistant coach Don Goodwin.

Saints goalkeeper Nate Farrell had one save in the game as starting goalkeeper Jordan James remains on the injured list.

The Saints will next play two UCAA games as they travel to Union and Skidmore this weekend.

SAINTS WIN THIRD GAME IN FIVE DAYS

Sept. 16- The Rochester Yellowjackets challenged St. Lawrence to a physical battle on the soccer field Tuesday afternoon, but the Saints emerged with their third win in five days, 2-0.

The number two ranked Saints, 6-0-0 and winners of 27 straight on their home field at MacAllaster Field, snapped Rochester's three game winning streak, dropping the Yellowjackets to 4-2.

Both of the Saints goals came from bench players. John Loftus headed the ball past the Rochester's goalie half way through the first period off a long flip throw in from Phil Koshi. The goal came at the 21:18 mark.

At 66:33 of the second half, Ryan O'Dowd scored his third goal in three consecutive games off a pass from Charlie Bour.

Eric Bunyan, Joe Domingo and Koshi also had shots on net.

Goalkeeper Jordan James made three saves before being injured with only three minutes left in the game. Junior goalkeeper Nate Farrell replaced James to share the shutout.

Rochester goalkeeper Brian Minehan made five saves.

The Saints play Ithaca at home on Saturday before heading on the road for three games.

SAINTS WIN BATTLE OF UNBEATENS, 5-2

Sept. 13: St. Lawrence University's men's soccer team improved to 5-0-0 on the season with a 5-2 win at Cortland on Saturday, winning a battle of nationally ranked and unbeaten teams.

The Saints, ranked 2nd in the country in the NSCAA/Adidas Division III poll, handed the Red Dragons, now 4-1-1 its first loss. Cortland entered Saturday's game ranked 16th in the country.

The Saints trailed for the first time this season as Cortland's Bo Grechka scored the game's opening goal 18:03 into play, but the Saints erupted for three straight to take a halftime lead as the goals all came from players coming into the game off the bench.

Mark McIntire scored his first goal of the season from Elliot Savitz to tie the game at 30:30 and rookie Charlie Bogosian scored his second of the season, taking a pass from Ryan O'Dowd and walking in on the Cortland keeper before putting the shot away at 41:32. O'Dowd then made it a 3-1 game with the eventual game winner as he took a threw pass, beat a defender and the goaltender with just six seconds to go in the first half.

"That goal was a backbreaker for Cortland, coming with just six seconds to go in the half. We scored some pretty goals Saturday and really received a great effort from guys coming off the bench," said Saint coach Bob Durocher.

Joe Domingo scored his second goal of the season at 59:21 from Phil Koshi to give the Saints a 4-1 lead, and while Cortland got one back at 65:40 on a shot by Matt Daum, Jason Wagner scored on a header off a corner with Savitz earning his second assist of the afternoon on the goal at 88:26.

Jordan James had seven saves for the Saints, who will host Rochester on Tuesday, while Ross Morelli had three for Cortland. The Saints had a 19-14 edge in shots on goal.

SAINTS TURN BACK RIT

FOR 4TH STRAIGHT WIN

Sept. 12: The Rochester Institute of Technology became the first team to score on the St. Lawrence University men's soccer team in the 2003 season, but the Saints ran their win streak to four straight with a 2-1 decision in Rochester on Friday.

The Saints, 4-0-0, went 339:42 before surrendering their first goal of the year, but had a 2-0 lead at the time.

"We didn't play as well defensively as we would have liked, and we had a lot of scoring chances that we didn't cash in on," said Saint coach Bob Durocher. "Their goal came as we were moving the ball out of our own end and we were caught out of position on the turnover."

The Saints opened the scoring 24:50 into the game as Ezequiel Rodrigo took a pass from Phil Koshi at the top of the box and finished off the play with a pretty shot to the far corner which eluded RIT goalie Nate Andrews for his second of the year. It went to 2-0 at the 57:55 mark when Ryan O'Dowd scored his first of the season off a Koshi flip pass on a throw in.

George Chambers scored the RIT goal with a shot with glanced in off the post at the 69:42 mark to complete the scoring.

Jordan James finished with three saves for the Saints, who had a 30-9 edge in shots on goal and a 9-3 advantage in corner kicks. Andrew had 10 saves for the Tigers, now 2-3-0 on the season.

The Saints continue a weekend road series at Cortland Saturday afternoon.

SAINTS WIN ON THE ROAD
Sept. 6- The St. Lawrence Saints outshot the Geneseo Blue Knights 23-11 on route to a 3-0 victory on the road.

Joe Domingo opened the scoring for the Saints off a pass from Charlie Bogosian late in the first half.

In the second half, Macky Diop was able to capitalize on a penalty kick to give the Saints another goal while just six minutes later Elliott Savitz connected to Garrett Huntley who increased the Saints lead by three.

Goalkeeper Jordan James had 4 saves in the Saints shutout victory.

The Saints travel to RIT on Friday and Cortland on Saturday before returning home next Tuesday.

SAINTS PLACE FIRST IN TOURNAMENT

Aug. 30- The Saint men's soccer team took first place in the First Annual Lotto Classic Men's Soccer Tournament on Saturday afternoon.

The Saints, now 2-0, started the scoring early in the game when freshman Charlie Bogosian connected from sophomore Elliot Savitz on the 10 yard line just under eight minutes into the game.

Junior Charlie Bour helped secure the win when he headed the ball from the six-yard line off a throw in from junior Philip Koshi.

Four Saints were named to the All-Tournament team including freshman Brendan Tougher, Savitz, junior Evan Schutt and senior goalkeeper Jordan James.

"Jordan played flawlessly in goal, he was focused and able to direct the team," said assistant coach Don Goodwin.

Junior midfielder Garrett Huntley also had a strong consistent showing in today's game.

"He came through at the necessary times and played the ball smartly," said Goodwin.

In the first game of the tournament the Babson Beavers took the lead when Johny Hakala scored off a pass from Michael Muccio. Clarkson University's Justin Crowley tied the game late in the second half to force the game into double overtime.

Other players named to the All-Tournament team included Lee Roseboom and Matt Kersker from fourth place Babson, Ismael Mohammad and Bryan Oakland from third place Clarkson, and Mitch Irish, Nate Zinteck, and Tim Wyand from second place Fredonia.

RODRIGO PACES SAINTS IN 2-0 WIN

OVER BABSON